The award is specifically given to recognize an individual who has demonstrated outstanding achievements in the field of biomaterials research within 10 years following his or her terminal degree or formal training.

Thomas, assistant professor in the George W. Woodruff School of Mechanical Engineering, was nominated by fellow Petit Institute researcher Andrés J. García, professor in the Woodruff School.

She’ll be recognized at the 2018 Society for Biomaterials Annual Meeting, held in Atlanta this year (April 11-14), and her research is being considered for publication in the Journal of Biomedical Materials Research or Applied Biomaterials.

The Thomas lab studies the role of fluid transport phenomena in regulating the dynamics and kinetics of cellular and molecular transport processes with the goal of providing novel design principles for targeted drug delivery strategies in disease therapy.