Reprogramming Immunity with Nanomedicine: Insights from Dr. Ryan Pearson
About the event
Speaker: Dr. Ryan Pearson, University of Maryland School of Pharmacy
Host: Dr. Anjali Sharma
Title: “Nanomedicine and Mechanisms for Immune Reprogramming in Inflammatory Disease”
Abstract: Advances in nanomedicine have enabled the design of biomaterial platforms that actively modulate immune function through precise control over composition, surface chemistry, and nano-bio interactions. This talk will highlight our development of bioinspired lipid and metabolite-based nanoparticles that engage the immune system through mechanisms including protein corona formation, cytokine sequestration, and reprogramming of cellular immunometabolism. We will discuss how these materials influence macrophage phenotypes and metabolic state, thereby reshaping innate immune responses. These mechanisms will be contextualized in clinically relevant disease models, including endotoxemia and polymicrobial sepsis, as well as diet-induced obesity, where nanoparticle-driven immune modulation leads to reduced systemic inflammation, improved tissue function, and enhanced therapeutic outcomes.
Biography: Dr. Ryan Pearson is an Associate Professor of Pharmaceutical Sciences and Director of the Bio- and Nano-Technology Center at the University of Maryland School of Pharmacy. He further holds an adjunct appointment in the Molecular Microbiology & Immunology department at the University of Maryland School of Medicine. Dr. Pearson received his PhD in Biopharmaceutical Sciences from the University of Illinois at Chicago and completed postdoctoral research at the University of Michigan. Dr. Pearson’s immune engineering laboratory focuses on developing nanoparticle-based technologies to treat dysregulated immune responses specifically focusing on sepsis, trauma, autoimmunity, and allergy. He has published over 50 manuscripts in top journals in the field, is an inventor on 3 granted patents, and has several additional patents pending. Dr. Pearson been recognized with multiple awards including the American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy New Investigator Award, National Institute for Pharmaceutical Technology and Education Rising Star Award, Shock Society Faculty Research Award, and the Maximizing Investigators’ Research Award (R35 MIRA) from NIGMS. Dr. Pearson serves on the editorial board of Pharmaceutical Research and Drug Delivery & Translational Research, and as faculty advisor for the AAPS UMB Student Chapter. He was the former Chair of the Immuno Delivery Focus Group for the Controlled Release Society and the AAPS Nanotechnology Community.