AB  Washington University in St. Louis, 2004 
PhD  California Institute of Technology, 2009
Postdoctoral Associate, Northwestern University, 2009-2012 

Assistant Professor of Chemistry, Virginia Tech, 2012-present

Honors and Awards:
NIH National Research Service Award Fellowship, 2011
Baxter Early Career Development Award in Bioengineering, 2009

The development of macromolecular materials that combine synthetic polymerization techniques with the capacity of peptides and other biologically relevant molecules to participate in supramolecular interactions will lead to a variety of new responsive materials. When applied in vivo, a vital characteristic of these new materials will be their biodegradability, allowing the carrier to break down into benign metabolites. My lab focuses on the synthesis of biodegradable polymeric and self-assembling structures and their application in a broad variety of fields, including regenerative medicine, cancer therapeutics, drug delivery, and signaling gas delivery. Current research efforts include:

• Developing dynamic, globular macromolecules that respond to a specific stimulus, e.g., pH change, irradiation, or the presence of an enzyme, by undergoing a change in size or shape.
• Exploring self-assembling, biodegradable polymers for use as injectable matrices in regenerative medicine.
• Synthesizing new small molecules, polymers, and nanostructures for the delivery of signaling gases.

1. “A Peptide-Based Material for Therapeutic Carbon Monoxide Delivery” Matson, J. B.; Webber, M. J.; Tamboli, V. K.; Weber, B.; Stupp, S. I. Soft Matter 2012, 8, 6689-6692.
2. “Self-Assembling Peptide Scaffolds for Regenerative Medicine” Matson, J. B.; Stupp, S. I. Chem. Commun. 2012, 48, 26-33.
3. “Pulsed-Addition Ring-Opening Metathesis Polymerization: Catalyst-Economical Syntheses of Homopolymers and Block Copolymers” Matson, J. B.; Virgil, S. C.; Grubbs, R. H. J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2009, 131, 3355-3362.
4. “ROMP-ATRP Block Copolymers Prepared from Monotelechelic Poly(oxa)norbornenes using a Difunctionalized cis-Olefin Terminating Agent” Matson, J. B.; Grubbs, R. H. Macromolecules 2008, 41, 5626-5631.