William L. Murphy, PHD
Position title: Professor, Biomedical Engineering, Orthopedics & Rehabilitation
Email: wlmurphy@wisc.edu
Phone: 608-262-2224
- Organ System/Disease Focus:
- Orthopedic and cardiovascular
- Aligned Research Focus:
- Tissue engineering, controlled stem cell culture

News Releases:
- Collaboration is key for biomanufacturing, panel says, 29 September 2016
- Researchers aim to broaden understanding of how toxins affect the body, 25 March 2015
- ‘Tissue chips’ could replace animal studies, UW-Madison researchers say 21 December 2014
- Material screening method allows more precise control over stem cells; 10 April 2013
- Who knew? Five questions with Bill Murphy about biotech innovation; 19 April 2012
More information:
- Bioinspired Materials Laboratory, Murphy group
Research Description:
In the Bioinspired Materials Laboratory, we are interested in developing “smart” biomaterials that mimic the complex signaling environments of natural tissue development. We place particular emphasis on temporal and spatial control over growth factor activity, gene transfer, and mechanical stimulation.
The materials developed in our lab are then used to understand and control stem cell differentiation, ultimately geared towards directed regeneration of a variety of human tissues. Our group is highly interdisciplinary, with research areas ranging from novel materials design approaches to basic stem cell biology.
Selected References:
- K.E. Healy, T.C. McDevitt, W.L. Murphy, R.M. Nerem. Engineering the emergence of stem cell therapeutics. Science Translational Medicine, 2013;5:207.
- S.Y. Choi, X. Yu, L. Jongpaiboonkit, S.J. Hollister, W.L. Murphy. Inorganic coatings for optimized non-viral transfection of stem cells. Scientific Reports, 2013; 3: 1567.
- W.L. Murphy, T.C. McDevitt, A.J. Engler. Materials as stem cell regulators. Nature Materials, 2014; 13: 547-557.
- E.H. Nguyen, M. Zanottelli, W.L. Murphy. Differential effects of cell adhesion, modulus and VEGFR-2 inhibition on capillary network formation in synthetic hydrogel arrays. Biomaterials, 2014; 35: 2149-2161.
- X. Yu, P.N. Dang, A.S. Khalil, E. Alsberg, W.L. Murphy Tunable dual growth factor delivery using multilayered microparticles with controllable degradation kinetics. Advanced Functional Materials, 2014; 24: 3082–3093.