AIMBE
Fellowbook News
AIMBE Fellowbook collects news stories highlighting the members of the AIMBE College of Fellows. Read the latest stories, jump to the College Directory, or search below to find the newest research, awards, announcements and more for the leaders of the medical and biological engineering community.
Nanoparticles Heal Spinal Cord Injuries
Lonnie Shea | Via AZoNano | July 25, 2019Engineers have now created unique nanoparticles that redirect immune cells away from the spinal cord, promoting regeneration that helped restore spinal cord function in mice. The study was funded by the National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering (NIBIB). The spinal cord, similar to the brain, has a blood-brain barrier that guards the fragile nerves […]
Cellular soldiers designed to kill cancer cells that get loose during surgery, stop metastasis
Michael King | Via Vanderbilt University | July 24, 2019Cellular soldiers created using the body’s own defenses can track down and kill escaping cancer cells during surgeries, preventing metastasis and saving lives, a Vanderbilt University biomedical engineer has discovered, particularly in cases of triple negative breast cancer. Michael King, J. Lawrence Wilson Professor of Engineering and chair of the biomedical engineering department, and his […]
Fast-Food Breakfast Combo May Feature Digestive Enzymes on the Prowl and Diabetes
Geert W. Schmid-Schönbein | Via UCSD Jacobs School of Engineering | July 20, 2019The mechanisms for Type II diabetes with defective insulin receptors remain uncertain. A new protease activity technique shows digestive proteases and proteolytic receptor cleavage of the insulin receptor in man even after a single meal… Continue reading.
BioMed SA to honor Pitt regenerative medicine pioneer
Stephen Badylak | Via Pittsburgh Business Times | July 18, 2019BioMed SA, a San Antonio, Texas-based organization, has selected Dr. Stephen Badylak, professor of surgery and bioengineering at the University of Pittsburgh and deputy director of the McGowan Institute for Regenerative Medicine, to receive its 2019 Award for Innovation in Healthcare and Bioscience. Badylak discovered the use of the extracellular matrix, or ECM, which has […]
CCNY Grove School’s Dean Barabino receives AlChE Award for Service to Society
Gilda Barabino | Via The City College of New York | July 15, 2019Gilda A. Barabino, dean of The City College of New York’s Grove School of Engineering, is the recipient of the 2019 AIChE Award for Service to Society. The award, which will be presented at the annual AIChE meeting in November, recognizes outstanding contributions by a chemical engineer to community service and to the solution of […]
New vaccine strategy boosts T-cell therapy
Darrell Irvine | Via MIT | July 11, 2019A promising new way to treat some types of cancer is to program the patient’s own T cells to destroy the cancerous cells. This approach, termed CAR-T cell therapy, is now used to combat some types of leukemia, but so far it has not worked well against solid tumors such as lung or breast tumors. […]
Researchers create double-strength fillings
Jack Ferracane | Via Dentistry.co.uk | July 9, 2019This is according to a study published by the journal Scientific Reports. The new filling uses the additive thiourethane, which is also in protective coatings for cars and decks. The team also has developed an adhesive that’s 30% stronger after six months in use than adhesives that are currently used to keep fillings in place. […]
Deep Learning-Powered ‘DeepEC’ Helps Accurately Understand Enzyme Functions
Sang Yup Lee | Via Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology | July 9, 2019A deep learning-powered computational framework, ‘DeepEC,’ will allow the high-quality and high-throughput prediction of enzyme commission numbers, which is essential for the accurate understanding of enzyme functions. A team of Dr. Jae Yong Ryu, Professor Hyun Uk Kim, and Distinguished Professor Sang Yup Lee at KAIST reported the computational framework powered by deep learning that […]
The root of the matter
Alan Russell | Via Carnegie Mellon University | July 5, 2019For most plants, saltwater is essentially poison—yet the mangrove drinks it, lives in it, and thrives in it. This rare ability to survive in such inhospitable conditions is what first led Professors Alan Russell and Phil LeDuc, along with their Ph.D. student Adam Wood, to study the plant. The Carnegie Mellon University researchers were hoping […]
The root of the matter
Phil LeDuc | Via Carnegie Mellon University | July 5, 2019For most plants, saltwater is essentially poison—yet the mangrove drinks it, lives in it, and thrives in it. This rare ability to survive in such inhospitable conditions is what first led Professors Alan Russell and Phil LeDuc, along with their Ph.D. student Adam Wood, to study the plant. The Carnegie Mellon University researchers were hoping […]
Turmeric May Be the Answer to Osteosarcoma Treatment
Susmita Bose | Via Specialty Pharmacy Times | July 4, 2019A new drug delivery system using curcumin, the main ingredient in the spice turmeric, successfully inhibited bone cancer cells while promoting growth of healthy bone cells, according to a study by the Washington State University. The work could lead to better post-operative treatments for patients with osteosarcoma. As young patients with bone cancer are often […]
Translating proteins into music, and back
Markus Buehler | Via MIT | June 26, 2019Want to create a brand new type of protein that might have useful properties? No problem. Just hum a few bars. In a surprising marriage of science and art, researchers at MIT have developed a system for converting the molecular structures of proteins, the basic building blocks of all living beings, into audible sound that […]
Researchers look to unlock post-traumatic stress disorder puzzle
Nanyin Zhang | Via Penn State University | June 25, 2019A team of Penn State and University of Puerto Rico School of Medicine researchers is attempting to answer a question that has long puzzled experts: Why do some individuals suffer post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) after experiencing trauma, and others do not? The research, led by Nanyin Zhang, professor of biomedical engineering and Lloyd & Dorothy […]
The isoprenoid alcohol pathway, a synthetic route for isoprenoid biosynthesis
Ramon Gonzalez | Via PNAS | June 25, 2019Abstract: The more than 50,000 isoprenoids found in nature are all derived from the 5-carbon diphosphates isopentenyl pyrophosphate (IPP) and dimethylallyl pyrophosphate (DMAPP). Natively, IPP and DMAPP are generated by the mevalonate (MVA) and 2-C-methyl-d-erythritol-4-phosphate (MEP) pathways, which have been engineered to produce compounds with numerous applications. However, as these pathways are inherently constrained by carbon, […]
A better way to encapsulate islet cells for diabetes treatment
Daniel Anderson | Via MIT | June 24, 2019When medical devices are implanted in the body, the immune system often attacks them, producing scar tissue around the device. This buildup of tissue, known as fibrosis, can interfere with the device’s function. MIT researchers have now come up with a novel way to prevent fibrosis from occurring, by incorporating a crystallized immunosuppressant drug into […]
Nicholas Peppas Elected To Canadian Academy of Engineering
Nicholas Peppas | Via The University of Texas at Austin | June 21, 2019Nicholas Peppas, Cockrell Family Regents Chair in Engineering #6 at UT Austin and an expert in biomaterials and drug delivery systems, has been elected as a foreign member of the Canadian Academy of Engineering. The Canadian Academy of Engineering is the national institution through which Canada’s most distinguished and experienced engineers provide strategic advice on […]
First-ever noninvasive mind-controlled robotic arm
Bin He | Via Carnegie Mellon University | June 20, 2019 A team of researchers from Carnegie Mellon has made a breakthrough in the field of noninvasive robotic device control. Using a noninvasive brain-computer interface, they have developed the first-ever successful mind-controlled robotic arm exhibiting the ability to continuously track and follow a computer cursor. Being able to noninvasively control robotic devices using only thoughts […]
Stephen L. Grimes has been inducted into the American College of Clinical Engineering’s Hall of Fame
Stephen L. Grimes | Via ACCE | June 20, 2019Grimes is a 2019 inductee in the Clinical Engineering Hall of Fame in recognition of his significant contributions to the profession as a visionary leader. He saw places where clinical engineering needed to go as a profession, for example, Clinical Systems Engineering, and Medical Technology Cyber Security, and then used his leadership skills to advocate […]
Efficiently Producing Fatty Acids and Biofuels from Glucose
Sang Yup Lee | Via KAIST | June 19, 2019Researchers have presented a new strategy for efficiently producing fatty acids and biofuels that can transform glucose and oleaginous microorganisms into microbial diesel fuel, with one-step direct fermentative production. The newly developed strain, created by Distinguished Professor Sang Yup Lee and his team, showed the highest efficiency in producing fatty acids and biodiesels ever reported. […]