University of Illinois Chicago · Biomedical EngineeringKhetani Lab
Salman R Khetani · Chicago, Illinois
Research Focus
Dr. Salman Khetani's lab at the University of Illinois at Chicago focuses on understanding and treating non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) by studying how different components of the liver's environment influence the behavior of liver cells. The lab creates engineered systems that mimic the liver environment, allowing researchers to discover how changes in cell composition and stiffness affect liver cell function and disease progression. Their ultimate goal is to develop new therapies to combat liver diseases that are becoming increasingly prevalent.
non-alcoholic fatty liver diseaseECMliver cellsmyofibroblastic differentiationengineered culture platforms
Research Aims
3AIM 01Investigate how the extracellular matrix composition affects liver cell behavior.
AIM 02Examine the role of stiffness and soluble signals on liver cell interactions.
AIM 03Develop 3D liver microtissues to study complex cellular interactions in disease contexts.
Skills the Lab Values
3D tissue cultureepigenetic analysiscellular signaling assaysco-culture techniqueshydrogel fabrication
Output against the department
Publications117bottom 24% of dept.455th of 595
this lab
most publishedleast published
Citations5.8kbottom 45% of dept.330th of 595
this lab
most citedleast cited
Career totals from OpenAlex, compared against labs that share a department. A department spans everything from one paper to tens of thousands, so bar heights are on a log scale — otherwise the largest lab would flatten every other bar to a line.