Photo of Daniel Aili

Daniel Aili

Professor, Head of Unit

My research focuses on engineering adaptive biomaterials and molecular technologies that dynamically interact with biological systems for applications in diagnostics, drug delivery, advanced in vitro models and regenerative medicine

Presentation

My research aims to understand and engineer interactions between molecules, materials, and living systems. By combining molecular engineering, biomaterials science, and life sciences, we develop adaptive biomaterials and molecular technologies that sense, respond to, and interact with biological environments.

The research spans multiple length scales, from the molecular design of peptides, polymers, and nanoscale assemblies to advanced biomaterials, biosensors, and biofabricated tissues. A common theme is the development of bioresponsive systems that dynamically adapt their structure and function in response to biological signals. These principles are applied to create innovative technologies for diagnostics, drug delivery, regenerative medicine, and advanced in vitro models for studying health and disease. Our work combines fundamental studies of molecular interactions and self-assembly with the development of translational technologies in close collaboration with clinicians, industry, and international research partners.

A long-term vision is to engineer adaptive materials that dynamically interact with biological systems by sensing, interpreting, and modulating biological processes, ultimately enabling functional molecular communication between synthetic materials and living tissues.

You can find my work at ORCID and Google Scholar and below.

More about my research

Coworkers

News

Portrait of Daniel Aili.

18 June 2026

Grant to building a brain replica

The CNSx3 center has received a large grant to create 3D models of human organs. LiU-professor Daniel Aili is part of the project.

12 August 2025

“Skin in a syringe” a step towards a new way to heal burns

Researchers have created what could be called “skin in a syringe”. The gel containing live cells can be 3D printed into a skin transplant, as shown in a study conducted on mice. This technology may lead to new ways to treat burns and severe wounds.

Tw researchers in an lab sitting at a table.

19 April 2023

The wound dressing that can reveal infection

A nanocellulose wound dressing that can reveal early signs of infection without interfering with the healing process has been developed by researchers at Linköping University. Their study is one further step on the road to a new type of wound care.

CV in short

Employment

  • 2020- to present Professor, Linköping University, Sweden
  • 2015-2020 Associate Professor, Linköping University, Sweden
  • 2011-2015 Assistant Professor, Linköping University, Sweden
  • 2010-2011 Postdoc, School of Materials Science, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore
  • 2009-2010 Postdoc, Prof. Molly Stevens' lab, Imperial College London, UK

Education

  • 2008 PhD in Molecular Physics, Linköping University, Sweden
  • 2003 MSc in Engineering Biology, Linköping University, Sweden

Achievements

  • ERC Consolidator Grant holder
  • Coordinator of SSF MED-X project HEALiX
  • Wallenberg Academy Fellow (+ prolongation grant)
  • Enrolled in the Future Research Leader program by the Swedish Foundation for Strategic Research
  • Received the AkzoNobel Nordic Prize for Surface and Colloid Chemystry (2012)
  • Received the Ingvar Carlsson Award (2012)
  • Received the Arnbergska Prize from the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences (2013)

Expertise

  • Soft biomaterials
  • Molecular self-assembly
  • Surface and colloid chemistry
  • Biosensors

Teaching

Video

Hydrogels can provide better cell therapy treatment

This video, made by Swedish Foundation for Strategic Research in their series about future research leaders, tells the story about Daniel Aili and his research group that, among others, create hydrogels.

Picture from 2025 STIAS Public Lecture Series Daniel Aili Full Lecture

2025 STIAS Public Lecture Series: Daniel Aili

As a STIAS Fellow, Daniel Aili gives a lecture discussing efforts to design biomaterials and bio-fabrication technologies for creating novel regenerative strategies and physiologically relevant disease models.


2025 STIAS Public Lecture Series: Daniel Aili

Publications

2026

Johanna Hultman, Vivian Morad, Eliane Tanner, Tristan M. G. Kenney, Zuzanna Pietras, Lalit Pramod Khare, Dean Derbyshire, Diana Resetca, Cheryl H. Arrowsmith, Daniel Aili, Simon Ekstrom, Linda Z. Penn, Björn Wallner, Alexandra Ahlner, Maria Sunnerhagen (2026) The N-Myc MB0-MBI region interacts specifically and dynamically with the N-lobe of Aurora kinase A Nature Communications, Vol. 17, Article 2016 (Article in journal) https://dx.doi.org/10.1038/s41467-026-69725-1
Elisa Zattarin, Wasihun Bekele Kebede, Zeljana Sotra, Rozalin Shamasha, Annika Starkenberg, Valentina Guerrero Florez, Lalit Pramod Khare, Torbjorn Bengtsson, Hazem Khalaf, Emma Björk, Jonathan Rakar, Johan Junker, Daniel Aili (2026) Enzyme responsive antimicrobial hyaluronan-nanocellulose hybrid wound dressings for the treatment of infected wounds Bioactive Materials, Vol. 61, p. 150-171 (Article in journal) https://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.bioactmat.2026.01.042
Wasihun Bekele Kebede, Elisa Zattarin, Zeljana Sotra, Emanuel Wiman, Annika Starkenberg, Sneha Kollenchery Ramanathan, Jonathan Rakar, Tsige Gebre-Mariam, Tesfaye Sisay Tessema, Marten Skog, Petter Sivler, Torbjorn Bengtsson, Hazem Khalaf, Johan Junker, Daniel Aili (2026) Antimicrobial Peptide-Modified Nanocellulose-Silver Nanoparticle Composite Wound Dressings ACS Applied Nano Materials, Vol. 9, p. 1571-1583 (Article in journal) https://dx.doi.org/10.1021/acsanm.5c04901
Valentina Guerrero Florez, Elisa Zattarin, Lalit Pramod Khare, Emanuel Wiman, Torbjorn Bengtsson, Hazem Khalaf, Johan Junker, Lars Ojamäe, Magnus Odén, Daniel Aili, Emma Björk (2026) Protein-capped mesoporous silica SBA-15 enables protease-responsive and controlled antimicrobial peptide delivery Journal of Colloid and Interface Science, Vol. 703, Article 139151 (Article in journal) https://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jcis.2025.139151

2025

Daniel Aili, A. Herland (2025) Engineered Hydrogels for 3D Cell Culture and Bioprinting of Human Induced Pluripotent Stem Cell-Derived Neuroepithelial Stem Cells Methods in Molecular Biology, p. 223-233 (Chapter in book) https://dx.doi.org/10.1007/978-1-0716-4530-7_16
Philip Lifwergren, Viktoria Schoen, Sajjad Naeimipour, Lalit Pramod Khare, Anna Wunder, Hanna Blom, Jose Gabriel Martinez Gil, Pierfrancesco Pagella, Anders Fridberger, Johan Junker, Daniel Aili (2025) Printing and Rerouting of Elastic and Protease Responsive Shape Memory Hydrogel Filaments Advanced Healthcare Materials, Vol. 14, Article 2502262 (Article in journal) https://dx.doi.org/10.1002/adhm.202502262
Alexandra Iversen, Johanna Utterström, Basab Kanti Das, Robert Selegård, Lalit Pramod Khare, Daniel Aili (2025) Orthogonal conjugation of anchoring-dependent membrane active peptides for tuning of liposome permeability Journal of materials chemistry. B, Vol. 13, p. 10267-10277 (Article in journal) https://dx.doi.org/10.1039/d5tb00304k
Rozalin Shamasha, Sneha Kollenchery Ramanathan, Kristin Oskarsdotter, Fatemeh Rasti Boroojeni, Aleksandra Zielinska, Sajjad Naeimipour, Philip Lifwergren, Nina Reustle, Lauren Roberts, Annika Starkenberg, Gunnar Kratz, Peter Apelgren, Karin Saljo, Jonathan Rakar, Lars Kolby, Daniel Aili, Johan Junker (2025) Biphasic Granular Bioinks for Biofabrication of High Cell Density Constructs for Dermal Regeneration Advanced Healthcare Materials, Vol. 14, Article 2501430 (Article in journal) https://dx.doi.org/10.1002/adhm.202501430
Olof Eskilsson, Emanuel Wiman, Nina Reustle, Jakob Langwagen, Zeljana Sotra, Anna Svard, Robert Selegård, Yagmur Bas, Linn Berglund, Kristiina Oksman, Torbjorn Bengtsson, Johan Junker, Hazem Khalaf, Daniel Aili (2025) Nanocellulose Wound Dressings with Integrated Protease Sensors for Detection of Wound Pathogens ACS Sensors, Vol. 10, p. 3953-3963 (Article in journal) https://dx.doi.org/10.1021/acssensors.4c03428
Elisa Zattarin, Zeljana Sotra, Emanuel Wiman, Yagmur Baş, Jonathan Rakar, Linn Berglund, Annika Starkenberg, Emma Björk, Hazem Khalaf, Kristiina Oksman, Torbjorn Bengtsson, Johan Junker, Daniel Aili (2025) Controlled Release of Antimicrobial Peptides from Nanocellulose Wound Dressings for Treatment of Wound Infections Materials Today Bio, Vol. 32, Article 101756 (Article in journal) https://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.mtbio.2025.101756
Oleg Dimitriev, Huotian Zhang, Anna Dávid, Olof Eskilson, Daniel Aili, Lukas Marcos Celada, Peter Olsen, Feng Gao, Mats Fahlman (2025) Stress-assisted, clustering-triggered visual emission of cellulose-based materials Cellulose, Vol. 32, p. 3651-3666 (Article in journal) https://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s10570-025-06490-2

2024

Changbai Li, Sajjad Naeimipour, Fatemeh Rasti Boroojeni, Tobias Abrahamsson, Xenofon Strakosas, Yangpeiqi Yi, Rebecka Rilemark, Caroline Lindholm, Venkata Perla, Chiara Musumeci, Yuyang Li, Hanne Biesmans, Marios Savvakis, Eva Olsson, Klas Tybrandt, Mary Donahue, Jennifer Gerasimov, Robert Selegård, Magnus Berggren, Daniel Aili, Daniel Simon (2024) Engineering Conductive Hydrogels with Tissue-like Properties: A 3D Bioprinting and Enzymatic Polymerization Approach Small Science, Vol. 4, Article 2400290 (Article in journal) https://dx.doi.org/10.1002/smsc.202400290
Olof Eskilsson, Elisa Zattarin, Jennifer Silander, Tomas Hallberg, Christina Akerlind, Robert Selegård, Kenneth Järrendahl, Daniel Aili (2024) Self-Assembly of Soft and Conformable Broadband Absorbing Nanocellulose-Gold Nanoparticle Composites ACS Applied Materials and Interfaces, Vol. 16, p. 52894-52901 (Article in journal) https://dx.doi.org/10.1021/acsami.4c10244
Alexandra Iversen, Johanna Utterström, Lalit Pramod Khare, Daniel Aili (2024) Influence of lipid vesicle properties on the function of conjugation dependent membrane active peptides Journal of materials chemistry. B, Vol. 12, p. 10320-10331 (Article in journal) https://dx.doi.org/10.1039/d4tb01107d
Thuy Tran, Robert Gustavsson Lindberg, Erik Martinsson, Filip Bergqvist, Andreas Axen, Ingemar Lundström, Carl-Fredrik Mandenius, Daniel Aili (2024) In-line fiber optical sensor for detection of IgG aggregates in affinity chromatography Journal of Chromatography A, Vol. 1730, Article 465129 (Article in journal) https://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.chroma.2024.465129
Annelie Abrahamsson, Fatemeh Rasti Boroojeni, Sajjad Naeimipour, Nina Reustle, Robert Selegård, Daniel Aili, Charlotta Dabrosin (2024) Increased matrix stiffness enhances pro-tumorigenic traits in a physiologically relevant breast tissue- monocyte 3D model Acta Biomaterialia, Vol. 178, p. 160-169 (Article in journal) https://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.actbio.2024.02.021
Alexandra Iversen, Johanna Utterström, Robert Selegård, Daniel Aili (2024) Enzymatically Triggered Peptide-Lipid Conjugation of Designed Membrane Active Peptides for Controlled Liposomal Release ACS Omega, Vol. 9, p. 19613-19619 (Article in journal) https://dx.doi.org/10.1021/acsomega.4c01387
Olof Eskilson, Sneha Kollenchery Ramanathan, Anna du Rietz, Valentina Guerrero Florez, Robert Selegård, Kajsa Uvdal, Emma Björk, Daniel Aili (2024) Self-Assembly of Metal Nanoparticles in Bacterial Cellulose for the Fabrication of Soft Substrate-Supported Catalysts ACS Applied Nano Materials, Vol. 7, p. 6068-6078 (Article in journal) https://dx.doi.org/10.1021/acsanm.3c05981
Fatemeh Rasti Boroojeni, Sajjad Naeimipour, Philip Lifwergren, Annelie Abrahamsson, Charlotta Dabrosin, Robert Selegård, Daniel Aili (2024) Proteolytic remodeling of 3D bioprinted tumor microenvironments Biofabrication, Vol. 16, Article 025002 (Article in journal) https://dx.doi.org/10.1088/1758-5090/ad17d1

2023

Sajjad Naeimipour, Fatemeh Rasti Boroojeni, Philip Lifwergren, Robert Selegård, Daniel Aili (2023) Multimodal and dynamic cross-linking of modular thiolated alginate-based bioinks Materials Today Advances, Vol. 19, Article 100415 (Article in journal) https://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.mtadv.2023.100415

 Organisation