Serenity Howery
University of Texas at Austin
Faculty Advisor: Prof. Polina Anikeeva
Research Supervisor: Gari Eberly
Department: Materials Science and Engineering
Biography
Serenity Howery is a rising junior studying Biomedical Engineering at the University of
Texas at Austin, with a minor in materials science. As a research assistant in Dr. Nicholas Peppas’
Laboratory of Biomaterials, Drug Delivery, and Bionanotechnology, she develops biodegradable,
cationic nanogels designed to bypass the blood-brain barrier. Her research aims to deliver siRNA
and resveratrol to treat neuroinflammation and modulate harmful gene expression. Currently,
Serenity is an MIT MSRP intern in Dr. Polina Anikeeva’s Bioelectronics Group, where she is
developing an adhesive hydrogel to ensure a biocompatible interface between an optoelectronic
device and the murine uterus to detect and stimulate uterine contractions. Outside of lab, she
serves as President of Projects for Texas HELIX, leading teams to design medical innovations for
underserved communities. Serenity plans to pursue a Ph.D. in polymer design and biomaterials
research to validate women’s health symptoms and eliminate the historic gap in sex-specific data.
Stretchable and Adhesive Tannic Acid – Poly(vinyl alcohol) Hydrogel to Enable
Biocompatible Interfacing with the Murine Uterus
Serenity Howery1, Gari Eberly2,3, Polina Anikeeva3-6
1Department of Biomedical Engineering, University of Texas at Austin
2Harvard-MIT Health Sciences and Technology, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
3K. Lisa Yang Brain-Body Center, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
4K. Lisa Yang Center for Molecular Therapeutics, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
5Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
6Department of Brain & Cognitive Sciences, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
The nonpregnant uterus contracts regularly, but the role of these contractions in maintaining
health is unknown. The Anikeeva lab developed an optoelectronic device that can drive uterine
contractions in mice, enabling causal studies of the role of these contractions in health. However,
these devices are attached to the uterus using sutures, which cause scarring and may disrupt
motility patterns. As an alternative, the goal of this project was to develop a soft, biocompatible
hydrogel that enables stable device adhesion to the uterus without sutures. Our spin-coated
hydrogel consists of a tannic acid-poly(vinyl alcohol) (TA-PVA) backbone and an adhesive
poly(acrylic acid) (PAA) layer. Spin-coating the hydrogel ensures homogeneous and reproducible
properties, which we characterized using UV-Vis spectroscopy, Raman spectroscopy, rheological
testing, and adhesion testing. The role of TA as a nonswelling agent was also characterized to
enable further hydrogel optimization. Chemical reactions underlying hydrogel synthesis were
inferred from Raman spectroscopy. Biocompatibility was confirmed via organ bath assays and
histology. The resulting hydrogel was shown to enable chronic uterine interfacing, enabling future
studies that will better characterize uterine physiology.
