# Jeffrey D. Hartgerink
Jeffrey D. Hartgerink is an American chemist and materials scientist who works on peptide-based biomaterials, known for multidomain peptide (MDP) hydrogels (water-swollen network of cross-linked polymer fibers) designed for tissue repair and drug delivery. He is Professor of Chemistry and Bioengineering and Vice Chair of the Department of Chemistry at [Rice University](https://www.edgepedia.org/rice-university) in Houston, Texas.[1](https://profiles.rice.edu/faculty/jeffrey-d-hartgerink) His group has authored more than 135 peer-reviewed publications and holds numerous U.S. patents on self-assembling peptide biomaterials.[1](https://profiles.rice.edu/faculty/jeffrey-d-hartgerink) The laboratory's several main research lines include collagen-mimetic molecules and extracellular-matrix-mimicking materials.[2](https://hartgerink.rice.edu/Research.html) Applications under study include peripheral nerve regeneration, volumetric muscle loss, diabetic wound healing, stem cell control, cancer immunotherapy, and vaccine development.[2](https://hartgerink.rice.edu/Research.html)
| Fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Position | Professor of Chemistry and Bioengineering; Vice Chair of Chemistry, Rice University (since 2002 on the Rice faculty; full Professor since 2013)[1](https://profiles.rice.edu/faculty/jeffrey-d-hartgerink) |
| Training | A.B. Washington University in St. Louis, 1993; Ph.D. Scripps Research Institute, 1999; postdoc, Northwestern University, 1999–2002[1](https://profiles.rice.edu/faculty/jeffrey-d-hartgerink) |
| Signature work | "Self-Assembly and Mineralization of Peptide-Amphiphile Nanofibers", *Science*, 2001[3](https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.1063187) |
| MDP design | ~16-amino-acid β-sheet peptides of the form Xn(PH)mXn, typically K2(SL)6K2, gelling near 1 wt%[2](https://hartgerink.rice.edu/Research.html) • [4](https://doi.org/10.1101/2025.11.06.687046) |
| Assembly mechanism | Hydrophobic packing between adjacent lamellae ("hydrophobic sandwiches") plus backbone hydrogen bonding; SAXS supports a 0.6 nm hydrophobic core between two 0.6 nm hydrophilic layers[2](https://hartgerink.rice.edu/Research.html) • [5](https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.biomac.4c01296) |
| Patents | Numerous U.S. patents; PCT WO2013023137A2 on collagen-mimetic peptides (Rice, filed 2012); U.S. application 63/510,818 on 3D-printed MDPs[1](https://profiles.rice.edu/faculty/jeffrey-d-hartgerink) • [6](https://patents.google.com/patent/WO2013023137A2/en) • [4](https://doi.org/10.1101/2025.11.06.687046) |
| Honors | Searle Scholar 2004; NSF CAREER and Camille Dreyfus Teacher-Scholar 2007; AIMBE Fellow 2020[1](https://profiles.rice.edu/faculty/jeffrey-d-hartgerink) |
| Funders | NIH-NIDCR (R01 DE021798, R01 DE030140), NSF (CHE 1709631), Welch Foundation (C-2141)[2](https://hartgerink.rice.edu/Research.html) |
## Education and career
Hartgerink earned an A.B. in Chemistry and Biology, magna cum laude, from [Washington University in St. Louis](https://www.edgepedia.org/washington-university-in-st-louis) in 1993.[1](https://profiles.rice.edu/faculty/jeffrey-d-hartgerink) His Ph.D. in Macromolecular and Cellular Structure and Chemistry came from The Scripps Research Institute in 1999; as a graduate student he first worked with [Donald Hilvert](https://www.edgepedia.org/donald-hilvert) on the mechanism of chorismate mutase, then joined the laboratory of [M. Reza Ghadiri](https://www.edgepedia.org/m-reza-ghadiri), where he studied self-assembling cyclic peptide nanotubes using molecular modeling, solid-phase peptide synthesis, and high-resolution electron microscopy.[1](https://profiles.rice.edu/faculty/jeffrey-d-hartgerink) He then trained as a postdoctoral fellow with Samuel I. Stupp at Northwestern University from 1999 to 2002, designing peptide-amphiphile nanofibers that self-assemble and mineralize to mimic bone.[1](https://profiles.rice.edu/faculty/jeffrey-d-hartgerink)
He joined the Rice faculty in 2002 as an Assistant Professor, was promoted to Associate Professor in 2008, and became full Professor in 2013.[1](https://profiles.rice.edu/faculty/jeffrey-d-hartgerink)
## Multidomain peptide hydrogels
According to a 2025 study in *Biomacromolecules*, multidomain peptides are short, self-assembling β-sheet peptides of roughly 16 amino acids, designed with the sequence logic Xn(PH)mXn, where X are charged amino acids, P are polar amino acids, and H are hydrophobic amino acids; the most studied variant, MDP1, has the sequence Ac-KK(SL)6KK-Am, also written K2(SL)6K2.[2](https://hartgerink.rice.edu/Research.html) • [5](https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.biomac.4c01296) • [4](https://doi.org/10.1101/2025.11.06.687046) The peptides stack face to face: a molecule flips onto its neighbor to form what the group calls a hydrophobic sandwich, and cooperative hydrophobic packing between adjacent lamellae together with amide backbone hydrogen bonding running parallel to the fiber axis produces nanofibers hundreds of nanometers long.[2](https://hartgerink.rice.edu/Research.html) • [7](https://news.rice.edu/news/2023/peptide-3d-printing-inks-could-advance-regenerative-medicine)
[Small-angle X-ray scattering](https://www.edgepedia.org/small-angle-x-ray-scattering) data for MDP1 at pH 7.5 fit a 3-µm-long rigid parallelepiped with a 0.6 nm hydrophobic core flanked by two 0.6 nm hydrophilic layers, the most conclusive support to date for the hydrophobic-sandwich model.[5](https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.biomac.4c01296) Fiber width is reported differently by different sources: the laboratory research page gives about 6 nm, while prior Cryo-TEM measurements reported in the 2025 [Biomacromolecules](https://www.edgepedia.org/biomacromolecules) paper give about 5 nm.[2](https://hartgerink.rice.edu/Research.html) • [5](https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.biomac.4c01296)
Assembly is controlled by pH or ionic strength; at around 1% by weight the nanofibers entangle into a hydrogel.[2](https://hartgerink.rice.edu/Research.html) [In vivo](https://www.edgepedia.org/in-vivo), the hydrogels are rapidly infiltrated by inflammatory cells, which start a response cascade leading to dramatic angiogenesis within the gel.[2](https://hartgerink.rice.edu/Research.html)
## Representative work
His 2001 *Science* paper (vol. 294, issue 5547, pp. 1684–1688) used pH-induced self-assembly of a peptide-amphiphile to build a nanostructured fibrous scaffold reminiscent of extracellular matrix; after cross-linking, the fibers directed mineralization of hydroxyapatite with the crystallographic c axes aligned with the fiber long axes, the same alignment seen between collagen fibrils and hydroxyapatite in bone.[3](https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.1063187) A 2002 *PNAS* follow-up described twelve peptide-amphiphile derivatives and three modes of nanofiber self-assembly: pH control, divalent ion induction, and concentration; Ca2+ immediately caused gelation, while K+ up to 6 M did not.[8](https://www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/pnas.072699999)
A 2005 *Advanced Materials* paper introduced peptide-amphiphile nanofibers incorporating a sequence permitting enzyme-mediated degradation, so cleavage broke down both the nanostructure and its mechanical properties; the elastic network encapsulated dental pulp cells and supported their proliferation and migration.[9](https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/adma.200500855)
In 2023 the group reported in *Advanced Materials* (DOI 10.1002/adma.202210378) the first use of a self-assembling peptide system to 3D-print complex structures, raising the peptide ink concentration about fourfold to make it printable.[7](https://news.rice.edu/news/2023/peptide-3d-printing-inks-could-advance-regenerative-medicine)
## Translation and patents
Beyond the general patent portfolio on self-assembling peptide biomaterials,[1](https://profiles.rice.edu/faculty/jeffrey-d-hartgerink) a PCT application (WO2013023137A2) assigned to William Marsh Rice University and filed on 2012-08-10 covered collagen-mimetic peptide hydrogels with Hartgerink as inventor.[6](https://patents.google.com/patent/WO2013023137A2/en) The patented peptide (Pro-Lys-Gly)4(Pro-Hyp-Gly)4(Asp-Hyp-Gly)4 forms triple helices melting at 40–41 °C, above body temperature, with listed uses including cosmetic surgery, joint repair, artificial skin grafts, vascular tissue regeneration, tissue-engineering scaffolds, and drug delivery.[6](https://patents.google.com/patent/WO2013023137A2/en) A U.S. patent application, 63/510,818, covering the omnidirectional 3D-printing work lists Hartgerink as an inventor.[4](https://doi.org/10.1101/2025.11.06.687046) MDPs have been used for nerve regeneration, cancer treatment, and wound healing, and the group has achieved controlled release of IL-4, MCP-1, VEGF, FGF2, and EGF while retaining biological activity.[7](https://news.rice.edu/news/2023/peptide-3d-printing-inks-could-advance-regenerative-medicine) • [5](https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.biomac.4c01296)
## Honors and funding
Hartgerink received a Searle Scholar award in 2004, and in 2007 both an NSF CAREER Award and a Camille Dreyfus Teacher-Scholar Award.[1](https://profiles.rice.edu/faculty/jeffrey-d-hartgerink) The American Institute for Medical and Biological Engineering elected him to its College of Fellows, announced March 30, 2020, for outstanding contributions to peptide-based, nanostructured materials with potential for biomedical applications.[10](https://aimbe.org/college-of-fellows/cof-5054/) Rice awarded him its 2024 Presidential Award for Mentoring, and he has received multiple George R. Brown Awards for Superior Teaching; he sits on the Editorial Advisory Board of *Biomacromolecules* and is a member of the American Chemical Society and the [Materials Research Society](https://www.edgepedia.org/materials-research-society).[1](https://profiles.rice.edu/faculty/jeffrey-d-hartgerink)
The laboratory is funded by the Welch Foundation (grant C-2141), the NSF (CHE 1709631), and NIH-NIDCR (R01 DE021798 and R01 DE030140).[2](https://hartgerink.rice.edu/Research.html) As a scale example, R01 DE021798, "Self-assembling Peptide Nanofiber Hydrogels for Delivery of Proteins and Cells", ran from 2011-12-01 to 2016-11-30 with a first-year total cost of $383,170, including $83,829 in indirect costs.[11](https://grantome.com/grant/NIH/R01-DE021798-01A1)
## Recent developments
The 3D-printing line has advanced. In May 2024 the group, working with the [University of Houston](https://www.edgepedia.org/university-of-houston), published in *ACS Nano* (DOI 10.1021/acsnano.4c02030) a method for aligned MDP nanofibers by extruding dissolved peptides into salty solution, with higher salt concentration producing greater alignment; when alignment was too strong, cells no longer aligned, because cells need to pull on the fibers to recognize it.[12](https://news.rice.edu/news/2024/aligned-peptide-noodles-could-enable-lab-grown-biological-tissues) A November 2025 preprint reported support-bath-assisted extrusion printing of anisotropic MDP hydrogels with about 150 µm print resolution and centimeter-scale architecture; fiber alignment was tuned by the ionic strength of the agarose support bath, and printed gels guided alignment of human embryonic stem cell-derived cardiomyocytes, which produced coordinated macroscopic contractions of the whole hydrogel by day 3 in culture.[4](https://doi.org/10.1101/2025.11.06.687046)
The publication list records a 2025 *Nature Nanotechnology* paper on nanofibrous supramolecular peptide hydrogels for controlled release of small-molecule drugs and biologics (vol. 20, pp. 1502–1513), a 2024 *Nature Communications* paper on hierarchical assembly of collagen-like peptides beyond the triple helix, and a 2024 *ACS Biomaterials Science & Engineering* paper on MDP hydrogels as a 3D cytocompatible environment for [T cell](https://www.edgepedia.org/t-cell) expansion and antigen-specific killing.[13](https://hartgerink.rice.edu/Publication.html) A January 2025 *Biomacromolecules* study showed that histidine placed in the hydrophobic face of an MDP causes disassembly below physiological pH, while histidine on the hydrophilic face slowed release of a loaded anti-PD-1 antibody to 11.0 ± 0.3% (MDP2) and 8.0 ± 0.3% (MDP3) in 24 hours, supporting controlled release in the acidic tumor microenvironment.[5](https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.biomac.4c01296) For 2026, the list records a *Biomacromolecules* paper on collagen-mimetic peptide D-periodic fibrils (27(4), 2956–2965) and a *Journal of Controlled Release* paper on a peptide-liposome composite for cyclic dinucleotide release in oral cancer (392, 114730).[13](https://hartgerink.rice.edu/Publication.html)
## References
1. [Jeffrey D. Hartgerink | Faculty | The People of Rice | Rice University](https://profiles.rice.edu/faculty/jeffrey-d-hartgerink)
2. [Hartgerink Research Group, Research](https://hartgerink.rice.edu/Research.html)
3. [Self-Assembly and Mineralization of Peptide-Amphiphile Nanofibers (Science, 2001)](https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.1063187)
4. [Omnidirectional 3D Printing of Anisotropic Nanofibrous Peptide Hydrogels (bioRxiv, November 2025)](https://doi.org/10.1101/2025.11.06.687046)
5. [Nanofibrous Peptide Hydrogels Leveraging Histidine to Modulate pH-Responsive Supramolecular Assembly and Antibody Release (Biomacromolecules, 2025)](https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.biomac.4c01296)
6. [WO2013023137A2, Multi-hierarchical self-assembly of a collagen mimetic peptide](https://patents.google.com/patent/WO2013023137A2/en)
7. [Peptide 3D-printing inks could advance regenerative medicine | Rice News (Feb. 7, 2023)](https://news.rice.edu/news/2023/peptide-3d-printing-inks-could-advance-regenerative-medicine)
8. [Peptide-amphiphile nanofibers: A versatile scaffold for the preparation of self-assembling materials (PNAS, 2002)](https://www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/pnas.072699999)
9. [Enzyme-Mediated Degradation of Peptide-Amphiphile Nanofiber Networks (Advanced Materials, 2005)](https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/adma.200500855)
10. [Jeffrey D. Hartgerink, Ph.D. COF-5054, AIMBE](https://aimbe.org/college-of-fellows/cof-5054/)
11. [NIH R01 DE021798 grant record](https://grantome.com/grant/NIH/R01-DE021798-01A1)
12. [Aligned peptide 'noodles' could enable lab-grown biological tissues | Rice News (May 2024)](https://news.rice.edu/news/2024/aligned-peptide-noodles-could-enable-lab-grown-biological-tissues)
13. [Publications, Hartgerink Research Group](https://hartgerink.rice.edu/Publication.html)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Technology and the built world › Engineers and computer scientists › Engineers and materials scientists › Researchers in bioengineering, synthetic biology, DNA nanotechnology, and biomedical devices › Biomaterials and hydrogels*
*Initially written Sep 21, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 25, 2026 · Edited: Sep 25, 2026; Oct 15, 2026 · Last review: Sep 25, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license