MEET THE TEAM

Dr. Poore received his medical training and doctorate from Brown University in Providence, Rhode Island, and completed his residency in Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. He then did a fellowship in microsurgery and research at the Bernard O'Brien Institute of Microsurgery in Melbourne, Australia. Dr. Poore specializes in microvascular surgery with an emphasis on breast reconstruction, upper and lower extremity reconstruction, and head and neck reconstruction. He is currently a tenured Associate Professor at the University of Wisconsin, the Chief of Plastic Surgery at the William S. Middleton Veterans Administration Hospital in Madison, Wisconsin, and has a joint appointment in the Department of Biomedical Engineering. Since 2012, Dr. Poore’s research group, as Principal Investigator or Co-Principal Investigator, has earned over $15 million dollars in grant funding through The Defense Advanced Research Project Administration (DARPA), the National Institutes of Health (NIH), the Department of Defense, and the Veteran’s Administration on projects ranging from peripheral nerve regeneration, neural engineering, neural interfacing, prosthetic development, and vascular engineering. In addition, Dr. Poore directs the University of Wisconsin Microsurgical Training Laboratory with a focus on developing novel microsurgical simulators and leads the multi-institutional Annual UW Microsurgery Training Course. Dr. Poore is active an active member in both regional and international plastic surgery societies and recently completed a two-year tenure as President of the Midwest Association of Plastic Surgeons. 

Dr. Zeng is currently an Assistant Scientist and microsurgical instructor at the University of Wisconsin-Madison focusing on microsurgical education, neural interfacing, and transplantation. Before coming to the University of Wisconsin-Madison, he studied supermicrosurgery and lymphedema reconstruction at the University of Iowa, mentored by Dr. Wei F. Chen. Prior to this, he was an Attending Surgeon in the Division of Hand and Microsurgery at the Second Hospital of Dalian Medical University in Liaoning, China. He has profound surgical experience in clinical practice and research. Dr. Zeng is an active member of the American Society of Reconstructive Microsurgery and an international member of the American Society of Plastic Surgery. Dr. Zeng has been committed to and passionate about resident microsurgical education since 2017. Dr. Zeng has developed novel high-realistic simulators and an efficient curriculum for residents in Plastic Surgery, Otolaryngology, Urology, and Neurosurgery. Dr. Zeng’s mentoring helps residents from multiple disciplines gain the confidence and competence needed in the OR. Dr. Zeng also manages the multi-institutional Annual UW Microsurgery Training Course. Dr. Zeng also actively participates in basic scientific research. Dr. Zeng provides surgical service and support including limb/kidney/liver transplantation, engineering vessel transplantation, neural interface development for grants with over $15 million dollars in funding through The Defense Advanced Research Project Administration (DARPA), the National Institutes of Health (NIH), the Department of Defense, and the Veteran’s Administration. 

Dr. Dingle received his undergraduate degree and honors in Biomedical Science from Victoria University, and completed his Ph.D. at the Bernard O’Brien Institute of Microsurgery through the University of Melbourne, in Melbourne, Australia. Dr. Dingle’s Ph.D. focused on isolating liver microvasculature (sinusoidal endothelial cells) to create vascularized liver organoids (spheroids) in vitro, to generate liver tissue in vivo to ultimately reduce the reliance on organ donations for liver transplant. In 2015, he moved to Madison, Wisconsin to take a postdoctoral position at the University of Wisconsin, Madison, researching peripheral nerve interfaces. Dr. Dingle is currently a Senior Scientist in the Department of Surgery, developing his independent research portfolio on limb salvage and ischemia-reperfusion injury, combining his expertise and knowledge of both vascular biology, amputation, neurorrhaphy, and transplantation. Since 2016, Dr. Dingle has earned over $5.2 million dollars in grant funding through The Defense Advanced Research Project Agency (DARPA), Veterans Affairs Administration and Department of Defense, serving both PI and Co-I capacities. Dr. Dingle’s current research portfolio includes neural interfacing for prosthetic control and bioelectric medicine, peripheral nerve repair and regeneration, tendon repair, vascularized composite allograft projects, healthcare equality, and microsurgical education. 

Andi Donnelly is the Lab Manager and Research Intern for the Microsurgery and Regenerative Medicine lab. She graduated Magna Cum Laude with a degree in Psychology from Beloit College in 2018. Her research with the Poore-Dingle Lab has focused on the use of electrical stimulation for the purpose of bone and nerve healing. She is primarily interested in central and peripheral nervous system regeneration, and neuroregeneration.

Dr. Nicksic is a third-year resident in the Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery residency program at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. He is spending a year of dedicated research time in Dr. Poore’s Laboratory, focusing on electrical stimulation for the purpose of bone healing and neural regeneration. He received his medical doctorate from Indiana University and graduated Summa Cum Laude from Wabash College for his bachelor's degree. He has logged many hours and has completed numerous anastomoses in the microsurgical training lab during his time as a resident.