Dr. Aubin-Tam received her PhD from the Massachussetts Institute of Technology (MIT), where she studied the interaction of proteins with metallic nanoparticles. She then trained as postdoc with Matthew Lang and Tania Baker, still at MIT, where she pioneered the use of optical tweezers to study the unfolding and translocating activity of a AAA+ proteolytic machine. She joined the Delft University of Technology (TU Delft) in the Netherlands in 2012 and became tenured associate professor in 2018. Her lab develops bio-based and responsive living materials, and in this context, seeks to understand the biophysical interactions of cells and biomolecules within an engineered environment. Her interests include biologically produced minerals and polymers (e.g., bacterial cellulose, polyglutamatic acid) that show high promise to replace traditional inert materials like ceramics and plastics