Vanessa Wu

I am a freshman studying Materials Science & Engineering and Biomedical Engineering. I am advised by Dr. Rebecca Taylor in the Microsystems and Mechanobiology Lab. My research objective is to investigate the integration of peptide nucleic acids (PNA) for developing hybrid-DNA nanostructures for synthetic biology applications.

Current Projects

I’m developing hybrid DNA-PNA nanostructures for self-assembling and reconfigurable systems. I’m experimenting with CAD models of DNA origami including tetrahedral framework nucleic acid and Holliday Junction structures.

Previous Projects

Polymer-grafted Single Walled Carbon Nanotubes as Synthetic Receptors. I was a biomedical research intern at the Daniel Heller Nanomedicine lab at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center. Independently, I tested five different polymer grafts on nanotubes and evaluated their viability in aqueous solutions to determine their potential biological applications. I also began to develop a method to synthesize molecularly imprinted polymer grafts on nanotubes to create highly specific and sensitive receptors. Through this project, I was selected as one of five NY Metro Delegates for the 2025 National Junior Science and Humanities Symposium and awarded 1st place in the Medicine and Health Category at the NYC Metro Regional Semifinals.

Contact Information

Please contact me by email: vwu2@andrew.cmu.edu
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