Andrew E . Ekpenyong, MS, PhD

Associate Professor

Physics

A Ekpenyong

Contact

AndrewEkpenyong@creighton.edu
College of Arts and Sciences
Graduate School
Medical Physics (Master of Science)
Physics (Master of Science)
Physics
African Studies
HLSB - Hixson Lied Science Building - G71

Andrew E . Ekpenyong, MS, PhD

Associate Professor

Physics

Fr Andrew Ekpenyong joined the Physics Department as a faculty member in 2014. He teaches Quantum Mechanics, General Physics, Nuclear Instruments and Methods, Biological Physics and  Medical Physics courses such as Dosimetry. Fr Andrew also coordinates the undergraduate teaching laboratories. His research is at the interface of physics and biomedicine with a translational focus. For instance, he has developed microfluidic mimetics enabling in vitro modelling of the human pulmonary microcirculation with potential impact on the clinical management of lung diseases and inflammatory disorders. He established and runs the Translational Biomedical Physics Research Group (TBP) (see https://physicsweb.creighton.edu/content/translational-biomedical-physics-research-group).  A Creighton alumnus, Fr Andrew earned his PhD from the University of Cambridge, UK, and did postdoctoral work at Technische Universität, Dresden, Germany.

Research Focus

Almost all the vital signs are biophysical properties: blood pressure, pulse rate, body temperature, etc. With collaborators from the Departments of Chemistry, Physics and Mathematics, the School of Medicine, Creighton University, as well as international collaborators in the UK and Germany, I develop and use novel biophysical tools to discover new biomarkers that provide diagnostic information and new therapeutic options. I address the physician’s wish list in order to improve disease diagnosis, patient monitoring, drug development and testing, etc. While these efforts seek to improve biomedicine using principles and tools of physics, I also aim at advancing the physics of complex systems such as living matter. In particular, I seek to understand how biological cells function as mechanical units, with material properties.

Department

Physics

Position

Associate Professor

Books

  • Ekpenyong Andrew E., Mathematical physics for nuclear experiments 2022
  • Mathematical Physics for Nuclear Experiments
    Ekpenyong Andrew E, Probability and Statistics for Nuclear Experimental Data [Book Chapter] 2022
  • Mathematical Physics for Nuclear Experiments
    Ekpenyong Andrew E, Radioactivity and Decay Law [Book Chapter] 2022
  • Mathematical Physics for Nuclear Experiments
    Ekpenyong Andrew E, Energy Loss of Electrons and Positrons through Matter [Book Chapter] 2022
  • Mathematical Physics for Nuclear Experiments
    Ekpenyong Andrew E, Energy Loss of Heavy Charged Particles through Matter [Book Chapter] 2022
  • Mathematical Physics for Nuclear Experiments
    Ekpenyong Andrew E, Interactions of Photons in Matter [Book Chapter] 2022
  • Methods in Molecular Biology
    Djam Kimal Honour, etal Quantum Dots for Assessment of Reactive Oxygen Species Accumulation During Chemotherapy and Radiotherapy [Book Chapter] 2020
  • Methods in Cell Biology
    Schurmann M., etal Refractive index measurements of single, spherical cells using digital holographic microscopy [Book Chapter] 2015

Publications

  • Micromachines (Basel)
    Abraham Ashley, etal Microfluidic Microcirculation Mimetic for Exploring Biophysical Mechanisms of Chemotherapy-Induced Metastasis
    14:9, p. 1653 2023
  • Life (Basel, Switzerland)
    McKinley Spencer, etal Simulated Microgravity-Induced Changes to Drug Response in Cancer Cells Quantified Using Fluorescence Morphometry
    13:8, p. 1683 2023
  • Biomedicines
    Walter Yohan, etal Development of In Vitro Assays for Advancing Radioimmunotherapy against Brain Tumors
    10:8 2022
  • Applied Sciences (Switzerland)
    Asuquo Marcus Inyama, etal Microfluidic Microcirculation Mimetic as a Tool for the Study of Rheological Characteristics of Red Blood Cells in Patients with Sickle Cell Anemia
    12:9 2022
  • Biophysical journal
    Virdi Sukhman, etal The role of cell mechanics in chemotherapy-induced metastasis
    121:3, p. 266a - 266a 2022
  • Biochemistry and Biophysics Reports
    Merrick Michael, etal In vitro radiotherapy and chemotherapy alter migration of brain cancer cells before cell death
    27 2021
  • Pharmaceutical Research
    Palliyage Gayathri Heenatigala, etal Novel Curcumin-Resveratrol Solid Nanoparticles Synergistically Inhibit Proliferation of Melanoma Cells
    38:5, p. 851 - 871 2021
  • Biophysical journal
    Abraham Ashley, etal Which Chemotherapy Drugs Alter Cell Mechanical Properties with Impact on Metastasis?
    120:3, p. 66a - 66a 2021
  • Pan African Medical Journal
    Otu Akaninyene, etal Private sector initiatives to tackle the burden of covid-19
    38 2021
  • Life
    Prasanth Devika, etal Microgravity modulates effects of chemotherapeutic drugs on cancer cell migration
    10:9, p. 1 - 11 2020
  • Lee Bong H., etal Fluorescence intensity modulation of CdSe/ZnS quantum dots assesses reactive oxygen species during chemotherapy and radiotherapy for cancer cells 2019
  • Nature Methods
    Wu Pei Hsun, etal A comparison of methods to assess cell mechanical properties
    15:7, p. 491 - 498 2018
  • Biophysical journal
    Ekpenyong Andrew E., etal Effects of Ionizing Radiation on the Mechanosensitivity of Single Cells
    114:3, p. 514 - 514a 2018
  • Open Access Macedonian Journal of Medical Sciences
    Ikpeme Anthonia, etal The value of mobile ultrasound services in rural communities in South-South Nigeria
    5:7, p. 1011 - 1015 2017
  • Science Advances
    Ekpenyong Andrew E., etal Mechanical Deformation Induces Depolarization of Neutrophils
    3:6, p. e1602536 - e1602536 2017
  • Biophysical journal
    Prasanth Devika, etal Microgravity Modulates Drug-Induced Enhancement of Cancer Cell Migration
    112:3, p. 311a - 311a 2017
  • Biophysical Journal
    Prathivadhi-Bhayankaram Sruti V., etal Chemotherapy impedes in vitro microcirculation and promotes migration of leukemic cells with impact on metastasis
    112:3, p. 124a - 124a 2017
  • Biophysical journal
    Prathivadhi-Bhayankaram Sruti V., etal Cell Mechanical Properties and Cancer Metastasis: Effects of Cancer Drugs and Radiotherapy
    110:3, p. 621a - 621a 2016
  • Biochemical and Biophysical Research Communications
    Prathivadhi-Bhayankaram Sruti, etal Chemotherapy Impedes in Vitro Microcirculation and Promotes Migration of Leukemic Cells with Impact on Metastasis
    479:4, p. 841 - 846 2016
  • Biochimica et Biophysica Acta
    Ekpenyong Andrew E., etal Mechanotransduction in neutrophil activation and deactivation, p. (12 pages) 2015
  • Biophysical Journal
    Chan Chii J., etal Myosin II activity softens cells in suspension
    108:8, p. 1856 - 1869 2015
  • Nature Methods
    Otto O., etal Real-time deformability cytometry: on-the-fly cell mechanical phenotyping
    12:3, p. 199 - 202 2015
  • Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America
    Man Si Ming, etal Actin polymerization as a key innate immune effector mechanism to control Salmonella infection
    111:49, p. 17588 - 17593 2014
  • Interface Focus
    Holmes David, etal Separation of blood cells with differing deformability using deterministic lateral displacement
    4:6 2014
  • Biophysical journal
    Ekpenyong Andrew, etal The Evolution of Mechanical Properties of Differentiating Stem Cells is Fate- and Function-Dependent
    106:2, p. 42a - 42a 2014
  • Ekpenyong Andrew E., etal Bacterial infection of macrophages induces decrease in refractive index 2013
  • Acta Mechanica
    Boyde Lars, etal Elastic theory for the deformation of a solid or layered spheroid under axisymmetric loading
    224:4, p. 819 - 839 2013
  • Biophysical Journal
    Chalut Kevin J., etal Chromatin decondensation and nuclear softening accompany Nanog downregulation in embryonic stem cells
    103:10, p. 2060 - 2070 2012
  • Applied Optics
    Boyde Lars, etal Comparison of stresses on homogeneous spheroids in the optical stretcher computed with geometrical optics and generalized lorenz–mie theory
    51:33, p. 7934 - 7944 2012
  • PloS one
    Ekpenyong Andrew E., etal Viscoelastic Properties of Differentiating Blood Cells Are Fate- and Function-Dependent
    7:9 2012
  • Integrative biology : quantitative biosciences from nano to macro
    Chalut Kevin J., etal Quantifying cellular differentiation by physical phenotype using digital holographic microscopy.
    4:3, p. 280 - 284 2012
  • Journal of Biophotonics
    Jacobs Kenneth M., etal Diffraction imaging of spheres and melanoma cells with a microscope objective
    2:8-9, p. 521 - 527 2009
  • Applied Optics
    Ekpenyong Andrew E., etal Determination of cell elasticity through hybrid ray optics and continuum mechanics modeling of cell deformation in the optical stretcher
    48:32, p. 6344 - 6354 2009

Grants

  • CytoSMART Omni Instrument/Sponsor: State of Nebraska - LB692

  • Physics of Cancer: Role of Cell Mechanics in Chemotherapy-Induced Metastasis/Sponsor: CURAS Magis Investigatio Research Award/MIRA

  • Science in Space to Cure Disease on Earth: Using Simulated Microgravity for Cancer Tissue Engineering/Sponsor: CURAS Magis Investigatio Research Award/MIRA

  • Using Simulated Microgravity for Cancer Tissue Engineering/Sponsor: University of Nebraska at Omaha/UNO

  • Microgravity for 3D Microphysiological Systems in Cancer Therapeutics/Sponsor: University of Nebraska at Omaha/UNO