Frontiers in Nanotechnology Seminar Series Presents, Seunghyun (Seu) Sim, from University of California, Irvine

“Molecular Assembly of Living and Lifelike Materials”

The Sim Lab creates and studies living and lifelike soft materials through molecularly programmed self-assembly of synthetic polymers and engineered biological components. Self-assembly is how nature seamlessly integrates cellular functionalities with complex structures of materials. For example, plants, even a 300-foot-tall giant sequoia tree, grow from a tiny seed because cellular division is coupled with material growth through self-assembly. The precision and specificity of chemical dialogues within these materials enable controlled growth, response, function, and adaptation characteristics, which are lacking in synthetic materials.

In this presentation, Seungyun introduces her studies in creating new types of living materials through molecularly programmed self-assembly of synthetic polymers with engineered cells and spores. She will discuss how this approach uniquely enables the seamless integration of living functionalities such as biocatalysis in materials and dynamic and controlled behaviors.

Get to Know Seungyun
(Click HERE for Seungyun’s CV)

Seu Sim is an Assistant Professor in Chemistry with joint appointments in Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering (CBE) and Biomedical Engineering (BME) at the University of California, Irvine. She received B.S. degrees in Chemistry and Biological Sciences in 2012 from Seoul National University and PhD in 2017 from the University of Tokyo, where she studied supramolecular systems using protein building blocks with Professor Takuzo Aida. She completed her postdoctoral training at Caltech with Professor David Tirrell in 2020 before starting her independent career at the University of California, Irvine. The Sim lab (s-simlab.com) develops living and lifelike materials and studies the biology-material interface. She received the NSF CAREER award (2023), NIH MIRA award (2023), and UCI Distinguished Early Career Award in Research (2024).