Prestigious National Science Foundation (NSF) Graduate Research Fellowships have been awarded to five continuing Berkeley-UCSF graduate students: Nicole Repina, Suraj Makhija, Jennifer Hu, and Ben Hinton. Incoming students Yiqi Cao, Shakked Halperin, and James Lucas are also NSF recipients.
Congratulations outstanding GSIs
Congratulations to Stacey Lee, Eda Altiok, Malav Desai, and Kevin Yamauchi, 2014-2015 Outstanding Graduate Student Instructors at UC Berkeley. These GSIs were nominated by their instructor for excellent teaching and mentoring as GSIs in a bioengineering class. Congratulations!
Bioengineers in UCSF video
Check out PhD student Harrison Liu and alum Mozzi Etemadi in the new UCSF Pride video.
Both schools receive top rankings
The Bioengineering Graduate Program was once again ranked 7th in the nation by US News and World Report.
‘Smart bandage’ detects early bedsores
A team of researchers, including UC Berkeley professor Michel Maharbiz and UCSF professor Shuvo Roy, have developed new sensor-packed “smart bandages” that actually detect damage to the skin before it becomes visible, allowing caregivers to prevent the formation of infection-prone bedsores.
Cyborg beetles lead to better insect understanding
UC Berkeley professor Michel Maharbiz is know for his work hard-wiring beetles for radio-controlled flight. That work is now allowing researchers to learn new things about the muscles insects use to steer.
Shadden sharpens diagnosis with computer modeling
A profile from the Bakar Fellows Program explains how UC Berkeley professor Shawn Shadden uses advanced computer modeling to help doctors find the best treatment for patients undergoing a stroke.
BioE startup Lygos produces malonic acid from sugar
Lygos, a company founded by BioE PhD alumni Jeff Dietrich and Eric Steen, has been in the news for their newly announced breakthrough in the production of malonic acid. The acid is a high-value chemical useful for production of pharmaceuticals, flavors, fragrances, and specialty materials. The new process, using engineered microbes, would be cheaper and less polluting than the current petroleum-intensive production methods.
UCSF Schools Lead Nation In NIH Biomedical Research Funds
For the second year in a row, UC San Francisco’s four schools topped the nation in federal biomedical research funding in their fields in 2014, with the graduate-level university as a whole receiving the most of any public recipient and second most overall in funds from the National Institutes of Health (NIH), according to annual NIH figures.
Alumna Lee receives NSF CAREER Award
Congratulations to PhD alumna Somin Eunice Lee, now Assistant Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering at the University of Michigan, recipient of an NSF CAREER award for her research project, “Engineering Plasmonic Nanoantenna Architectures for Efficient Nuclear Delivery.”
Meet Professor Grace O’Connell
Check out an interview with graduate faculty member and assistant professor of mechanical engineering, Grace O’Connell.
Keasling and Mathies named to National Academy of Inventors
Jay Keasling and Richard Mathies, UC Berkeley professors and faculty of the graduate program in bioengineering, have been named fellows of the National Academy of Inventors. NAI fellows are nominated by their peers for outstanding contributions to innovation in areas such as patents and licensing, innovative discovery and technology, significant impact on society, and support and enhancement of innovation.
BioE faculty receive first NIH BRAIN grants
Several members of the bioengineering graduate program have received research grants in the highly competitive first wave of National Institutes of Health (NIH) awards to support President Obama’s BRAIN (Brain Research through Advancing Innovative Neurotechnologies) Initiative.
Five students named 2015 Siebel Scholars
The Siebel Foundation has announced the names of five UC Berkeley Bioengineering graduate students who have been named Siebel Scholars.The Siebel Scholars program recognizes outstanding graduate students from the world’s most prestigious business, computer science, and bioengineering graduate schools. Each of the Class of 2015 Siebel Scholars will receive a $35,000 award for his or […]
Two bioengineers study abroad as EAPSI scholars
BioE PhD students Augusto Tentori and Todd Duncombe, both of Professor Amy Herr’s lab, were selected as NSF EAPSI scholars for Summer 2014, allowing them to do research in Korea and Taiwan, respectively.
Alumni Profile: Christine Leon Swisher
One of our most recent alumnae, Dr. Christine Leon Swisher spoke with us about juggling her passions for science and dance, simultaneously pursuing a PhD and dancing with the 49ers Gold Rush cheerleaders.
BioE grad student studies infant HIV testing in Kenya
Bioengineering graduate student Rachel Gerver of Professor Amy Herr’s lab has just returned from a three-week needs-finding expedition on infant HIV diagnosis in Kenya.
UC President visits UCSF-Tuskegee partnership
On August 5, 2014 UC President Janet Napolitano visited UCSF to learn more about the UCSF-Tuskegee Partnership in Bioengineering and meet with some of the current participants.
Vlassakis attends Lindau Nobel Meeting
Graduate student Julea Vlassakis was selected to participate in the 64th Lindau Nobel Laureate Meeting, June 29 to July 4 2014, in Lindau, Germany. Only the 600 most qualified young researchers were given the opportunity to enrich and share the unique atmosphere of the Lindau Nobel Laureate Meetings.
Desai is the new Chair of BTS
Bioe alumna (Ph.D. 1998) and graduate faculty member Tejal Desai has been appointed Chair of the UCSF Department of Bioengineering and Therapeutic Sciences, effective August 1, 2014.
Bioengineers in the SF Chronicle
Bioengineering students and faculty are featured at the launch of the Rosenman Institute for medical technology development.
Tiny Sheep: UC Berkeley Researchers Use Electricity to Herd Cells
By using electric currents, bioengineering graduate student Daniel Cohen and graduate faculty member Michel Maharbiz are studying how epithelial cells respond to electric fields and move in unison, to potentially aid wound healing.
Researchers target brain circuitry to treat mental disorders
Bioengineering graduate program faculty are among the researchers at UC Berkeley and UCSF who will be working to develop devices to be implanted in the brain to target and correct malfunctioning neural circuits. Graduate prorgram faculty involved include Jose Carmena, Robert Knight, and Michel Maharbiz at UC Berkeley and Edward Chang at UCSF.
CellScope Inc, a BioE startup, in the NYTimes
The CellScope otoscope, based on the CellScope pioneered by Dan Fletcher’s lab, is being developed by alumnus Erik Douglas’ startup Cellscope, Inc.