Rikki Garner

Dr. Rikki Michelle Garner is an accomplished molecular, cellular, and developmental biophysicist who seeks to understand the fundamental physical principles that shape and pattern life. Her interdisciplinary research program pioneers approaches integrating advanced imaging, AI/ML, and biophysical modeling to dissect mechanisms of biological self-organization from the molecular to the organismal scale. Her lab investigates tissue fluidity – the ability of cells to freely move, flow, and rearrange within a tissue – as a fundamental physical regulator of tissue patterning in health and disease.