Biomedical Engineering and Bioengineering Commons^™

Mannequin Challenge | Biological Engineering, Usu College Of Engineering

College of Engineering News

Who says that learning about the various properties of Biomaterials is boring? Clearly, they haven't taken Dr. Yu Huang's BENG 2330 Properties of Biomaterials course. Not only do these students know how to distinguish the differences between natural and synthetic biomaterials.They know how to have a good time bringing the mannequin challenge into their lab clean up.

Stem Cell And Tissue Engineering Research, Feng Zhao

TechTalks

My research focuses on stem cell and tissue engineering. By combining stem cell biology and engineering tools, the Zhao Lab seeks strategies to biofabricate completely biological tissues to regenerate or repair damaged tissues or organs. The function of engineered tissues is being strengthened by recapitulating the in vivo environment of natural tissues. The underlying mechanism is being explored through investigating the interaction of cells with environmental factors such as topographical cues, biophysical forces, and oxygen tensions. We also prompt stem cell research at Michigan Tech to meet the progress and advance of the outside scientific society. Training opportunities are consistently …

Point-Of-Care Microfluidic Device For Blood Typing, Hector Moncada-Hernandez

TechTalks

There has been increasing efforts to translate laboratory blood tests analysis into portable, reliable, and cheap miniaturized devices. Electrokinetic-based microfluidic devices provide a new approach to blood tests with a simple infrastructure for the manipulation of cells. Previous studies show red blood cells’ (RBC) dielectrophoretic response changes based on the different ABO-Rh antigens present in the cells membrane. In this research, an alternate-current electric signal with a frequency sweep (0.1 – 1 MHz) is applied through an array of electrodes to generate non-uniform electric fields and induce dielectrophoretic forces on RBC from all eight blood types. The RBC’s response to …

Be Students Attend Bmes Conference | Biological Engineering, Usu College Of Engineering

College of Engineering News

The Biomedical Engineering Society (BMES) is a society of professionals devoted to developing and using engineering and technology to advancing human health and well-being. This year students from the Biological Engineering department at Utah State University attended the annual BMES conference. Here is what one of our students, Ian Wadsworth had to say about the conference.

A Prototype Bioreactor Incubation System Designed To Improve Cell Response Modeling In Microgravity, Greg Duke, Ryan Longchamps, Azita Amiri

Von Braun Symposium Student Posters

No abstract provided.

Aqueous Processing Of Lignocellulosic Biomass To Advanced Biofuels | Biological Engineering, Usu College Of Engineering

College of Engineering News

An important current focus of research in biology, chemistry, engineering, agriculture, and environmental sciences is the development of clean technologies that utilize cellulosic biomass as a renewable resource to the largest extent possible in a biorefinery setting to produce sustainable liquid transportation fuels and chemicals. Of all sustainable resources, only biomass can be transformed into organic fuels and chemicals that can integrate well into our current transportation infrastructure with the inherent convenience, cost, and efficiency advantages of current fuels. Cellulosic biomass can be converted to fuels and chemicals through aqueous-phase processes involving carbohydrates-derived and lignin-derived reactive intermediates deconstructed from these …

Bd Medical Tour | Biological Engineering, Usu College Of Engineering

College of Engineering News

On October 6, 2016, 19 students, mostly from the Biological Engineering Department, traveled to Sandy, UT to tour BD Medical. Students were able to experience a medical manufacturing company first hand. They were able to see the various steps that go into the research, development, production, and quality control when producing and streamlining a product. The tour featured questions and answers about what BD Medical does, career and internship opportunities, and a walk-through of the manufacturing facility.

Angela Akude's Thesis Defense | Biological Engineering, Usu College Of Engineering

College of Engineering News

The Biological Engineering Department is pleased to annouce that Angela Akude will be presenting her thesis defense on Thursday, October 6, 2016 at 9 am in the BENG Conference Room (ENGR 402C).

Student Spotlight | Biological Engineering, Usu College Of Engineering

College of Engineering News

July 2016 - Q&A with Biological Engineering student Harsh Singh

Dr. Hadi Soroosh Research Presentation | Biological Engineering, Usu College Of Engineering

College of Engineering News

Rise of human population causes an increase of freshwater use and wastewater production worldwide. Wastewater contains various pathogens injurious to health and nutrients (mainly N and P) which would support photosynthesis of chlorophytes and terrestrial plants but can be also an ecological threat to the environment. The conventional wastewater treatment plants (WWTP) require a large amount of energy (for mechanical aeration) and causes emission of CO2 and secondary contamination (by use of flocculants). Microalgae-Bacteria (MaB) biocoenosis can improve the capacity of the treatment system by simultaneous removal of the nutrients and carbon from wastewater with minimum carbon footprint and energy …

Be Makes High Impact On 2016 Annual Ibe Conference | Biological Engineering, Usu College Of Engineering

College of Engineering News

The BE Department made a high positive impact at the 2016 International Annual Conference of theInstitute of Biological Engineering, which was held in Greenville, South Carolina, from April 7 through 9. BE was represented by ten students and six faculty members. PhD student Anna Doloman received an award (3rd place) for her research poster “Microbial Dynamics During Anaerobic Digestion of Algae Biomass and Sodium Acetate in an Upflow Anaerobic Sludge Blanket Reactor.”

Spring 2016 Biomedical Engineering Newsletter, Department Of Biomedical Engineering, Michigan Technological University

Department of Biomedical Engineering Newsletters

Table of Contents

• Focus on Cardiovascular Research
• BMES Rising Star Feng Zhao
• Magnetoelastic: Sensing more with less
• Portage Health/Michigan Tech Partnership
• Remembering Dr. Michael Neuman

Usu Biological Engineer Patents Method To Make Natural Blue Dye | College Of Engineering, Usu College Of Engineering

College of Engineering News

Feb. 22, 2016 – A Utah State University researcher has taken a big step toward making a safer, more natural dye that can be used in the food, textile, cosmetic and other industries.

Dr. Jixun Zhan, an associate professor of biological engineering at USU, has secured a patent for an innovative method to produce the deep blue dye known as indigoidine. The tint was originally synthesized from a bacterial strain found inRhode Island and offered a promising alternative to the synthetic dyes used to color jeans, leather, food and paper.

Ryan Summers Seminar Presentation | Biological Engineering, Usu College Of Engineering

College of Engineering News

Upcoming Seminar:

"Production of High-Value Methylxanthines by Metabolically Engineering E. coli."

ENGR 406

Friday: 2/19/16

12:00 - 1:00 PM

Presented by BE Alumni of the Year 2016, Dr. Ryan Summers.

Small Animal Thermal Support Device: Thermoregulation System For Scireq Flexivent Chamber, Alexander Dickey, Ashkhan Hojati, Matthew James, Kathleen Vermillera

Capstone Design Expo Posters

During ventilation induced lung injury (VILI) experiments, anesthetized mice lose the ability to regulate their core body temperature. Without maintaining homeostasis, the experimental data may be compromised due to changes in the rodent’s internal functions. Traditional heating techniques utilize a water circulation heating system that is unable to fit inside flexiVent ventilator testing chambers. The objective of this project is to design and build an automatic thermoregulatory feedback system to regulate the core body temperature of a mouse inside individual testing chambers throughout the duration of the experiment. The project deliverables include a functioning prototype that achieves safe and effective …

Low Cost Sterilization, Karima Abutaleb, Mahreen Azam, Eric Lara, Sarah Tracy

Capstone Design Expo Posters

The lack of proper surgical tool sterilization is an increasing issue in developing countries. Inadequate sterilization leads to disease transmission, infection and even death. While autoclaves, the current golden standard for sterilization, are effective, they are often rendered useless after breaking as the cost to repair and maintain them is incredibly high. This leads to the dependence on insufficient techniques such as the use of diluted bleach. Diluted bleach, while effective for disinfection, leads to the destruction of surgical tools over time, does not destroy spores, and is unsustainable, as it loses potency over time which leads to its otherwiseunnecessary …

Pulmonary Patency Stent, Kranthidhar Bathula, Suraj Kandalam, Akhil Kolluri, Roshni Malik

Capstone Design Expo Posters

Patients with malignancies in the central airways often experience significant breathing difficulties due to occlusion of the airways. One common palliative treatment option for this is a stent placement procedure. While patients often experience immediate symptom relief, long term use can result in the formation of granulation tissue, causing restenosis of the airway. The objective of this project is to design and prototype a modification to the Boston Scientific Ultraflex partially-covered stent in order to reduce granulation tissue and maintain airway patency. Deliverables include the detailed design, a working prototype, and supporting data. The main product specifications include effectiveness in …

Design Of A Drug Delivery System Through The Gastrointestinal Tract, Kaixin Chen, Adel Husayni, Kayvon Mobarakeh, Ankit Soni

Capstone Design Expo Posters

Alzheimer’s Disease (AD) afflicts an estimated 5.3 million individuals and is the sixth leading cause of death in America. The drug delivery method of interest is an orally administered sustained-release delivery system that addresses the needs of the associated patient population. By augmenting drug delivery with a higher effective payload per dose compared to current methods, drug efficacy and bioavailability would improve. This will result in a decrease of the overall cost for medication as a greater percentage of the administered drug will be viable.

This design addresses the release of AD drug from the drug delivery system at the …

Catheter Attachment Device For Prevention Of Urinary Tract Infection, Ashleigh Mccormick, Brittany Allen, Karolina Stumbraite, Kevin Ball

Capstone Design Expo Posters

Hospital-acquired infections are costly occurrences that cause patients physical discomfort, have dangerous immune consequences, and cost healthcare providers hundreds of millions of dollars every year in liability fees and negligence charges. Catheter associated urinary tract infections (CAUTI) are the most common class of hospital-acquired infection, affecting over half a million patients in U.S. hospitals alone every year.The CAUTI-Guard team has designed a silver-coated polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) plug device that helps prevent CAUTI through its action as a physical and chemical block. The device slides along standard urinary catheters and helps block the migration of infectious material into the urethra and subsequently …

Suture Trainer: Improving Tissue Handling Technique, Albara Elshaer, Sindora Baddam, Veronica Peterkin, Millie Shah

Capstone Design Expo Posters

Tissue handling is fundamental to performing mechanical tasks of suturing and surgery on live humans and animals. While the mechanics of suturing can be taught, there is no available simulation product designed to specifically teach tissue handling skills. It is important as a future medical professional to gain better tissue handling skills in order to prevent unnecessary injury to the tissue via scarring. The suture trainer focuses on providing feedback in order to standardize tissue handling technique in order to prevent poor habits from developing. Our project deliverables included a model, working prototype, and test data collected from practicing physicians …

A Tilting System For Powered Wheelchairs, Liam Cornwall, Brandon Heath, Justin Mcdaniel, Alexander Stevenson

Capstone Design Expo Posters

The objective of our project is to create a wheelchair platform that can tilt a power wheelchair and its user back into a nearhorizontal position. The purpose of this is to allow a dentist to work on the patient in the manner and position with which they are most accustomed.

The device currently used by our sponsor, The Virginia Home, is the Versatilt platform. The Versatilt is capable of lifting a maximum weight of 750 lbs. and tilting patients back, up to 65 degrees. However, the platform is too small to accept the power wheelchairs used by the majority of …

Mri Hip Joint Traction Device, Rawan Alfadly, Carla Gomez, Sara Um

Capstone Design Expo Posters

Radiologists commonly use contrast agents to improve resolution and acuity when employing MRI (Magnetic Resonance Imaging). Introducing MRI contrast agents to the tissue in the innermost part of the femoroacetabular joint is extremely difficult because the anatomy prevents the contrast agents from infiltrating those surfaces. Therefore, getting the ideal image resolution and making diagnosis of the hip is difficult. The objective was to design a product that would successfully distract one hip joint while also stabilizing the patient’s pelvis to improve visualization so that physicians are able to better diagnose the hip. The deliverables included a preliminary model that illustrates …

Iv Pole For Cardiac Surgery, Sindhu Marampudi, Natalie Noll, Madison Nowak, Rachel Wilbur

Capstone Design Expo Posters

IV lines and pumps need to be transported from the operating room to patient recovery with the patient after cardiac procedures. During this process, the weight of the IV pumps and the small wheels on the IV pole can cause the IV pole to become unbalanced and fall or bend due to the load. Due to a decrease in slack in IV lines to minimize IV line tangling, when an IV pole falls, this can result in the IV lines being torn out of the patient that can lead to blood loss and other injuries. In addition, IV bags and …

Marsupialization Catheter, Hamdi Abdeen, Ananya Mishra, Lucas Olson, Jacqueline Pinderski

Capstone Design Expo Posters

A significant issue among oral and maxillofacial surgeons is the treatment of cysts within the jaw. Cysts develop at random and in most cases asymptomatically. Therefore, they may reach enormous sizes before being diagnosed. Large cysts can cause severe damage to teeth and the surrounding bone. Doctors treat small cysts by surgically removing them. However, this approach is not ideal for large cysts due to the risk of surgical complications, the high expenses incurred, and the fact that it is often undesired by the patient. Current treatments include surgically opening the cyst and either suturing the tissue open or placing …

Sensing Movement In Endotracheal Tubes, Mary Anisa Kannan, Krista Powell, Navami Ravindra, Tiffany Wong

Capstone Design Expo Posters

The objective of this project was to develop a device that would better secure endotracheal tubes (ETT), measure unwanted displacement, and notify caretakers when a dangerous amount of displacement has occurred. The project deliverables were as follows: a detailed design, a prototype, and a final demonstration of the prototype which shows successful ability to carry out the objectives stated above. The device needs to be small in size, expensive, flexible to allow for regular cleaning, yet strong enough to withstand stress. The final design consists of a small bite block holder and head straps to secure the device. The device …

Improved Device For Passive Foot Dorsiflexion For Prevention Of Dvt, Stephen Vinoba, Nigal Shah, Shreya Vatsala, Jawahar Baddula

Capstone Design Expo Posters

Postoperative patients are often too fatigued to walk around and often lay in bed for extended periods of time. This could lead to the development of deep vein thrombosis (DVT). DVT is a condition where blood accumulates in the veins instead of being pushed back to the heart. This can cause the formation of blood clots that can eventually lead to pulmonary embolism resulting in death. DVT is a condition that affects about 900,000 people in the United States. Since it is such a prevalent condition, it is important to develop methods of prevention for this condition.

The aim of …

Prediction Device To Reduce Falls In The Elderly, Keegan Zacharie, Aaron Corbin, Joseph Switzer

Capstone Design Expo Posters

Complications arising from accidental falls are one of the leading causes of death among the elderly, with over 25,000 fatalities annually in the U.S.; a third of the elder population falls each year and a fifth of falls cause serious injury. We intended to mitigate these risks by producing a device capable of anticipating falls using biostatistical data.

Deliverables for our design included: An integrated accelerometer and pulse monitor to assess changes in motion and the physiological state of the wearer, a programmed algorithm capable of processing this data, and a mount to attach components to the patient.

Our constraints …

Minimizing Loss Of Balance And Falls With Personal Walkers, Michael Berger, Galen Kellner, David Le, Anthony Renninger

Capstone Design Expo Posters

Falls within the Older Adult community lead to roughly 734,000 hospital admissions annually with 87% attributed to walker use. In order to reduce the amount of falls due to walker use our objective was to create a system that detects an increased likelihood of a fall occurring, notifies the user of improper positioning, and can intervene by application of an automatic braking system to stabilize the walker; effectively training the user to have a more proper walking form and posture reducing the risk of a fall. In order to accomplish this goal, final deliverables included a working prototype and validation …