John D Obayemi

Provost

Assistant Research Professor

Affiliated Department or Office:

Biomedical Engineering

Education:

B.Eng. (Bachelor of Engineering) Mechanical Engineering ABU, Zaria.

MS Materials Science and Engineering African University of Science and Technology (AUST), Abuja.

PhD Materials Science and Engineering African University of Science and Technology (AUST), Abuja.

Postdoctoral Research Associate Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering Princeton University, Princeton, New Jersey, USA.

Prior to joining WPI, Dr. Obayemi was a Lecturer and Post-Doctoral Research Associate in the department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering at Princeton University. While at Princeton, John engaged in cutting edge research and taught an undergraduate/graduate course: bioengineering and medical devices. His research focuses on the development of engineered theranostic nanoparticles/drug clusters/medical devices as well as tissue engineered structures for specific targeting and controlled localized treatment of cancer. John received a master's and doctorate degree funded by the World Bank and the African Development Bank (AfDB) Scholarship Research Program at the African University of Science and Technology (AUST) in 2011 and 2015, respectively. In the course of his graduate program at AUST, he was a visiting graduate student at Princeton University and Rutgers University in 2012 and 2013, respectively. During this period, John's PhD dissertation was supervised by a Princeton Professor and was titled “Nano- and Micro-particles for the Detection and Treatment of Cancer”.

Dr. Obayemi has coauthored over 50 scientific publications in peer-reviewed journals. His work has evolved from the development of functionalized magnetite and gold nanoparticles that are being conjugated with molecular recognition units (MRU) [Luteinizing Hormone Releasing Hormone (LHRH) or Eph Receptor A2 (EphA2)] to their applications for specific targeting of cancer cells/tissue. His current research focused on the use of multidisciplinary and interdisciplinary approaches in the development of novel engineered nano- and micro-particles in addition to tissue engineered structures for disease detection and treatment. His current areas of interest include: fundamental understanding of interfacial strength and mechanical properties of biological and biomedical materials, biomechanics of cancer and normal breast cells, magnetite nanoparticles for specific targeting and treatment of cancer, bioresorbable and nonresorbable tissue engineered structures, implantable devices for localized drug delivery systems, gold nanoparticles for cancer detection and treatment. John is a modest and creative researcher/teacher who intends to continuously build a career in research, teaching and innovation in order to nurture and inspire effectively the next generation of young people to solving societal problems using interdisciplinary innovative approaches.