Skip to main content
Menu

Professor

Malavika Nair MA (Cantab) MSci PhD AFHEA

Associate Professor of Biomaterials

Non-Tutorial Fellow at St Catherine's College

Biography

Malavika Nair is an Associate Professor in Biomaterials at the Institute of Biomedical Engineering. Malavika is a materials scientist by training, obtaining a BA, MSci in Natural Sciences (2012-2016) and a PhD (2016-2019) from the University of Cambridge. Malavika's doctoral work was focused on the multiscale characterisation of ice, collagen, and ice-templated collagen scaffolds for tissue engineering.

This was followed by post-doctoral research in 2020 combining machine learning techniques with experimental biomaterials datasets, and the award of a research fellowship at Emmanuel College where Malavika began working on electroactive biomaterials for tissue regeneration.

In 2022, Malavika moved to the Oxford Institute of Biomedical Engineering to expand the work on electroactive biomaterials for use in bio-stimulation, bio-sensing and drug delivery.

Teaching

I currently lecture the following undergraduate courses in Engineering Science:

First year:

P1 - Ordinary Differential Equations (Modelling)

Third year:

B6 – Engineering Alloys

B8 – Polymers

B17 - Biomechanics

B18 - Cellular Physiology

Fourth year:

C28 - Mechanics and Connective Tissue

Most Recent Publications

Current and emerging strategies for biocompatible materials for implantable electronics

Current and emerging strategies for biocompatible materials for implantable electronics

Altmetric score is

Sonosensitive cavitation nuclei-a customisable platform technology for enhanced therapeutic delivery

Sonosensitive cavitation nuclei-a customisable platform technology for enhanced therapeutic delivery

Altmetric score is

Reversible Microscale Assembly of Nanoparticles Driven by the Phase Transition of a Thermotropic Liquid Crystal.

Reversible Microscale Assembly of Nanoparticles Driven by the Phase Transition of a Thermotropic Liquid Crystal.

Altmetric score is

Optimising aerosol jet printing of collagen inks for enhanced piezoelectricity and controlled surface potential

Optimising aerosol jet printing of collagen inks for enhanced piezoelectricity and controlled surface potential

Altmetric score is

Conducting Polymer-ECM Scaffolds for Human Neuronal Cell Differentiation.

Conducting Polymer-ECM Scaffolds for Human Neuronal Cell Differentiation.

Altmetric score is
View all

Research Interests

Malavika's research aims to bridge the gap between existing electronic devices for healthcare, and regenerative implants by exploiting the electromechanical behaviour of biopolymers.

The current research focus covers the full scope of materials synthesis and discovery, with the goal of producing medical devices with optimised electromechanical and biological responses.

Research Team

Ms Samantha Baker-Jones - DPhil Student
Ms Veronica Lucian - DPhil Student
Kae Nicolson - DPhil Student

Most Recent Publications

Current and emerging strategies for biocompatible materials for implantable electronics

Current and emerging strategies for biocompatible materials for implantable electronics

Altmetric score is

Sonosensitive cavitation nuclei-a customisable platform technology for enhanced therapeutic delivery

Sonosensitive cavitation nuclei-a customisable platform technology for enhanced therapeutic delivery

Altmetric score is

Reversible Microscale Assembly of Nanoparticles Driven by the Phase Transition of a Thermotropic Liquid Crystal.

Reversible Microscale Assembly of Nanoparticles Driven by the Phase Transition of a Thermotropic Liquid Crystal.

Altmetric score is

Optimising aerosol jet printing of collagen inks for enhanced piezoelectricity and controlled surface potential

Optimising aerosol jet printing of collagen inks for enhanced piezoelectricity and controlled surface potential

Altmetric score is

Conducting Polymer-ECM Scaffolds for Human Neuronal Cell Differentiation.

Conducting Polymer-ECM Scaffolds for Human Neuronal Cell Differentiation.

Altmetric score is
View all

DPhil Opportunities

DPhil students looking to join the research team are very welcome to get in touch with me directly for any opportunities. Please include a draft research proposal/some elements of what you hope to be working on in your email so that I can advise you of the fit to the projects and areas on offer.

Please check DPhil in Engineering Science for specific guidance on the admission requirements and application process.

Most Recent Publications

Current and emerging strategies for biocompatible materials for implantable electronics

Current and emerging strategies for biocompatible materials for implantable electronics

Altmetric score is

Sonosensitive cavitation nuclei-a customisable platform technology for enhanced therapeutic delivery

Sonosensitive cavitation nuclei-a customisable platform technology for enhanced therapeutic delivery

Altmetric score is

Reversible Microscale Assembly of Nanoparticles Driven by the Phase Transition of a Thermotropic Liquid Crystal.

Reversible Microscale Assembly of Nanoparticles Driven by the Phase Transition of a Thermotropic Liquid Crystal.

Altmetric score is

Optimising aerosol jet printing of collagen inks for enhanced piezoelectricity and controlled surface potential

Optimising aerosol jet printing of collagen inks for enhanced piezoelectricity and controlled surface potential

Altmetric score is

Conducting Polymer-ECM Scaffolds for Human Neuronal Cell Differentiation.

Conducting Polymer-ECM Scaffolds for Human Neuronal Cell Differentiation.

Altmetric score is
View all

Talks

I am passionate about using the platform I have to engage people in the fields of Biomaterials and Biomedical Engineering, as well as sharing my team’s work on developing smart biomedical devices. The following videos are grouped as either ‘General’ or ‘Technical’ talks, lectures and podcasts on biomaterials.

Lubbock Lecture 2024

Lubbock Lecture 2024: Malavika Nair - Biomaterials for SMART Medical Devices

University of Oxford 2023 Open Days

Malavika Nair Open Day Lecture - Biomedical Engineering

As part of the 2023 University of Oxford 2023 Open Days, I provided a taster lecture to prospective students to discover more about biomedical engineering and what it is like to be an Engineering Science Undergraduate Student at Oxford, entitled ‘How can we build better implants?’

Emma Connects: Fellows’ Research Shorts Series

In 2021, I did a short profile on the work I began during my research fellowship at Emmanuel College as part of the Emma Connects: Fellows’ Research Shorts Series:

019 Naked Scientists’ Podcast on Scaffolds for Skin Tissue played live on BBC Cambridgeshire

Churchill College MCR’s ChuTalks Series

A short presentation given as part of Churchill College MCR’s ChuTalks Series in 2018 on ‘A Song of Ice and Collagen: Fine-tuning collagen scaffolds’

Most Recent Publications

Current and emerging strategies for biocompatible materials for implantable electronics

Current and emerging strategies for biocompatible materials for implantable electronics

Altmetric score is

Sonosensitive cavitation nuclei-a customisable platform technology for enhanced therapeutic delivery

Sonosensitive cavitation nuclei-a customisable platform technology for enhanced therapeutic delivery

Altmetric score is

Reversible Microscale Assembly of Nanoparticles Driven by the Phase Transition of a Thermotropic Liquid Crystal.

Reversible Microscale Assembly of Nanoparticles Driven by the Phase Transition of a Thermotropic Liquid Crystal.

Altmetric score is

Optimising aerosol jet printing of collagen inks for enhanced piezoelectricity and controlled surface potential

Optimising aerosol jet printing of collagen inks for enhanced piezoelectricity and controlled surface potential

Altmetric score is

Conducting Polymer-ECM Scaffolds for Human Neuronal Cell Differentiation.

Conducting Polymer-ECM Scaffolds for Human Neuronal Cell Differentiation.

Altmetric score is
View all