Spring/Summer 2013
Search: Newletter | Bioengineering | PSU | PSU People | PSU Depts
Welcome to the Spring/Summer 2013, the inaugural issue, of the Penn State Bioengineering newsletter.
On behalf of the Department of Bioengineering, welcome to our very first issue of newsletter.
Bioengineering is the youngest department within the College of Engineering established in 2000, which serves as the focal point for applying engineering to life and medical sciences in both research and educational activities. Currently, we have 12 full-time faculty members in the department. (Read complete Message from the Department Head)
These articles relate to current research in Bioengineering at Penn State.
The field of cellular and molecular engineering explores the mechanical, electrical, and chemical behavior of cells and biomolecules with the ultimate goal of improving health. Engineers work toward achieving this goal through the analysis of molecular interactions and signaling, the theoretical modeling of cellular systems, the design of novel interacting molecules, and the development of innovative detection technologies and devices. (Read more about Cellular & Molecular Engineering)
These articles relate to current research in Bioengineering at Penn State.
Musculoskeletal therapies are not only a concern of the aging population, but also for the increased rate of sports injuries in the US. There are at least 500,000 surgical procedures performed every year in the US that require bone substitutes. The current gold standard for bone substitute is autografts. However, medical professionals are seeking alternative solutions because of several limiting factors such as donor site morbidity, doubled operational costs and low rate of success in aging patients. (Read more about Bone Tissue Engineering)
In the midst of the Center for Neural Engineering, the Advanced Regenerative Biomaterials and Therapeutics group, led by Assistant Professor Mohammad Abidian of the bioengineering department, focuses on developing neural interfaces for drug delivery for brain tumors, axonal regeneration and biosensors. (Read more about Regenerative Biomaterials)
Since July of 2003, with the full support of Department of Pediatrics at the Penn State Hershey Children’s Hospital and Penn State Milton S. Hershey Medical Center, we have been building a new multi-disciplinary team focused on reducing the adverse effects of cardiovascular operations at the Pediatric Cardiac Research Laboratories. This center combines basic science, engineering, and clinical applications under the unified mission of pediatric cardiovascular research. (Read more about Pediatric Cardiovascular Research)
Each issue features a faculty member of the department.
Work by an interdisciplinary team led by Siyang Zheng, assistant professor of bioengineering, may give cancer patients a better chance of survival after their tumors have metastasized.
“Even if you get rid of the primary tumor, you may have other tumors,” he said. “The patient might have clusters of tumor cells that break off that can reach other places in the body in a process called ‘metastasis.’” (Read more about Siyang Zheng and his work)News about and as reported by Bioengineering students.
It was another winning and exciting year for Bioengineering students working on their senior capstone design projects. We have been working closely with the College of Engineering Learning Factory and other departments to have multi-disciplinary teams and this year was perhaps the best so far! There were nine projects run by Bioengineering and included students from Bioengineering, Mechanical Engineering, and Electrical Engineering. (Read more about Senior Design 2013)
Last fall, Evan Fox (graduate student) noticed that there was no outlet for freshman and sophomore students to practice their engineering design skills. As vice president of the Biomedical Engineering Society, he took it upon himself to establish a design team to encourage the development of these skills. (Read more about EWH Comes to Penn State)
This past October, the Biomedical Engineering Society hosted its annual meeting in Atlanta, GA, with nearly 4,000 attendees. The conference brings the bioengineering community together and facilitates communication about the latest advances in biomedical research. The conference also functions as a platform for professional development, collaboration, and educational progress. (Read more about Penn State Bioengineers at BMES)
The 2013 Bioengineering Symposium brought together students, faculty, and staff to share research being conducted within the Department of Bioengineering at Penn State's University Park campus. Topics ranged from axonal regeneration, thrombus rheology, nanofiber curvature sensing, nanoparticles for Alzheimer’s disease drug delivery, and numerous other interesting research areas. (Read more about Bringing Together the Bright Minds of Bioengineering)
Noteworthy highlights from alumni, students, faculty and staff of the bioengineering department.