Kaplan wins Pierre Galletti Award
David Kaplan, Stern Family Endowed Professor of Engineering, Distinguished University Professor, and Professor in the Department of Biomedical Engineering, won the Pierre Galletti Award, the highest honor that the American Institute for Medical and Biological Engineering (AIMBE) bestows upon an individual. Named after AIMBE’s founding member and past president, the Pierre Galletti Award recognizes a career-long commitment to advancing the field through transformative research, service, and advocacy.
According to the AIMBE, Kaplan was chosen for his work in silk-based biomaterials, translational impact on the biomedical sciences, and for advocacy of bioengineers in all aspects of human health.
Kaplan is a leader in several areas of biomedical research, including biopolymer engineering, tissue engineering, biomedical devices, neuroscience and neurobiology, and cellular agriculture. He is the director of the Kaplan Lab, the Initiative for Neural Science, Disease & Engineering, and the Tufts University Center for Cellular Agriculture. He is also a co-investigator at the Tissue Engineering Resource Center, which develops and disseminates unique tissue engineering technologies for established, junior, and aspiring investigators and trainees.
Kaplan’s research extends far beyond the lab. With more than 150 patents, his work has supported more than a dozen spin-out companies and many other technological developments with origins at Tufts. He has published over 1,000 peer-reviewed papers, serves as editor-in-chief of ACS Biomaterials Science and Engineering, and participates in many editorial boards and programs for journals and universities.
His innovative work has earned him recognition from top organizations in science and engineering. Kaplan was named an AIMBE Fellow in 2003, elected to the National Academy of Engineering in 2021, and named a Fellow of the National Academy of Inventors in 2023. He has received awards for his research and teaching, such as the Columbus Discovery Medal, and the Society for Biomaterials’ Clemson Award.
Kaplan joined Tufts as an associate professor in 1996, following a role as a senior research scientist at Natick Research & Development Center. He rose to the rank of full professor in 1999 and earned the title of Distinguished Professor in 2015. He holds secondary appointments in the Department of Biology and the Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences and regularly collaborates with members of other schools and departments on his research. He has held a central role in the Department of Biomedical Engineering since its inception in 2002 and served as chair of the department for 20 years.
AIMBE’s mission is to recognize excellence, advance public understanding, and accelerate medical and biological innovation. The organization brings together academic, industry, government, and scientific societies to form a highly influential community advancing medical and biological engineering. AIMBE’s mission drives advocacy initiatives into action on Capitol Hill and beyond.
Department:
Biomedical Engineering