Biographical Information

Dr. Coppin received degrees in physics from M.I.T. (B.S. '86) and Tufts University (M.D., PhD '93). His postdoctoral research in biophysics was conducted in the Howard Hughes Medical Institute at the University of California , San Francisco , where he investigated the molecular mechanisms of cellular movement. Dr. Coppin subsequently entered the private sector, where he made advances in the field of high-throughput laboratory automation and robotics, during which he became interested in medical devices. From 1999 to 2007, Dr. Coppin led the research department at the Heart Valves Division of Medtronic, where his team made notable discoveries in the processing of bioprosthetic tissues to prevent graft rejection, and in the revitalization of decellularized tissues. Dr. Coppin was appointed clinical assistant professor in the School of Chemical and Bioengineering in the spring of 2008. He also serves as chair of the Cell Physiology course in the WWAMI medical education program, in association with the University of Washington Medical School; and he consults for private industry on issues of R&D strategy and intellectual property rights.