Varghese

Shyni Varghese

Laszlo Ormandy Distinguished Professor of Orthopaedic Surgery

Research Interests

Musculoskeletal tissue repair, disease biophysics and organ-on-a-chip technology

Bio

Shyni Varghese has a triple appointment in the Duke departments of Biomedical Engineering, Mechanical Engineering and Materials Science, and Orthopaedic Surgery. She is the first MEDx Investigator.

A leader in the field of biomaterials and stem cells, Varghese will develop her research at Duke in three major areas:

  • Musculoskeletal tissue repair
  • Disease biophysics, and
  • Organ-on-a-chip technology


A new initiative of the Pratt School of Engineering and Duke School of Medicine, Duke MEDx seeks to enhance and form new collaborations between doctors and engineers.

Education

  • Ph.D. National Chemical Laboratory (India), 2002

Positions

  • Laszlo Ormandy Distinguished Professor of Orthopaedic Surgery
  • Professor of Orthopaedic Surgery
  • Professor in the Department of Biomedical Engineering
  • Professor in the Department of Mechanical Engineering and Materials Science
  • Affiliate of the Duke Regeneration Center

Courses Taught

  • NEUROSCI 494: Research Independent Study 2
  • NEUROSCI 493: Research Independent Study 1
  • EGR 393: Research Projects in Engineering
  • BME 792: Continuation of Graduate Independent Study
  • BME 791: Graduate Independent Study
  • BME 590: Special Topics in Biomedical Engineering
  • BME 494: Projects in Biomedical Engineering (GE)
  • BME 493: Projects in Biomedical Engineering (GE)
  • BME 394: Projects in Biomedical Engineering (GE)

In the News

Representative Publications

  • Newman, Hunter, Yu-Ru V. Shih, Jiaul Hoque, Yuze Zeng, Naveen R. Natesh, Gavin Gonzales, Wendi Guo, et al. “Enabling adenosine signaling to promote aged fracture healing.” NPJ Regen Med 10, no. 1 (April 9, 2025): 18. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41536-025-00406-1.
  • Madhurakkat Perikamana, Sajeeshkumar, Hunter Newman, Yuru Vernon Shih, Lavonia Duncan, Hilal Ahmad Rather, Jiaoni Li, Ravikanth Velagapudi, Niccolò Terrando, and Shyni Varghese. “Depletion of senescent cells improves surgery-induced neuroinflammation in aged mice.” PNAS Nexus 4, no. 4 (April 2025): pgaf103. https://doi.org/10.1093/pnasnexus/pgaf103.
  • Li, Jiaoni, Yu-Ru Vernon Shih, Huchen Tao, Mitchell Negus, Jeffrey Bohrer Guerra, and Shyni Varghese. “Extensive Periosteal Injury During Fracture Induces Long-Term Pain in Mice.” J Orthop Res, March 10, 2025. https://doi.org/10.1002/jor.26067.
  • Shih, Yu-Ru V., Huchen Tao, Anna Gilpin, Yuan-Wen Lee, Sajeeshkumar Madhurakkat Perikamana, and Shyni Varghese. “Specialized pro-resolving mediator Maresin 1 attenuates pain in a mouse model of osteoarthritis.” Osteoarthritis Cartilage 33, no. 3 (March 2025): 341–50. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.joca.2024.10.018.
  • Husain, Irma, Holly Shah, Collin Z. Jordan, Naveen R. Natesh, Olivia K. Fay, Yanting Chen, Jamie R. Privratsky, et al. “Targeting allograft inflammatory factor 1 reprograms kidney macrophages to enhance repair.” J Clin Invest 135, no. 5 (January 21, 2025). https://doi.org/10.1172/JCI185146.