principal investigator

Dr. Gary W. Liu is currently a K99/R00 Pathway to Independence Fellow in the lab groups of Robert Langer and Giovanni Traverso at MIT, and will be starting as an Assistant Professor in the Department of Biomedical Engineering at Georgia Institute of Technology in February 2026. He received his B.S. in Biomedical Engineering from The University of Texas at Austin, and his Ph.D. in Bioengineering from the University of Washington, Seattle in the lab group of Suzie Pun in collaboration with Stuart Shankland. His work has been published in leading journals including Nature Materials, Matter, and Biomaterials. 

As a kidney disease patient for 20+ years, Gary is dedicated to engineering new technologies for kidney disease and mentoring the next generation of scientists. The Liu Lab aims to engineer materials that can interface with kidney tissue, to sense disease, deliver therapeutics, and augment tissue with new functions. His hobbies include weightlifting, trying out new restaurants, and the occasional jog along the Charles River. 

Education & Training

• 2019 - 2025 postdoctoral fellow, Massachusetts Institute of Technology

• 2013 - 2019 Ph.D., Bioengineering, University of Washington, Seattle

• 2009 - 2013 B.S., Biomedical Engineering, The University of Texas at Austin

Selected Awards

• 2024 - 2029 NIDDK K99/R00 Pathway to Independence Award

• 2020 - 2023 NIDDK Ruth L. Kirschstein NRSA Postdoctoral Fellowship

• 2023 nominated, Peter Karches Mentorship Prize

• 2019 Excellence in Mentorship Award