Denis Wirtz | Vice Provost for Research and T.H. Smoot Professor

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Denis Wirtz

Vice Provost for Research and T.H. Smoot Professor

A Johns Hopkins faculty member since 1994, Dr. Denis Wirtz studies the biophysical properties of healthy and diseased cells, including interactions between adjacent cells and the role of cellular architecture on nuclear shape and gene expression. Cell biophysics, single molecule manipulation, intracellular particle trafficking, instrument development, tissue engineering, and nanotechnology in biology and medicine are among his research interests. Dr. Wirtz directs the Johns Hopkins Physical Sciences-Oncology Center and co-directs the Cancer Nanotechnology Training Center, both National Cancer Institute-funded entities. He is a co-founder and former associate director of the Johns Hopkins Institute for NanoBioTechnology (INBT). He holds the T.H. Smoot Professorship in the Whiting School of Engineering with secondary appointments in the School of Medicine. He has authored more than 200 peer-reviewed articles, and his research has been cited more than 16,000 times.

In his role as vice provost for research, Dr. Wirtz focuses on the current and future health of the university’s research enterprise, including institutional research compliance, undergraduate research support, research administration and development, and cross-divisional research initiatives, such as the Bloomberg Distinguished Professorships, the Johns Hopkins Catalyst and Discovery Awards, and the President’s Frontier Awards.

Selected summer coverage of his research in the Chicago Tribune and R&D Magazine. The original Nature articles can be found here and here.

Website: Research.jhu.edu