Emeritus Professor Sheila MacNeil is Professor of Biomaterials and Tissue Engineering at Sheffield University with expertise in tissue engineering of skin, oral mucosa, urethra, oesophagus and cornea with a strong focus on translating research to the clinic. She has published over 550 peer-reviewed articles with over 10,000 citations and has an h-index of 57. Since 1992 she has worked with clinicians in Sheffield, delivering autologous keratinocytes to burns patients and developed and commercialised improved delivery of skin cells to patients with MySkin™ and Cryoskin™ (autologous and allogeneic cell therapy for wound healing), available for NHS patients via Regenerys Ltd (www.regenerys.com). Another key project is developing cell delivery membranes for corneal defects (Wellcome Trust Affordable Healthcare for India) working with colleagues in India. She is also working with colleagues in Pakistan to develop novel biomaterials to promote angiogenesis in chronic wounds
She has worked extensively with NHS Urologist Professor Chris Chapple in Sheffield to develop tissue engineered oral mucosa for reconstruction of urethral strictures. Her group have developed novel biomaterials for use in SUI and POP and focussed on developing new methodologies for preclinical selection of appropriate materials.
She received the UK Society of Biomaterials President’s medal for her contributions to Biomaterials in both the UK and overseas in September 2014 and the Institute of Materials, Minerals and Mining (IOM3) Chapman Medal for Biomedical Materials and Biomaterials Innovation.in 2018.