Associate Professor in Biomaterials
https://www.gu.se/en/about/find-staff/furqanalishah
Contact Email: furqan.ali.shah@biomaterials.gu.se
At the intersection of biology, materials science, and medicine, my research focuses on the structure–property–function relationships in mineralised biological tissues (bone and teeth), through multiscale and multimodal characterisation of micro-to-nanoscale structure, chemical composition, and nanomechanical behaviour. This is made possible by correlative use of nano-analytical electron microscopy (with complementary crystallographic and spectroscopic techniques), vibrational spectroscopy (i.e., micro-Raman spectroscopy and Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy), X-ray micro-computed tomography (micro-CT), histology & immunohistochemistry.
The major focus areas include:
(i) bone and teeth in health and disease, (ii) development of novel strategies for mineralised tissue regeneration, and (iii) bone response to various classes of biomaterials, such as 3D printed titanium (and titanium alloys); biodegradable metals such as magnesium (and magnesium alloys); and a range of calcium phosphate materials.
Key publications:
Shah FA. Revisiting the physical and chemical nature of the mineral component of bone. Acta Biomater. 2025 (in press)
Micheletti C, Shah FA. Bone hierarchical organization through the lens of materials science: Present opportunities and future challenges. Bone Rep. 2024;22:101783
Shah FA, Jolic M, Micheletti C, Omar O, Norlindh B, Emanuelsson L, Engqvist H, Engstrand T, Palmquist A, Thomsen P. Bone without borders – Monetite-based calcium phosphate guides bone formation beyond the skeletal envelope. Bioact Mater. 2023;19:103
Shah FA. High-resolution Raman spectroscopy reveals compositional differences between pigmented incisor enamel and unpigmented molar enamel in Rattus norvegicus. Sci Rep. 2023;13:12301
Shah FA. Magnesium whitlockite – omnipresent in pathological mineralisation of soft tissues but not a significant inorganic constituent of bone. Acta Biomater. 2021;125:72
Shah FA. Towards refining Raman spectroscopy-based assessment of bone composition. Sci Rep. 2020;10:16662
Shah FA, Ruscsák K, Palmquist A. 50 years of scanning electron microscopy of bone – A comprehensive overview of the important discoveries made and insights gained into bone material properties in health, disease, and taphonomy. Bone Res. 2019;7:15
Shah FA, Thomsen P, Palmquist A. Osseointegration and current interpretations of the bone-implant interface. Acta Biomater. 2019;84:1
Shah FA, Thomsen P, Palmquist A. A review of the impact of implant biomaterials on osteocytes. J Dent Res. 2018;97:977
Shah FA, Lee BEJ, Tedesco J, Larsson Wexell C, Persson C, Thomsen P, Grandfield K, Palmquist A. Micrometer-sized magnesium whitlockite crystals in micropetrosis of bisphosphonate-exposed human alveolar bone. Nano Lett. 2017;17:6210