Minglin Ma

Professor, Biological and Environmental Engineering

About

Minglin Ma is a Professor at the Biological and Environmental Engineering Department of Cornell University. He received his BS degree from Tsinghua University and PhD from MIT, both in Chemical Engineering. Prior to joining Cornell in 2013, he worked as a Lead Scientist at General Electric Global Research Center and as a postdoctoral fellow in Dr. Robert Langer’s laboratories at MIT Koch Institute. His group are interested in developing advanced biomaterials for agricultural and biomedical applications with a particular focus on cell replacement therapies for type 1 diabetes.

Education

Doctorate
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
2008

Master of Science
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
2007

Bachelor of Science
Tsinghua University
2003

Courses Taught

Professor Ma teaches biomaterials, materials that are derived from or interact with biological systems for medical and agricultural applications. He introduces different types of biomaterials including polymers, hydrogels, inorganics and composites with an emphasis on the molecular level understanding of their syntheses, structures and properties. He uses mathematical analysis to assist biomaterial designs for different applications. In addition, examples from forefront biomaterials research are used for case studies, ranging from bio-inspired biomaterials for food packaging to biomaterial applications in COVID vaccines.

His courses include:

BEE 3400 Design and Analysis of Biomaterials
BEE 6400 Advanced Topics in Biomaterials

Contact Information

304 Riley Robb Hall
Ithaca, NY 14853

(607) 255-3570

mm826 [at] cornell.edu

- Ma Lab

Minglin in the news

News

October 8, 2025

Ithaca startup aims to free diabetes patients from daily burden

Persista Bio aims to help the daily life of the 9 million people worldwide suffering from Type 1 diabetes.

Biological and Environmental Engineering
Disease

News

August 11, 2025

Implant treats Type 1 diabetes by oxygenating insulin-producing cells

Cornell researchers have developed an implant system that can treat Type 1 diabetes by supplying extra oxygen to densely packed insulin-secreting cells, without the need for immunosuppression.

Biological and Environmental Engineering
Biology
Health + Nutrition