Frederick Silver, PhD

Frederick Silver is a professor at the Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine. He received his Bachelor's in Chemical Engineering from Northeastern University, then received his PhD in Polymer Science & Engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He completed his postgraduate training at Massachusetts General Hospital in the field of developmental medicine.

His areas of interest include biomaterials, biomechanics, mechanotransduction, and medical devices. For a list of Dr. Silver's published works, visit PubMed.

Dr. Silver's current research revolves around the extracellular matrix (ECM), which is found in both vertebrates and invertebrates and forms the structural scaffold of all tissues and organs. The components of ECM include collagen fibers, proteoglycans, elastic fibers, and cells.

His laboratory is interested in understanding how these components are assembled into multifunctional tissues that allow mammals to locomote, heal when wounded, and store energy through mechanotransduction. His studies focus on the relationship between the structure and properties of ECMs and the use of tissue-engineered ECMs as implants. They are also interested in changes in mechanotransduction with age that may lead to impaired healing and disease.