Caitlin Hilterman

Biomedical Engineering undergraduate researcher with hands-on experience in tissue engineering, pursuing opportunities in organoid development and biomaterials research. Passionate about developing physiologically relevant models to investigate disease mechanisms to advance innovative therapeutic strategies for use in the clinical research space.

Experience in 3D skin wound-healing models and kidney organoids with microfluidic perfusion systems has given me a strong foundation of in-vitro cell culture, histological and immunofluorescent staining, and organs on a chip. In addition to my cell culture work, I have also aided in 3D printing and designing some of the components for the robotics side of our lab; I would love to apply knowledge of tissue manipulation to build a translational device and utilize digital modeling platforms to approach wound closure from a biomaterials perspective.

Undergraduate Researcher at Kearney Lab (2025-09 – Present)

Investigating circadian rhythms in skin wound healing

• Engineered and maintained 3D human skin equivalents by co-culturing human keratinocytes and dermal fibroblasts within collagen gels to model skin architecture and wound healing
• Cultured LUC:BMAL1 transfected fibroblasts and used luminometry to track cyclic circadian gene expression over 7 days; analyzed complex data sets with Matlab
• Assisted in confocal imaging and z-stack analysis of ex-vivo dorsal skin wounds
• Actively share research findings in weekly lab meetings; effectively documents lab notes

Volunteer Research Assistant at Morizane Lab (2026-06 – 2026-07)

Kidney Organoid on a microfluidic chip

• Cultured and maintained distal tubule cells isolated from mature kidney organoids; used ibidi perfusion system to simulate flow conditions; preformed live and fixed cell immunofluorescence staining and confocal imaging to access cell populations in model
• Presented work to doctoral mentors and principle investigator; proposed workflow optimization to improve model development

Supplemental Instruction Leader at UMass Learning Resource Center (2025-08 – Present)

• Held monthly 2-hour review sessions for 150-student for homework help and exams for Introduction to Biomedical Engineering class
• Guided students in joining undergraduate research labs and preparing scientific presentations

Executive Board at UMass Chapter Habitat for Humanity (2024-08 – Present)

• Raised $10,000 and managed a $20,00 budget for a 20-person team, served as the treasurer and as a lead coordinator at build sites across states (MA, LA and GA), earning national recognition for outstanding student leadership and community service
• Coordinated logistics and volunteered for over 100+ hours with local food pantries
• Served as a Red Cross Donor Ambassador; coordinated patient interactions, drove the set up and breakdown for seven blood drives

Member at Science Outreach Club (2024-08 – 2025-05)

• Directed and executed 4 physical science demonstrations at Elementary Schools in the local Amherst area; coached new members on how to effectively communicate complex scientific ideas to a young audience of students ranging from from Kindergarten to fifth grade

B.S. in Biomedical Engineering – University of Massachusetts Amherst, Commonwealth Honors College (2028)