Affiliation: University of South Dakota Sanford School of Medicine; Sanford Research

Dr. De la Puente received her PhD at the University of Salamanca in Spain in the field of Biomedical Engineering and Biological Sciences. The scope of her studies included development of novel, autologous cell cultures in a biocompatible matrix enriched with growth factors for tissue engineering applications. She focused on the recreation of the tumor microenvironment of hematological malignancies during her postdoctoral fellowship at Washington University in St. Louis School of Medicine. Currently, Dr. De la Puente is an Assistant Professor at Sanford Research/ University of South Dakota Sanford School of Medicine where she studies the role of the tumor microenvironment in cancer progression, drug resistance, and cancer immunology. Her lab is developing 3D models of the tumor microenvironment in order to more accurately mimic cell-cell and cell-matrix interactions for personalized medicine. She was recently awarded the prestigious Young Investigator Lush Prize, and she is an active entrepreneur with several patents and roles in start-up companies.