Hala ZREIQAT AM is a Professor of Biomedical Engineering at the University of Sydney; a National Health and Medical Research Council Senior Research Fellow; Co-Director of the Shanghai-Sydney Joint Bioengineering and Regenerative Medicine Lab at Shanghai JiaoTong; Honorary Professor Shanghai Jiao Tong University and Adjunct Professor Drexel University. Her research is on the development of novel engineered materials and 3D-printed platforms that mimic tissue structures, particularly in orthopaedic, dental, and maxillofacial applications. She has received national and international awards. She pioneers national and international technology development, and has received national and international awards, including the Order of Australia; the 2018 New South Wales Premier’s Woman of the Year; The King Abdullah II Order of Distinction of the Second Class - the highest civilian honour bestowed by the King of Jordan (2018); Eureka Prize winner for Innovative Use of Technology (2019); Fellow of the Australian Academy of Health and Medical Sciences (2019); Fellow of International Orthopaedic Research (FIOR); and University of Sydney Payne-Scott Professorial Distinction (2019).
Her research is on the development of novel engineered materials and 3D-printed platforms that mimic tissue structures, particularly in orthopaedic, dental, and maxillofacial applications. Her group is also developing the technology for effective biological approaches through biochemical and cellular modification for the repair and regenerating of large bone defects and non-union bone fractures. She has established national and international industry collaborations to translate her discoveries into approved medical devices. Her pioneering development of innovative biomaterials for tissue regeneration has led to one awarded (US) and 8 provisional patents, and several collaborations with inter/national industry partners. She has been awarded more than $18 M in competitive funding including from the NHMRC, ARC and the NSW Medical Devices Fund. She is the past president of the Australian & New Zealand Orthopaedic Research Society; founder and Chair of the Alliance for Design and Application in Tissue Engineering (ADATE) (2006-present); founder of IDEAL Society (Inclusion, Diversity, Equity, Action Leadership) at Harvard University (2017-); member of the National Health and Medical Research Senior Research grant review panel, the Australian Research Council Expert College and German Research Foundation. Prof. Zreiqat’s overall objective is to advance collaborative research ventures and build educational and industry linkages nationally and internationally in the field of musculoskeletal disorders and biomaterials research.
