Dr. Tania Betancourt
Associate Professor

Office: CENT 340E
Office phone: (512) 245-7703
Email: tb26@txstate.edu
Lab: CENT 343
Lab Phone: (512) 245-1412
Fax: (512) 245-2374
Educational Background
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B.S. Chemical Engineering, Texas A&M University (College Station, TX) 2002
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M.S. Biomedical Engineering, The University of Texas at Austin (Austin, TX) 2005
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Ph.D. Biomedical Engineering, The University of Texas at Austin (Austin, TX) 2007
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Postdoctoral Research Fellow, The University of Texas at Austin (Austin, TX) 2008
Honors and Awards
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Research Corporation for Science Advancement Cottrell College Single Investigator Award, 2012
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Recipient, David and Mary Miller Fellowship University of Texas at Austin, 2006-2007
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Recipient, NSF IGERT Graduate Research Fellowship, University of Texas, 2004-2006
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Recipient, Thrust 2000 Fellowship, College of Engineering, University of Texas at Austin, 2003-2007
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Magna Cum Laude honor graduation in Chemical Engineering, Texas A&M University, 2002
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Recipient, Lindsay Scholarship, Texas A&M University, 2001-2002
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Recipient, American Chemical Society Scholars Program Scholarship, 1999-2002
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Member, Omega Chi Epsilon Chemical Engineering Honor Society
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Member, Tau Beta Pi Engineering Honor Society
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Member, Phi Theta Kappa International Honor Society of the Two Year College
Areas of Interest
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Polymeric Biomaterials
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Nanomedicine
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Drug Delivery Systems
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Stimuli-Responsive Hydrogels
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Nucleic Acid Enabled Biomaterials
Related Web Sites
Research in the Betancourt Group
- Design of novel biomaterials that have specific properties at the molecular level to mediate their interaction with tissues, cells, and biomolecules.
- Synthesis of linear and branched biocompatible copolymers by polymerization and conjugation techniques and characterization by nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) and Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy
- Preparation of nanostructures and characterization via dynamic light scattering, scanning and electron microscopy, and absorption and fluorescence spectroscopy.
- Functionalization of nanostructures with fluorescent molecules, targeting agents, or shielding molecules to improve their bioactivity.
- In vitro confirmation of the function of the nanstructures by investigating their behavior as a function of pH, enzymatic activity, ligand concentration, temperature, or external triggers.
- Evaluation of the nanostructure potential for biomedical purposes by studying the compatibility (nontoxicity) and interaction of these structures with cultured cell models of disease through biochemical assays, and optical/fluorescence microscopy.
Recent Publications
Dasari, R.; Blauz, A.; Medellin, D.; Kassim, R.; Viera, C.; Santarosa, M.; Van der Westhuyzen, A.; van Otterlo, W.; Olivas, T.; Yildiz, T.; Betancourt, T.; Shuster, C.B.; Rogelj, S.; Rychlik, B.; Hudnall, T.; Frolova, L.; Kornienko, A. Microtubule-targeting 7-deazahypoxanthines derived from marine alkaloid rigidins: Exploration of the N3 and N9 positions and interaction with multi-drug resistance proteins. Chem. Med. Chem., 2018, Article ASAP. Link
Wang, K.W.; Betancourt, T.; Hall, C. K. Computational study of DNA-cross-linked hydrogel formation for drug delivery applications. Macromolecules. 2018, 51, 9758-9768. Link
Yildiz, T.; Gu, R.; Zauscher, S.; Betancourt, T. Doxorubicin-loaded protease-activated near-infrared fluorescent polymeric nanoparticles for imaging and therapy of cancer. Int. J. Nanomed. 2018, 13, 6961-6986. Link
Wang, K.W.; Barker, K.; Benner, S.; Betancourt, T.; Hall, C. Development of a simple coarse-grained model for analysis of oligonucleoutide complex formation. Molecular Simulations. 2018, 4, 1004-1015. Link
Rodriguez Amaya, L.; Betancourt, T.; Henry Collins, K.; Hinojosa, O.; Corona, C. Undergraduate research experiences: mentoring, awareness, and perceptions – a case study at a Hispanic-serving institution. Int. J. STEM. Ed. 2018, 5, 9. Link
Rastogi, S.K.; Anderson, H.E.; Lamas, J.; Barret, S.; Cantu, T.; Zauscher, S.; Brittain, W.J.; Betancourt, T. Enhanced Release of Molecules upon UV Light Irradiation from Photoresponsive Hydrogels Prepared from Bifunctional Azobenzene and Four-Arm Poly(ethylene glycol). ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces. 2018,10,30071-30080. DOI: 10.1021/acsami.6b16183. Link
Jamkhindikar, S. P.; Stretz, H. A.; Massingill, J. Jr.; Betancourt, T.; High throughput fiber reactor process for organic nanoparticle production: Poly(N-isopropylacrylamide), poly(acrylamide), and alginate. J. Applied Polym. Sci. 2017, 134, 45524. Link
Ciavatta, M. L.; Lefranc, F.; Carbone, M.; Mollo, E.; Gavagnin, M.; Betancourt, T.; Dasari, R.; Kornienko, A.*; Kiss, R.* Anticancer Compounds from Marine Mollusks. Medicinal Research Reviews. 2017, 37 (4), 702-801. Link
Cantu T.; Walsh, K.; Pattani, V.; Moy, A.; Tunnell, J.; Irvin, J.; Betancourt, T.; Conductive Polymer-Based Nanoparticle for Laser-Mediated Photothermal Ablation of Cancer: Synthesis, Characterization, and In Vitro Evaluation. International Journal of Nanomedicine. 2017, 17, 615-632. Link
Weigum, S.; Munoz, C.; McIvor, E.; Sutton, M.; Feng, R.; Cantu, T.; Betancourt, T. Targeted Therapy of Hepatocellular Carcinoma with Aptamer-Functionalized Biodegradable Nanoparticles. Journal of Nanoparticle Research. 2016, 18, 341. Link