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Spring 2011 Graduate Newsletter
May 30, 2011
Welcome to our BioE Graduate Newsletter!
We hope you enjoy this update on the UC Berkeley and UCSF Graduate Program in Bioengineering.
Alumni Profile: Andrew Walsh
Bioengineering alumnus Andrew Walsh (Ph.D. 2002) is a Principal Scientist at Medtronic, in the Corporate Ventures and New Therapies group. He shares with us how he got where he is today.
Advanced biomedical imaging at UCSF is only one of second-year Ph.D. student Joey Wilson’s passions. Joey has a long-standing interest in science education and outreach – bringing the excitement of science research to students who normally would not have access. Read More
Roy Lab pioneers artificial kidney
Associate Professor Shuvo Roy (Bioengineering and Therapeutic Sciences, UCSF) is leading the design of an implantable, artificial kidney. If Roy is successful, the coffee cup-sized replacement kidney will not only perform dialysis, but function as a complete replacement kidney and last for years.
The kidney is made from two parts, a filter side and a cellular side. On the filter side, silicone membranes with microscopic pores will separate toxins from the blood, while on the cellular side the filtered blood will be pumped over a bed of human cells. The cells will sense the chemical makeup of the filtered blood and trigger the body to maintain appropriate levels of salt, sugar and water.
The device would spare victims of kidney failure not only from dialysis, but also from anti-rejection drugs. Components are currently being tested in animals; the full kidney is at least five years away from human testing.
UC Berkeley Bioengineering Professor Luke Lee and his laboratory have made a major advancement in microfluidics research, which could lead to stand-alone, self-powered chips that can diagnose diseases within minutes.
The device, developed by an international team of researchers from the University of California, Berkeley, Dublin City University in Ireland and Universidad de Valparaíso Chile, is able to process whole blood samples without the use of external tubing and extra components. The device, named SIMBAS for Self-powered Integrated Microfluidic Blood Analysis System, appeared as the cover story of the March 7 journal Lab on a Chip. Read More
Another admissions season accomplished!
We received a record 512 applications to the Bioengineering Graduate Programs for Fall 2011 admission, and welcomed 70 students to visit the campuses in February and March. Our 2011 cohort of 37 new Ph.D. students will arrive this August!
NSF CAREER and Lilly Young Investigator Awards
Berkeley Bioengineering Assistant Professors Amy Herr and Sanjay Kumar have received 2011 National Science Foundation Faculty Early Career Development (CAREER) Program awards.
Amy Herr has also been chosen to receive a 2010 Eli Lilly and Company Young Investigator Award in Analytical Chemistry. Read More
Students take best poster awards
BioE Ph.D. student Kelly Karns won the LabAutomation Academic Poster Award at the 2011 conference in Palm Springs, while Akwasi Apori took first place in the research poster competition at the 26th International Symposium on MicroScale Bioseparations. Read More about Kelly and Akwasi
Tam receives Whitaker award
Congratulations to Bioengineering graduate student Johnny Tam, recipient of a Whitaker International Scholar Award for research in Barcelona, Spain!
Thanks for reading! Contact us at ude.yelekrebnull@gneoib
Advanced biomedical imaging at UCSF is only one of second-year Ph.D. student Joey Wilson’s passions. Joey has a long-standing interest in science education and outreach – bringing the excitement of science research to students who normally would not have access.
