Quinton Smith Named Rising Star by Biomedical Engineering Society

Nov. 18, 2024 - Quinton Smith, UC Irvine assistant professor of chemical and biomolecular engineering, has been named a Rising Star by the Biomedical Engineering Society (BMES), Cellular and Molecular Bioengineering (CMBE) Special Interest Group. The award honors exceptional early career researchers who have made outstanding contributions and innovation within the field of cellular and molecular bioengineering. Twenty early career professors were selected for the CMBE Rising Star Awards of 2025.

Smith is doing groundbreaking work in stem cell engineering. His lab uses adult cells such as skin, hair or fat cells that have been reprogrammed with a cocktail of chemicals to transform them into the likeness of embryonic stem cells. His lab then engineers these cells to mature into any cell type in the body. With these so-called human-induced pluripotent stem cell derivatives, his group creates human organs-on-a-chip to model disease and predict how the human body will respond to drug treatments.

With this high-tech solution to testing new drugs, Smith aims to help develop treatments for preeclampsia and liver diseases, which disproportionately affect marginalized groups. Smith’s innovative approach toward stem cell engineering also landed him on Popular Science’s list of the 10 scientists “on the cusp of changing the world” in 2023.

The BMES Rising Star Award recipients will share their latest work at the 2025 BMES CMBE Conference from Jan. 3-6, 2025, in Carlsbad, California.

The BMES Cellular and Molecular Bioengineering Special Interest Group brings together researchers from diverse backgrounds to better understand how the pursuit of controlling biological processes can improve the practice of medicine.