Biomedical Engineering and Bioengineering Commons^™

Sprinter Start Block Training Aid, Kayla Lovejoy, Kevin Almontes

Biomedical Engineering

Currently, track and field sprinters ranging from beginner level to world-class have no practical tool that provides quantitative feedback of value on quality of start and quality of the three distinct phases of their sprint race, such that they can quantify the value of their adjustments. Our team will create a device that integrates with the sprint starting block to provide quantifiable data on the quality of a sprinter’s start. This Statement of Work describes drawbacks of current solutions, existing patents, customer requirements, engineering specifications, and our project plan.

Realistic Bionic Arm Development For Transradial Amputation, Bailey A. Wall, Lilly Noel Curdy, Ruthie Mccall, Courtney Mahoney, Andres Trejo

Biomedical Engineering

The VeraLimb realistic bionic arm is intended for use by individuals with a trans-radial amputation or congenital limb deficiency below the elbow to provide functional hand and arm movements. This advanced prosthetic device is designed to mimic a biological hand's natural motion, dexterity, control, and aesthetic, giving the user a higher sense of restored limb functionality. It offers an experience that closely restores motor function in a way that resembles having a natural hand rather than interacting with a mechanical device. The VeraLimb is suitable for daily activities, allowing users to grasp, manipulate, and interact with objects. It is designed …

Unified Adaptive Cross-Attention Multimodal Network, Mahesh Sunuwar

Shelby Hall Graduate Research Forum Posters

Accurately diagnosing appendicitis remains a significant challenge in emergency medicine due to its varied clinical presentation and overlap with other abdominal conditions. Existing diagnostic models often rely on unimodal data, such as computed tomography (CT) images or clinical notes, limiting their ability to capture the full complexity of patient information. This study proposes a novel multimodal framework, a Unified Adaptive Cross-Attention Multimodal Framework (u-ACM), that integrates CT images and clinical notes using hybrid fusion strategies to improve diagnostic accuracy for appendicitis. The u-ACM leverages adaptive contextual filtering to dynamically remove irrelevant features, crossattention mechanisms to align features between modalities, and …

Engineering Pamam Dendrimers For Optimized Drug Delivery, Amin Aleebrahim Dehkordi, Shirin Mollazadeh, Amirreza Talaie, Mostafa Yazdimamaghani

Chemical and Biochemical Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

Dendrimers, first introduced by Fritz Vögtle in 1978, have emerged as promising nanocarriers for drug delivery due to their unique branched architecture, large internal cavities, and numerous surface amine groups. These dendrimers efficiently load various drugs through electrostatic interactions, covalent bonding, or encapsulation, owing to their high density of terminal amine groups. However, the inherent cationic nature of PAMAM dendrimers can lead to cytotoxicity and limited systemic circulation due to interactions with negatively charged biomolecules. To address these limitations, surface modification strategies have been developed to enhance targeting, trigger-controlled drug release, and decrease cytotoxicity. This review critically examines recent advancements …

Peripheral Vagus Nerve Stimulation (Pvns) Device For Epilepsy, Logan P. Beckstrand, Alexander P. Crary, Grace E. Heller

Biomedical Engineering

Our research team developed a PVNS for Epilepsy device which is intended to act as a preventative measure against seizures for patients with epilepsy. The device is a less invasive alternative to the VNS device on the market using electroacupuncture at the Shenmen and Xin points along the posterior pinna to stimulate the vagus nerve.

Tiny Temp Neonatal Intensive Care Unit Infant Temperature Monitor, Alexandria Lukacsffi, Sydney Dedrick

Biomedical Engineering

This document outlines the key steps taken in the specification, design, and functionality of the Tiny Temp Neonatal Intensive Care Unit Infant Temperature Monitor. The BICEP team identified temperature monitors for infants in incubators in the NICU as an area of need after surveying hospitals in the San Luis Obispo area. Current thermometers are oversimplified in design, consisting of only the temperature probe and a piece of adhesive holding the probe directly onto the infant's skin. As a result, the adhesive is weak to prevent harm to the infant and, therefore, falls off the infant easily and frequently, posing a …

Operating Room Forcing Function, Olivia Rankin, Makena Moragne, Sasha Rovinsky

Biomedical Engineering

The Operating Room Forcing Function system aims to address the persistent issue of wrong-site, wrong-procedure, and wrong-patient errors (WSPEs) in surgical settings. WSPEs are largely caused by circumvention of the timeout procedure (a planned pause before incision to stop and confirm crucial details of the procedure to be performed known as ‘The Universal Protocol’). The goal set forth by our sponsor, Dr. Robert Turbow, is to develop a lock-out mechanism that requires a timeout to be performed by all appropriate personnel before an operation can begin.

Hospitals are extremely complex systems with competing values, productivity pressures, fast paced work, tight-coupled …

The Suture Guide, Nicole Schnettler, Ciara Murphy, Jocelyn Corona Cabrera

Biomedical Engineering

In the surgical field and specifically wound closure, there is a growing demand for techniques that allow surgeons to quickly, accurately, and ergonomically close surgical wounds while still optimizing patient recovery and not compromising the cosmetic appearance in wound closure. Currently more advanced and developed products exist for laparoscopic suturing, but not for superficial suturing. This project aims to find a way to close the most superficial layer of the skin in surgical incisions that is faster and more comfortable than current suturing techniques. The design process began with stakeholder interviews and market research, identifying key shortcomings of current manual …

Computational Model Of Coarctation Of The Aorta In Rabbits Suggests Persistent Ascending Aortic Remodeling Post-Correction, Ashley A. Hiebing, Matthew A. Culver, John F. Ladisa, Colleen M. Witzenburg

Biomedical Engineering Faculty Research and Publications

Coarctation of the aorta (CoA) is a common congenital cardiovascular lesion that presents as a localized narrowing of the proximal descending aorta. While improvements in surgical and catheter-based techniques have increased short-term survival, there is a high long-term risk of hypertension and a reduced average lifespan despite correction. Computational models can be used to estimate aortic remodeling and peripheral vascular compensation, potentially serving as key tools in developing a mechanistic understanding of the interplay between pre-treatment dynamics, post-treatment recovery, and long-term hypertension risk. In this study, we developed a lumped-parameter model of the heart and circulation to simulate CoA. After …

Maglock - Electromagnetic Pedal Aid For Amputees, Minh Vo, Matthew Chew

Biomedical Engineering

For this project, we aimed to design components that could easily be swapped out and into vehicles, which would help them accomplish the task of locating and securing a prosthetic foot to a bike and/or car pedal. A common problem among cyclists and drivers with prosthetic legs is their foot slipping off the pedal while in use; these components could be used for other common applications such as cars, bikes, etc. Stakeholders for this product included automotive companies and handicap product distributors. The focused objective is to provide dexterity and quick attach/detach support for cyclists and drivers with lower limb …

Treating Ground Water For Agricultural And Individual Consumption, Gabby Miller, Bronson Scott, Michael Clawson

Biomedical Engineering

This project, conducted in collaboration with Cal Poly seniors and Da Vinci High School students, aims to develop a solar-powered groundwater purification system. This system is designed to provide clean water for agricultural use and individual consumption, addressing the growing concerns of groundwater contamination and accessibility needs. The final prototype integrates a gravity filtration system combined with chemical purification, utilizing aluminum sulfate and chlorine to remove particulates, bacteria, and organic compounds.

The research phase involved an extensive review of groundwater contamination issues, existing filtration technologies, and market analysis. Key design constraints included cost-effectiveness, ease of maintenance, and minimal energy consumption, …

Overexpression And Biophysical And Functional Characterization Of A Recombinant Fgf21, Phuc Phan, Jason Hoang, Thallapuranam Krishnaswamy Suresh Kumar

Chemistry & Biochemistry Faculty Publications and Presentations

Fibroblast growth factor 21 (FGF21) is an endocrine FGF that plays a vital role in regulating essential metabolic pathways. FGF21 increases glucose uptake by cells, promotes fatty acid oxidation, reduces blood glucose levels, and alleviates metabolic diseases. However, detailed studies on its stability and biophysical characteristics have not been reported. Herein, we present the overexpression, biophysical characterization, and metabolic activity of a soluble recombinant FGF21 (rFGF21). The far-UV circular dichroism spectra of rFGF21 show a negative trough at 215 nm, indicating that the protein’s backbone predominantly adopts a β sheet conformation. rFGF21 shows intrinsic tyrosine fluorescence at 305 nm. Thermal …

There May Be A Safer Treatment Against A Virus That Can Cause Birth Defects And Hearing Loss, Kade Robison

Research on Capitol Hill

CMV is the leading cause of non-genetic birth defects and hearing loss.

Hagfish Protein Models Of Heart Tissue Reveal Processes Of Diabetes, Maelyn Andreasen

Research on Capitol Hill

Diabetic cardiomyopathy impairs and damages heart tissue through chronic exposure to hyperglycemia, or high blood sugar, in diabetic individuals. 

Studying the disease in heart tissue is difficult, so we set out to create a three-dimensional heart model that we can study under these hyperglycemic conditions.

Genetic Engineering In Alpacas May Unlock Cures For Currently Incurable Human Disease, James Cisneros

Research on Capitol Hill

We aimed to establish laparoscopic ovum pickup (L-OPU) techniques in alpaca to retrieve oocytes for in vitro maturation and fertilization. Our project successfully retrieved and matured alpaca oocytes in vitro, a crucial step toward genetic engineering. Next, we will apply CRISPR-Cas9 to deactivate the IGM gene in fertilized embryos, aiming to enhance HCAb production. This will lay the foundation for humanizing these antibodies, making them viable for therapeutic use in human medicine.

Recent Developments In Heterologous Expression Of Cellulases Using The Pichia Pastoris Expression System: A Comprehensive Literature Review, Nazish Muzaffar, Abdur Raziq, Muhammad Waseem Khan, Niaz Muhammad Khan, Bushra Shahid, Anbareen Gul, Hayat Ullah

Biological Engineering Student Research

Cellulosic biomass is considered an important and sustainable source of renewable energy, which needs a complex mixture of different enzymes for its degradation. After amylase, cellulases are the second most important enzymes, gain more importance due to their broad range of applications at the industrial level, and are considered more economical and environmentally friendly; researchers have focused more on the production of cellulase with its higher expression rate and low cost. Pichia pastoris, a methylotrophic yeast strain, has a more effective and well-established system for the production of heterologous proteins, particularly for industrial enzymes. Moreover, its readily achievable high-density …

Anxiety Reduction In Autism Spectrum Disorder Using Novel Deep-Pressure Cutaneous Stimulation Therapy, Aaron Andrews, Jordyn Huecker, Kennedy Madrid, Lorissa Thorpe, James Fini, Josilyn Zamora, Victoria Oyeniyi, Maura Hart, Amanda Page, James Barber, Chase Taylor, Halah Khan, Spencer Willardson, Kyle Bills Phd, Christina Small

Annual Research Symposium

No abstract provided.

Trpv4 Dominates High Shear-Induced Initial Traction Response And Long-Term Relaxation Over Piezo1, Mohanish Chandurkar, Manli Yang, Majid Rostami, Sangyoon J. Han

Michigan Tech Publications

Modulation of endothelial traction is critical for the responses of endothelial cells to fluid shear stress (FSS), which has profound implications for vascular health and atherosclerosis. Previously, we demonstrated that under high FSS, endothelial cells rapidly increase traction forces, followed by relaxation, with traction aligning in the flow direction. In contrast, low shear preconditioning induces a modest short-term increase in traction (min), followed by a secondary long-term (>14 hr) rise, with traction/cells aligning perpendicular to the flow. The upstream mechanosensors driving these responses, however, remain unknown. Here, we sought the roles of Piezo1 and TRPV4 ion channels in shear-induced …

Identifying Breathing, Swallowing, And Speech Biosignatures In Parkinson’S Disease Patients With Wearable Devices, Amanda Brandaris, Katherine Shishido, Rohaan Manzoor, Ethan Hampton, Karthik Jasty, Kelvin Guo, Anna Fish, Spencer Peterson, Ulrike H. Mitchell Phd, Phillip Sechtem Phd, Ccc-Slp, Paula Johnson Phd, Anton E. Bowden Phd, Miriam Cortez-Cooper Pt, Phd, Pamela I. Barney Msrt, Rrt, Ae-C, Nps, John A. Kriak Pharmd

Annual Research Symposium

No abstract provided.

Hemodynamics Of Slip Surfaces For Thrombosis Control In Implanted Cardiovascular Devices, Kieun Choi, Weiguang Yang, On Shun Pak, Jongmin Seo

Mechanical Engineering Faculty Publications

Percutaneous medical devices are preferred for the treatment of cardiovascular diseases due to their minimal intervention compared to surgery. However, complications such as thrombosis remain significant challenges. This study aims to investigate the hemodynamic effects of slip surfaces on pacemaker leads and coronary stents using computational fluid dynamics under physiological conditions. Two computational models were developed: a venous anatomical model with a pacemaker lead and a coronary artery model with a stent. Slip boundary conditions were applied to these devices, and we quantitatively analyzed critical hemodynamic parameters, including wall shear stress (WSS) and residence time (RT), which are associated with …