Dr. Owen's research interests include fluid mechanics and rheology of biological fluids, and polymer based drug delivery devices.

I am currently applying the principles of mechanics and material science to two research problems. The first is the development of efficacious topical vaginal prophylactic gels. The physical properties of these gels must be such that, when applied, they spread to coat the vaginal epithelia and then stay in place long enough to provide adequate protection from disease vectors such as bacteria and viruses.

The second research problem is the study of the properties of vitreous, the clear gel that fills the eye. Changes in the properties of the vitreous with aging can be a contributing factor in the development of retinal detachments. This research includes the development of diagnostic tools using in vivo measurements of vitreous properties.

Contact Info:

Office Location:	1377 CIEMAS
Office Phone:	+1 919 660 5182
Email Address:
Web Page:

Specialties:

Contraception, Biofluid Mechanics
Drug Delivery
Polymer and Protein Engineering

Recent Publications   (More Publications)

1. Cleall, P.J. and Thomas, H.R. and Melhuish, T.A. and Owen, D.H., Use of parallel computing and visualisation techniques in the simulation of large scale geoenvironmental engineering problems, Future Gener. Comput. Syst. (Netherlands), vol. 22 no. 4 (2006), pp. 460 - 7 [006]  [abs].
2. Thomas, H.R. and Cleall, P.J. and Owen, D.H., Modelling and analysis of geoenvironmental problems using the finite element method, Civil and Structural Engineering Computing: 2001 Invited Lectures presented at the Eighth International Conference on Civil and Structural Engineering Computing and Sixth International Conference on the Application of Artificial Intelligence to Civil and Structural Engineering (2001), pp. 459 - 74  [abs].
3. Katz, D.F. and Owen, D.H. and Plenys, A.M., Drug delivery to the lower female reproductive tract: mechanics and surface phenomena, Proceedings of the First Joint BMES/EMBS Conference. 1999 IEEE Engineering in Medicine and Biology 21st Annual Conference and the 1999 Annual Fall Meeting of the Biomedical Engineering Society (Cat. No.99CH37015), vol. vol.2 (1999), pp. 716 vol.2 - [IEMBS.1999.803871]  [abs].
4. Katz, D.F. and Dunmire, E.N. and Henderson, M.H. and Owen, D.H. and Plenys, A.M., Applications of biomedical engineering in reproductive biomedicine: sensing and drug delivery to the lower female reproductive tract, Proceedings of the 19th Annual International Conference of the IEEE Engineering in Medicine and Biology Society. `Magnificent Milestones and Emerging Opportunities in Medical Engineering' (Cat. No.97CH36136), vol. vol.6 (1997), pp. 2656 - 8 [IEMBS.1997.756878]  [abs].
5. Bernhardt, D.E. and Salsman, J.M. and Owen, D.H. and Vanderkar, D.E., D&D of a DU munitions test facility for unrestricted use, Proceedings of the Topical Meeting on Decommissioning, Decontamination and Reutilization of Commercial and Government Facilities (1997), pp. 81 - 6  [abs].