Biomedical Engineering News

Hoda Hatoum Trainees

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Current Trainees

Graduate Students

Brennan Vogl

Brennan Vogl
PhD Student in Biomedical Engineering
BS in Biomedical Engineering from Michigan Tech
Email: bjvogl@mtu.edu
Brennan is currently working on atrial, ventricular, and valvular flow assessment and congenital heart defects flow studies. Brennan’s work is experimental and computational. In his free time, Brennan enjoys cooking and downhill skiing.

Ahmad Bshennaty
PhD Student in Biomedical Engineering
BS in Mechanical Engineering from the American University of Beirut
Email: abshenna@mtu.edu
Ahmad is currently working on heart valve performance assessment, and on prediction of stroke after valve replacement procedures. In his free time, Ahmad enjoys playing chess and exploring new places.

Undergraduate Students

Emily Vitale
BS Student in Biomedical Engineering
Email: ervitale@mtu.edu
Emily is currently working on on segmenting CT scans for blood flow analysis in LAAO patients with device related thrombosis. In her free time, Emily enjoys playing piano, volleyball, and reading.

Emily Hyatt
BS Student in Biomedical Engineering
Email: ejhyatt@mtu.edu
Emily is currently working on the design and computational simulation of ectasia models. In her free time, she enjoys playing guitar, reading, volunteering, and recently started to learn how to downhill ski.

Grace Hoeppner
BS Student in Biomedical Engineering
Email: gmhoeppn@mtu.edu
Grace is currently working on a hybrid atrial fibrillation ablation project in which real patient data is modeled and analyzed computationally. In her free time she enjoys spending time with family/friends and being outdoors! She is also a member of the Michigan Tech Women’s Soccer Team.

Magen Radke
BS Student in Biomedical Engineering
Email: mmradke@mtu.edu
Magen is working on writing an informative STEM education paper based on MTU-run summer youth programs. In her free time, she enjoys reading, biking, cooking, and crocheting.

Hailey LaBonte
BS Student in Biomedical Engineering
Email: hrlabont@mtu.edu
Hailey is working on modeling and analyzing patient data for the hybrid atrial fibrillation ablation project. In her free time, she enjoys spending time outside with friends, snowboarding, and exploring new places. Hailey is also a member of the Delta Zeta Sorority. 

Past Trainees

Himja Tiwari
MS Student in Biomedical Engineering
Email: htiwari@mtu.edu

Aditya Prasad Karmarkar

MS Student in Mechanical Engineering and Engineering Mechanics
BS in Mechanical Engineering from Shivaji University, Kolhapur, India
Email: akarmark@mtu.edu

Alireza Asadbeygi

MS Student in Biomedical Engineering

Rajat Ratnakar Gadhave

Rajat Ratnakar Gadhave
MS student in the Mechanical Engineering and Engineering Mechanics department

Email: rgadhave@mtu.edu
Rajat was a graduate student who worked in the biofluids lab from Fall 2020 – Fall 2021. Rajat assisted in the design and manufacturing of a whole left heart model with a pulse duplicator testing system. Rajat also worked on projects involving in-vitro characterizations of surgical aortic valve and transcatheter aortic valve performance. Moreover, Rajat worked on creating patient-specific models from computed tomography scans. In his free time, Rajat enjoys exploring.

Shivam Tiwari

Shivam Tiwari
MS Student in Mechanical Engineering
BS in Mechanical Engineering
Email: shivamti@mtu.edu

Nick Niemi

Nick Niemi
BS Student in Biomedical Engineering
Email: nniemi@mtu.edu

Alex MacLean

Alex MacLean
BS Student in Biomedical Engineering
Email: abmaclea@mtu.edu

Hoda Hatoum Profile

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Position Openings in the Brain Stimulation Lab

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Brain Sections

Please email Dr. Traci Yu (chunxiuy@mtu.edu) in Biological Sciences, including a copy of your CV for any of the following positions:

Graduate Students

We currently have openings for highly-motivated graduate/master students with interests and/or experience in neuroscience, engineering, or computer science. Previous experience in computational modeling is beneficial.

The focus of this position is on developing novel strategies to improve therapeutic efficiency and efficacy of brain stimulation in neurological disorders using various experimental and computational approaches.

Graduate students will be accepted into the Department of Biomedical Engineering through the appropriate graduate admissions process and start in the fall of 2021. Those interested should hold a bachelor’s or master’s degree in Biomedical Engineering, Electrical Engineering or a related field and contact Dr. Yu first before applying.

Undergraduate Research Assistants

We are also seeking motivated undergraduates with knowledge of engineering, biology, or computer science. Students will acquire knowledge and hand-on skills in brain dissection, electrophysiology, behavioral testing, and computational data analysis. Students with MATLAB programming skill are preferred.

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Graduate Research Assistant Needed for the Biofluids Lab

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Biofluids Lab

Position is Closed

The Biofluids Laboratory at the Biomedical Engineering Department of Michigan Technological University (Houghton, Michigan) has an opening for a graduate research assistant (PhD) starting January 2021.

The candidate will contribute to:

  • The design and implementation of cardiovascular devices.
  • Conducting experimental and computational studies on various congenital and adult cardiovascular models.
  • Image reconstruction and processing by using and expanding existing tools and development of novel methodologies.

Applicants should hold a bachelor’s or master’s degree in Mechanical Engineering, Biomedical Engineering, or a related field.

To apply, please submit applications here. In addition, send a copy of your CV and the contact information of three references to Dr. Hoda Hatoum (hhatoum@mtu.edu). Review of applications will begin immediately.

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NSF Funding for Antiviral Application

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Bruce Lee
Bruce Lee

Bruce Lee (BioMed/HRI) is the principal investigator on a project that has received a $80,586 research and development grant from the National Science Foundation.

The project is entitled, “Biomimetic Redox Chemistry for Antiviral Application.” Caryn Heldt (ChE/HRI) is the Co-PI on this three year project.

Extract

Reactive oxygen species (ROS) can be used to disinfect a wide range of pathogens, such as viruses, bacteria, and fungi. ROS is an attractive disinfectant as it decomposes into non-toxic degradation products (water and oxygen). However, ROS is highly reactive and can be hazardous to store and transport. This project aims at utilizing a unique chemistry found in mussel adhesive proteins to create a portable biomaterial that can be activated to generate ROS.

Read more at the National Science Foundation.

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Bruce Lee Group Publishes on Antimicrobial Biomaterials

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Chemical Engineering Journal cover.

Bruce Lee (BioMed), post doctoral researcher Bo Liu (BioMed), graduate student Zhongian Zhang (BioMed), undergraduate student James Roland (BioMed) and collaborator Chao Zhao (Changzhou University) co-authored “Antimicrobial property of halogenated catechols,” published in Chemical Engineering Journal.

This paper demonstrated that the adhesive molecule found in mussel adhesive proteins can be chemically modified to prepare antimicrobial biomaterials that are effective against multidrug-resistant bacteria.

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cej.2020.126340

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Biomedical Engineering Graduates Spring 2020

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Procession and audience in during commencement.
BME Chair Sean Kirkpatrick (center) attends the previous commencement in support of our graduates.

See BME Student Awards 2020

Graduate Students

  1. Bule, Stephanie
  2. Chandurkar, Mohanish (Graduated w/MS continuing PhD)
  3. Jia, Wenkai
  4. Kord Forooshani, Pegah
  5. Langfoss, Claire S.
  6. Nagam Hanumantharao, Samerender
  7. Pinnaratip, Rattapol
  8. Polega, Elizabeth A.
  9. Que, Carolynn A.
  10. Sandy, Lauren A.
  11. Sunderland, Kevin William
  12. Tyo, Ariana G. (Graduated w/MS continuing PhD)

Undergraduate Students

  1. Al Dulaim, Ahmed H.
  2. Atkin, David T.
  3. Bartkowiak, Sarah J.
  4. Biolchini, Clare F.
  5. Black, Sarah L.
  6. Brandmire, Adam M.
  7. Caspers, Kiaya M.
  8. Chica Toro, Juan Felipe F.
  9. Colaianne, Matthew B.
  10. Creamer, Olivia A.
  11. Daniels, Becky S.
  12. Demaree, Olivia A.
  13. Dertinger, Samantha C.
  14. Fetner, Alex R.
  15. Fournier, Tristan N.
  16. Geschke, Josh E.
  17. Golden, Nick R.
  18. Ha, Tony
  19. Halanski, Nathan
  20. Hill, McKenzie P.
  21. Jackels, Mariah J.
  22. Johnson, Colin M.
  23. Kautzer, Amanda R.
  24. Kostenko, Evan M.
  25. Kugler, Lydia C.
  26. Lasky, Taylor M.
  27. Leithauser, North O.
  28. Lemay, Kelsey F.
  29. Lindquist, Ellen M.
  30. Lohrenz, Gabrielle X.
  31. Marche, Marie
  32. Mills, Ian R.
  33. Ping, Rachel C.
  34. Piotrowski, Ryann E.
  35. Roland, James D.
  36. Schneider, Karl L.
  37. Steupert, Juergen C.
  38. Thomas, Melanie M.
  39. Tuomi, Jacob M.
  40. Turowski, Nicholas A.
  41. Vogl, Brennan J.
  42. Wang, Katherine
  43. Weaver, Jeremy M.
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NIH Funded Wound Healing Project

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Rupak Rajachar
Rupak Rajachar

Rupak Rajachar (BioMed) is the principal investigator on a project that has received a $400,343 research and development grant from the National Institutes of Health.

The project is entitled, “Targeted ROS Releasing PEG-Fibrin Composite Adhesive-Hydrogel to Control Matrix Modulation as a Wound Healing and Tissue Engineering Support.”

Bruce Lee (BioMed) is the Co-PI on this potential three-year project.

By Sponsored Programs.

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Diabetic Wound Repair Project Funding for Bruce Lee

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Bruce Lee
Bruce Lee

Bruce Lee (BioMed) is the principal investigator on a project that has received a $434,993 research and development grant from the National Institutes of Health.

The project is entitled, “Multifunctional Nanocomposite Bioadhesive for Diabetic Wound Repair.” Xiaoqing Tang (BioSci) and Rupak Rajachar (BioMed) are Co-PI’s on this potential three-year project.

Lee is also the principal investigator on a project that has received a $102,779 research and development from the Office of Naval Research. The project is entitled, “Electro-Responsive Underwater Adhesive Based on Mussel Adhesive Chemistry.”

This is a potential three-year project totaling $524,995.

By Sponsored Programs.

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Researchers Attend Annual Meeting of the Adhesion Society

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Adhesion Society Meeting Graphic

Rupak Rajachar (BioMed), Bruce Lee (BioMed), Ariana Tyo (BioMed) and Saleh Akram Bhuiyan (BioMed) attended the 43rd Annual Meeting of the Adhesion Society in Charleston, South Carolina.

Rajachar chaired a session entitled “Biomedical Adhesion.” Lee gave an oral presentation entitled “Tuning the ROS Release from Catechol-containing Bioadhesive.”

Tyo gave an oral presentation entitled “Adhesive Antimicrobial Polydopamine Surface Coatings to Prevent Biofilm Formation on Stainless Steel.” The content of this talk was recently published in Frontiers in Chemistry.

Bhuiyan was a finalist for the Peebles Award for Graduate Student Research in Adhesion Science and gave an oral presentation entitled “In Situ Deactivation of Catechol-Containing Adhesive using Electrochemistry.” The content of this talk was recently published in the Journal of the American Chemical Society and was highlighted in the Michigan Tech News.

The meeting was February 23-26, 2020.

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Bruce Lee Publishes a Study of a Multifunctional Microgel

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ACS Applied Materials and Interfaces cover.

Bruce Lee (BioMed) published a paper titled “Iron Magnetic Nanoparticle-Induced ROS Generation from Catechol-Containing Microgel for Environmental and Biomedical Applications” in ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces.

The coauthors are graduate student Zhongtian Zhang (BioMed), undergraduate student Max Reaume (BioMed), postdoctoral researcher Bo Liu (BioMed) and collaborators Chao Zhou and Min Wu from Changzhou University and Guangdong University of Technology, respectively.

https://doi.org/10.1021/acsami.9b19726

This article is part of the Advances in Biocidal Materials and Interfaces special issue.

Extract

Reactive oxygen species (ROS) can degrade organic compounds and function as a broad-spectrum disinfectant. Here, dopamine methacrylamide (DMA) was used to prepare catechol-containing microgels, which can release ROS via metal-catechol interaction. A combination of the microgel and iron magnetic nanoparticle (FeMNP) significantly reduced the concentration of four organic dyes (Alizarin Red S, Rhodamine B, Crystal Violet, and Malachite Green) and an antibiotic drug, ciprofloxacin, dissolved in solution.

Additionally, catechol chelates heavy metal ions, resulting in their removal from solution and repurposed these metal ions for dye degradation.

This multifunctional microgel can potentially be used for environmental applications for the removal of organic pollutants and heavy metal ions from wastewater, as well as reducing bacterial infection in biomedical applications.

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