Rate My Professor Owen Davies

Professor Owen Davies is Professor of Regenerative Biology at Loughborough University’s School of Sport, Exercise and Health Sciences. He holds a BSc (Hons), PGCE from the University of Nottingham (2008), an MRes in tissue engineering and regenerative medicine from the University of Manchester, and a PhD from the University of Birmingham, focusing on the comparative efficacy of stem cells isolated from adipose, bone marrow, and dental pulp sources for mineralised tissue regeneration. Following his doctorate, Davies was awarded the competitive EPSRC E-TERM Landscape Fellowship in 2016, during which he served as a Visiting Fellow in the School of Chemical Engineering at the University of Birmingham. In April 2018, he joined Loughborough University as Lecturer in Molecular and Regenerative Biomedicine under the Excellence 100 scheme, was promoted to Senior Lecturer in 2021, and elevated to Professor of Regenerative Biology in 2025. He currently serves as University Lead for the Mercia Stem Cell Alliance.

Davies leads a multidisciplinary research group investigating the roles of extracellular vesicles—cell-derived nanoparticles—in musculoskeletal tissue formation, regeneration, and homeostasis. His work pioneers EV-based therapeutics for fracture healing, spinal fusions, osteoporosis, sarcopenia, bone cancers, and targeted drug delivery, leveraging EVs' inherent targeting properties to address limitations in traditional cell therapies. He has secured over £2.5 million in research funding from EPSRC, the Academy of Medical Sciences (the first Loughborough recipient of its Springboard award), NC3Rs/BBSRC, British Council, and industry. Select publications include “From bone development to regenerative orthopedics” (Molecular Therapy, 2023), “Cell culture-derived extracellular vesicles: Knowns and unknowns” (Journal of Extracellular Vesicles, 2023), and “Annexin-enriched osteoblast-derived vesicles act as an osteogenic substrate for mesenchymal stem cells” (Scientific Reports, 2017). Davies is Deputy Editor of the Journal of Extracellular Vesicles and Associate Editor of the Journal of Tissue Engineering. He contributes to committees such as the UK Society for Extracellular Vesicles, ISEV Task Force on Regulatory Affairs and Clinical Use of EV-Based Therapeutics, and UKRI Early Career Forum, and holds memberships in the Tissue and Cell Engineering Society and TERMIS.