ABSTRACT

The gastrointestinal (GI) tract presents a uniquely challenging but highly promising environment for biomedical innovation. Its mechanical dynamics, variable chemistry, and rich neurohormonal signaling have traditionally posed barriers to therapy and sensing. Our research program seeks to transform these challenges into opportunities by applying core principles of mechanical engineering, materials science, and electronics to create next-generation biomedical systems with translational impact.  In this presentation, I will highlight recent advances across several domains. We have engineered biomaterials and architected systems including, GI resident systems capable of supporting prolonged drugs, synthetic epithelial linings and extremophile-inspired protective coatings that enable drug and biologic delivery under harsh GI conditions. Leveraging machine learning and high-throughput screening, we are developing optimized lipid and polymer nanoparticle formulations for RNA and protein therapeutics . We have created ingestible and implantable electroceutical devices, such as bioinspired fluid-wicking capsules for gut–brain modulation, and ingestible electronic platforms capable of recording gastric electrophysiology and neural signals in freely moving animals. These systems open avenues for closed-loop monitoring and therapy.  By bridging mechanical design, drug delivery, electronics, and translational engineering, our work demonstrates how fundamental engineering principles can be harnessed to overcome physiologic barriers, advance oral and mucosal therapies, and establish new frontiers in diagnostics and treatment.

BIOGRAPHY

Giovanni Traverso, MB, BChir, PhD, is an Associate Professor of Mechanical Engineering at MIT, Director of the Laboratory for Translational Engineering (L4TE), a gastroenterologist at Brigham and Women’s Hospital/Harvard Medical School, and an Associate Member of the Broad Institute. His work bridges mechanical engineering, materials science, medicine, and electronics to develop next-generation biomedical systems that transform drug delivery, diagnostics, and therapeutic interventions.  Raised in Peru, Canada, and the UK, Traverso earned his BA at Trinity College, University of Cambridge, his PhD in at Johns Hopkins, and his medical degrees at Cambridge. He completed his internal medicine residency at Brigham and Women’s Hospital and gastroenterology fellowship at Massachusetts General Hospital. During his postdoctoral training at MIT he pioneered ingestible and implantable devices for drug delivery and physiological sensing.  Traverso’s research program has advanced ultra-long-acting drug delivery systems, ingestible and implantable electronic devices, biodegradable biomaterials, and biosensors for disease detection. His early work on cancer diagnostics contributed to the development of Cologuard, the first FDA-approved non-invasive DNA test for colon cancer. His team’s inventions have led to multiple clinical trials and the founding of multiple biotech companies focused on accelerating translational medicine.  He has received international recognition for his contributions, including election as a Fellow of the Controlled Release Society, the National Academy of Inventors, and the American Institute for Medical and Biological Engineering. In 2025, he was elected Membre étranger of the Académie royale de Médecine de Belgique.

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