Christine K. Payne

Professor in the Thomas Lord Department of Mechanical Engineering and Materials Science

Christine Payne is the Donald M. Alstadt Chair of the Thomas Lord Department of Mechanical Engineering and Materials Science at Duke University. Her research focuses on understanding how cells interact with nanomaterials. This includes fundamental questions of nanoparticle-protein interactions, as well as applied research to understand the pulmonary response to the inhalation of nanoparticles in a manufacturing setting. Her team uses an interdisciplinary approach that includes elements of materials science, chemistry, biophysics, and lab automation. She teaches classes on the quantum mechanics and statistical mechanics of materials including a class on the “Materials Science of Science Fiction.” She earned a S.B. in Chemistry from the University of Chicago (1998) and a Ph.D. in Chemistry from the University of California, Berkeley (2003). Prof. Payne spent 2003-2006 as an NIH NRSA Postdoctoral Fellow at Harvard University. Prof. Payne has received many honors including an NIH Director’s New Innovator Award (2009), a DARPA Young Faculty Award (2011), and she is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Chemistry. She served as a Jefferson Science Fellow at the U.S. Department of State working in the Bureau of International Security and Nonproliferation (2024).

Appointments and Affiliations

  • Professor in the Thomas Lord Department of Mechanical Engineering and Materials Science
  • Alstadt Chair of the Thomas Lord Department of Mechanical Engineering and Materials Science
  • Professor of Chemistry

Contact Information

  • Office Location: 534 Research Dr. #311, Wilkinson, Durham, NC 27708
  • Email Address: christine.payne@duke.edu
  • Websites:

Education

  • B.S. The University of Chicago, 1998
  • Ph.D. University of California, Berkeley, 2003

Research Interests

Molecular mechanisms by which cells interact with nanomaterials with applications in nanomedicine and environmental exposures

Awards, Honors, and Distinctions

  • Jefferson Science Fellows Program. National Academies of Science, Engineering & Medicine. 2023
  • Fellow. Royal Society of Chemistry. 2020

Courses Taught

  • ME 592: Research Independent Study in Mechanical Engineering or Material Science
  • ME 555: Advanced Topics in Mechanical Engineering
  • ME 490: Special Topics in Mechanical Engineering
  • CHEM 590: Special Topics in Chemistry

In the News

Representative Publications

  • Heckman, Morgan M., Catherine S. Cai, Abhishek Kalpattu, Emily M. Simmons, Robert M. Tighe, and Christine K. Payne. “Lipid adsorbed on the surface of nanomaterials enhances protein corona formation.” Environ Sci Nano 13, no. 4 (April 23, 2026): 2112–22. https://doi.org/10.1039/d5en00971e.
  • Fan, Qingsong, Junqin Chen, Arpit Mishra, Aaron Stewart, Faisal Anees, Ting-Hsuan Chen, Judith Dominguez, et al. “Nanofluid-Enhanced Laser Lithotripsy Using Conducting Polymer Nanoparticles.” Adv Sci (Weinh) 12, no. 48 (December 2025): e07714. https://doi.org/10.1002/advs.202507714.
  • Vijgen, Nicole, Karsten M. Poulsen, Gustavo Sosa Macias, and Christine K. Payne. “Predicting the protein corona on nanoparticles using random forest models with nanoparticle, protein, and experimental features.” Nanoscale Advances 7, no. 18 (September 2025): 5612–24. https://doi.org/10.1039/d5na00425j.
  • Cook, Keisha J., Nathan Rayens, Linh Do, Christine K. Payne, and Scott A. McKinley. “Considering experimental frame rates and robust segmentation analysis of piecewise-linear microparticle trajectories.” Mathematical Biosciences and Engineering : MBE 22, no. 10 (August 2025): 2595–2626. https://doi.org/10.3934/mbe.2025095.
  • Anees, Faisal, Diego A. Montoya, David S. Pisetsky, Tariq Khan, Abhishek Kalpattu, and Christine K. Payne. “DNA coronas resist nuclease degradation.” Biophys J 124, no. 14 (July 15, 2025): 2253–62. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bpj.2025.05.028.