Professor Alicia El Haj BSc, MSc, PhD, FREng, FRSB, FEAMBES

Professor Alicia El Haj

School of Chemical Engineering
Interdisciplinary Chair of Cell Engineering
Director of the Institute of Translational Medicine

Contact details

Telephone
+44 (0) 121 371 7698
Email
a.elhaj@bham.ac.uk
Manpreet Bhatti - Diary management
m.bhatti@bham.ac.uk
View my research portal
Address
Healthcare Technologies Institute
Institute of Translational Medicine
Heritage Building (Old Queen Elizabeth Hospital)
Mindelsohn Way
Birmingham
B15 2TH

Alicia El Haj is the Interdisciplinary Professor of Cell Engineering at the Healthcare Technologies Institute and Director of the Institute of Translational Medicine, University of Birmingham.

She is a leading figure in Bioengineering and Regenerative Medicine and has been involved in bringing together interdisciplinary groups within biomedicine, physical sciences and engineering, interested in aspects of cell and tissue engineering and regenerative medicine to move innovative new cell based therapies to the clinic. She has published over 200 publications in developing novel tissue engineering approaches using biomechanics, bioreactors, and imaging systems for the delivery of cell therapies to the clinic with funding from EPSRC, MRC, BBSRC, Versus Arthritis and ERC Advanced Grant

Alicia actively engages in public events having presented ‘Remote Control Healing’ at the Café Scientifique in Royal Society London and at the ‘Next Big Thing’ at the Hay Festival 2017.

Alicia El Haj is part of the Healthcare Technologies Institute (HTI), an interdisciplinary network of over 70 academics working together to advance new technologies and treatments that encourage better tissue healing and rehabilitation tools.  The HTI brings together leading experts from a variety of disciplines across the University of Birmingham, including chemical engineering, biomedical science, computer science, applied mathematics, chemistry and physics. Researchers across campus are working collaboratively to speed up the translation of new discoveries into health applications.

Qualifications

  • Fellow of the Royal Academy of Engineering
  • Fellow of the Royal Society of Biology
  • Fellow of the European Alliance for Medical and Biological Engineering and Science

Biography

Growing Bones - The Edge
Bone Cells - Alicia El Haj
2015 ACHLR – ESRC – Liability and Innovation The Defensive Medicine Debate Alicia El Haj

Professor Alicia El Haj, FREng, FRSB, FEAMBES, Interdisciplinary Professor of Cell Engineering, joined the Healthcare Technology Institute in the Institute of Translational Medicine at Birmingham University, UK in September 2018. Previously, she has been the founding Director of the Institute of Science & Technology in Medicine at Keele University Medical School. She is a leading figure in Bioengineering and Regenerative Medicine and has been involved in bringing together interdisciplinary groups within biomedicine, physical sciences and engineering interested in aspects of cell and tissue engineering and regenerative medicine to move innovative new cell based therapies to the clinic. She has published over a 200 publications in novel tissue engineering approaches such as biomechanics, bioreactors, and imaging systems for the delivery of cell therapies to the clinic with funding from EPSRC, MRC, BBSRC, AR UK and an ERC Advanced Award in 2018. She is also Director of a spin out company MICA Biosystems , Ltd involved in translating innovative in vitro pharma screening tools and stem cell control systems into clinical use.

 

She is Deputy Director of the MRC UKRMP Regen Med Hub and a partner in ARUK Centre in Tissue Engineering and Regenerative Medicine as well as multiple EU programmes. She has been a Research Director of an EPSRC Doctoral Training Centre in Regenerative Medicine,  and a co-director of the EPSRC Centre for Innovative Manufacturing Centre in Regenerative Medicine.  Prof. El Haj is ex-Chair of the European Council for the Tissue Engineering & Regenerative Medicine International Society (TERMIS).She was awarded with a Royal Society Merit Award in 2014 and is a Fellow of the Royal Academy of Engineering in the UK. In March 2015, she was awarded the MRC Suffrage Award for her role in leading women in STEM. Alicia actively engages in public events having presented ‘Remote Control Healing’ at the Café Scientifique in Royal Society London and at the ‘Next Big Thing’ at the Hay Festival 2017.

Other activities

  • Fellow of the Royal Academy of Engineering
  • Fellow of the Royal Society of Biology
  • Fellow of the European Alliance for Medical and Biological Engineering and Science
  • Founding member of the UK Tissue and Cell Engineering Society and President from 2003-2008
  • Deputy Director of the MRC UKRMP Regen Med Hub
  • Co-director of the EPSRC Centre for Innovative Manufacturing Centre in Regenerative Medicine
  • President of the UK Bioengineering Society

Publications

Recent publications

Article

Mason, JH, Luo, L, Reinwald, Y, Taffetani, M, Hallas-Potts, A, Herrington, CS, Srsen, V, Lin, C-J, Barroso, IA, Zhang, Z, Zhang, Z, Ghag, AK, Yang, Y, Waters, S, El Haj, AJ & Bagnaninchi, PO 2023, 'Debiased ambient vibrations optical coherence elastography to profile cell, organoid and tissue mechanical properties', Communications Biology, vol. 6, no. 1, 543. https://doi.org/10.1038/s42003-023-04788-0

Dimmock, RL, Rotherham, M, Haj, AJE & Yang, Y 2023, 'Fabrication and Characterisation of Hydrogels with Reversible Wrinkled Surfaces for Limbal Study and Reconstruction', Gels, vol. 9, no. 11, 915. https://doi.org/10.3390/gels9110915

Unnithan, AR, Rotherham, M, Markides, H & El haj, AJ 2023, 'Magnetic Ion Channel Activation (MICA)-Enabled Screening Assay: A Dynamic Platform for Remote Activation of Mechanosensitive Ion Channels', International Journal of Molecular Sciences, vol. 24, no. 4, 3364. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms24043364

Hajiali, H, Rotherham, M & Haj, AJE 2023, 'Remote Activation of Mechanotransduction via Integrin Alpha-5 via Aptamer-Conjugated Magnetic Nanoparticles Promotes Osteogenesis', Pharmaceutics, vol. 16, no. 1, 21. https://doi.org/10.3390/pharmaceutics16010021

Dhillon, K, Aizel, K, Broomhall, TJ, Secret, E, Goodman, T, Rotherham, M, Telling, N, Siaugue, JM, Ménager, C, Fresnais, J, Coppey, M, El Haj, AJ & Gates, MA 2022, 'Directional control of neurite outgrowth: emerging technologies for Parkinson's disease using magnetic nanoparticles and magnetic field gradients', Journal of the Royal Society, Interface, vol. 19, no. 196, 20220576. https://doi.org/10.1098/rsif.2022.0576

Hu, B, Rotherham, M, Farrow, N, Roach, P, Dobson, J & El haj, AJ 2022, 'Immobilization of Wnt Fragment Peptides on Magnetic Nanoparticles or Synthetic Surfaces Regulate Wnt Signaling Kinetics', International Journal of Molecular Sciences, vol. 23, no. 17, 10164. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms231710164

Wright, AL, Righelli, L, Broomhall, TJ, Lamont, HC & El Haj, AJ 2022, 'Magnetic Nanoparticle-Mediated Orientation of Collagen Hydrogels for Engineering of Tendon-Mimetic Constructs', Frontiers in Bioengineering and Biotechnology, vol. 10, 797437. https://doi.org/10.3389/fbioe.2022.797437

Rotherham, M, Moradi, Y, Nahar, T, Mosses, D, Telling, N & El haj, AJ 2022, 'Magnetic activation of TREK1 triggers stress signalling and regulates neuronal branching in SH-SY5Y cells', Frontiers in Medical Technology, vol. 4, 981421. https://doi.org/10.3389/fmedt.2022.981421

Rotherham, M, Nahar, T, Broomhall, TJ, Telling, ND & El haj, AJ 2022, 'Remote magnetic actuation of cell signalling for tissue engineering', Current Opinion in Biomedical Engineering, vol. 24, 100410. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cobme.2022.100410

Unnithan, AR, Sasikala, ARK, Shrestha, BK, Lincoln, A, Thomson, T & El Haj, AJ 2022, 'Remotely Actuated Magnetic Nanocarpets for Bone Tissue Engineering: Non‐Invasive Modulation of Mechanosensitive Ion Channels for Enhanced Osteogenesis', Advanced Functional Materials. https://doi.org/10.1002/adfm.202201311

Abstract

Hajiali, H & El Haj, A 2023, 'Comparison of magnetic nanoparticle activation of mechanotransduction via antibody and aptamer', Tissue Engineering and Regenerative Medicine International Society (TERMIS) European Chapter Meeting 2023, Manchester, United Kingdom, 28/03/23 - 31/03/23.

Hajiali, H & El Haj, A 2022, 'Comparison of magnetic nanoparticle activation of mechanotransduction via antibody and aptamer', Joint TCES // CDT Conference 2022, Birmingham, United Kingdom, 13/06/22 - 15/06/22.

Dhillon, K, Rotherham, M, Unnithan, AR, Telling, N & El Haj, A 2022, 'Functionalised magnetic nanoparticles for promotion of WNT signalling activation and neurite outgrowth and migration', Tissue Engineering Part A, vol. 28, no. S1, pp. S184-S184. https://doi.org/10.1089/ten.tea.2022.29025.abstracts

Conference contribution

Hajiali, H & El Haj, A 2023, Comparison of magnetic nanoparticle activation of mechanotransduction via antibody and aptamer. in BioMedEng23, September 14-15, 2023 Swansea, UK.

Review article

Foster, N, Hall, NM & El Haj, A 2021, '2D and 3D cartilage model platforms for drug evaluation and high-throughput screening assays', Tissue Engineering Reviews: Part B. https://doi.org/10.1089/ten.TEB.2020.0354

View all publications in research portal