2019 News Archives
James McGrath receives the Outstanding Faculty Award from Edmund Hajim
James McGrath, professor of biomedical engineering, is the recipient of the 2019 Edmund A. Hajim Outstanding Faculty Award.
“Jim leads a highly productive research laboratory dedicated to advancing novel technologies for fabricating nanomembranes for engineering applications in biosensing and separations processes,” said Hajim School Dean Wendi Heinzelman.
Diane Dalecki installed as Kevin J. Parker Distinguished Professor
Diane Dalecki was installed as the Kevin J. Parker Distinguished Professor in Biomedical Engineering in a ceremony that also honored the two mentors who most influenced her.
Benoit lab helps teachers inspire the next generation of researchers
It was “all hands on deck” in the Benoit lab recently when Rochester City School District elementary teachers spent a day learning how hydrogels and other biomaterials can be used for tissue repair and targeted drug delivery.
Professor Maddox receives funding from NIH and NIDCD
Professor Ross Maddox has received funding from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and the National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders (NIDCD) for his project, “Rapid acquisition of the frequency-specific auditory brainstem response through parallel stimulus presentation.”
Summer in Rochester means research
There’s no better time to do research at the University than during the summer. While the classrooms may be quiet, labs and libraries remain busy as undergraduate students work on projects from engineering to political science.
Professors Mark Buckley and Laurel Carney receive Kearns Faculty Mentoring and Teaching Award for commitment to first-generation, minority students
Five University of Rochester faculty mentors are the inaugural recipients of a new mentorship award from the University’s David T. Kearns Center for Leadership and Diversity.
Professor Danielle Benoit named director of Materials Science Program
Danielle Benoit, professor of biomedical engineering, became the director of the Materials Science Program at the University of Rochester effective July 1, 2019.
Professor Whasil Lee receives CMSR pilot grant
Professor Whasil Lee has received Center for Musculoskeletal Research (CMSR) pilot funding for her project with Dr. Sandeep Mannava (Orthopaedics) titled, “Targeting mechanosensitive ion channels for anterior cruciate ligament (ACL)-injury associated Osteoarthritis: Evaluation in a mouse model.” The goal of this project is to measure the outcome of the intra-articular injection of Piezo inhibitors using OA mouse model.
BME students make assembly line more accessible for workers with disabilities
The graduating seniors behind THOR Designs are the first all-female engineering team to compete in a state-wide competition to bring assistive technologies to New Yorkers in the workplace.
Maureen Newman receives 2019 Outstanding Dissertation Award
Maureen Newman, a recent graduate of our BME PhD program, is the recipient of the 2019 Outstanding Dissertation Award for the Division of Engineering and Applied Sciences in Arts, Sciences and Engineering. Maureen’s dissertation is “Bone-targeted Polymer Delivery of Osteoanabolics for Bone Regeneration.” Maureen, now a formulations scientist with Surrozen, investigated a novel therapeutic strategy for osteoporosis treatment under the mentorship of Danielle Benoit. This strategy combined a bone-building drug and a bone-targeting polymer delivery vehicle to reverse the reduction of bone volume and bone strength in patients with osteoporosis.
Professor Carney receives renewed NIH funding
Congratulations to Professor Laurel Carney on the renewal of her NIH R01 for her project, “Auditory Processing of Complex Sounds.” The Carney Lab hypothesizes that midbrain sensitivity to neural amplitude and frequency fluctuations in peripheral responses provides a robust representation of complex sounds, including speech. Aim 1 tests this hypothesis with physiological and behavioral studies of midbrain responses to stimuli that combine these cues, including “designer” stimuli with conflicting cues to determine how they may interact. These results will be used to test and refine a new computational model for midbrain responses with sensitivity to these cues. Aim 2 tests the hypothesis with physiological responses of midbrain neurons to voiced speech, to directly test model predictions based on characterization of each neuron’s sensitivity to these cues. Understanding the role in speech coding of the amplitude and frequency fluctuations in peripheral responses is clinically significant because these fluctuations are vulnerable to SNHL. In Aim 3, we will test the hypothesis that amplitude and frequency fluctuations can be manipulated in synthetic speech to influence intelligibility in human listeners with or without SNHL, in quiet and in noise. Preliminary results from modeling, physiological, and behavioral studies support the proposed hypotheses. Ultimately, our goal is to extend this approach to manipulate fluctuation contrasts in running speech, to effectively “correct” sound for the impaired ear.
Several BME professors receive University Research awards
BME primary faculty Regine Choe, Ross Maddox, and Jim McGrath, as well as BME graduate faculty Denise Hocking (Pharmacology & Physiology), Andrew Berger (Optics) and Lisa DeLouise (Dermatology) are recipients of this year's University Research Awards. These awards provide “seed” grants for promising, high-risk projects.
BME PhD candidate Danielle Desa awarded 2019 Research Initiative grant from the Breast Cancer Coalition of Rochester
Congratulations to Danielle Desa, a third-year biomedical engineering PhD student in the lab of Professor Ed Brown, who has received a 2019 Research Initiative grant from the Breast Cancer Coalition of Rochester (BCCR). These grants are awarded to fund innovative new projects with the potential to yield significant medical breakthroughs in the cause and prevention of breast cancer, prevention of metastasis, and cure.
From slug slime to medical adhesive: how one BME alum looks to nature for engineering inspiration
Ben Freedman ’11 looks to nature to inspire engineering solutions.
Professor Giacomelli receives NIH funding
Congratulations to Professor Michael Giacomelli who has received NIH funding for his project, "Fluorescence microscopy for evaluation of Mohs surgical margins." Mohs surgery is a widely used technique for the treatment of nonmelanoma skin cancer that obtains extremely low recurrence rates by imaging tissue as it is removed from the body to ensure complete resection. However, Mohs is slow and extremely labor intensive because it depends on frozen sections processing to produce histological images. The cost and reduced throughput associated with frozen section processing limits its availability to patients while contributing to rising health care costs. My research has developed fluorescent imaging technologies, rapid tissue labeling, and image processing technologies enabling real-time evaluation of pathology in skin tissue with an order of magnitude reduction in processing time as compared to frozen sections.
Ready to mentor ‘students like myself’
A biomedical engineering major and first-generation student, Kharimat Alatise ’19 is ready to pursue her doctorate and “be a role model to first-generation and minority students.”
Professor Benoit receives College Award for Undergraduate Teaching and Research Mentorship
Danielle Benoit, an associate professor of biomedical engineering who has provided research experiences for more than 80 undergraduates in her lab, is the second recipient of the College Award for Undergraduate Teaching and Research Mentorship.
Madeline Cappelloni wins 2019 Edward Peck Curtis Award
Congratulations to Madeline Cappelloni, a graduate student in the Maddox Lab, who was awarded the 2019 Edward Peck Curtis Award for Excellence in Teaching by a Graduate Student. The award was personally presented by Vice Provost and University Dean of Graduate Studies Margaret Kearney.
Three BME faculty members inducted to AIMBE's College of Fellows
Three biomedical engineering faculty members at the University of Rochester–Danielle Benoit, Catherine Kuo, and Amy Lerner–have been inducted as fellows of the American Institute for Medical and Biological Engineering (AIMBE).
Benoit Lab graduate students receive honors from Society for Biomaterials
Three members of the Benoit Lab have been recognized for their outstanding contributions to the Biomaterials' 2019 Annual Meeting which will be held in Seattle, WA, April 3-6, 2019. Graduate student Kenneth Sims received a Student Travel Achievement Recognition (STAR) award which recognizes research excellence and helps to develop future leaders within the Society for Biomaterials. Graduate students Marian Ackun-Farmmer and Clyde Overby received Honorable Mentions.
BME student among three Rochester teams competing for $1M Hult Prize
Beloved graduate program coordinator Donna Porcelli retires after 42 years at University, 17 years in BME
Donna Porcelli has embarked on a well-earned retirement -- despite the strong reservations of Professor James McGrath and no doubt many other faculty members in the Department of Biomedical Engineering.
Jim Zavislan named fellow of National Academy of Inventors
