Recent News
For news from previous years, please visit our news archives page and the University of Rochester Newscenter.
2024 News
Tochukwu Iyke-Nzeocha Earns Sue S. Stewart Award
April 15, 2024
Congratulations to biomedical engineering student Tochukwu Iyke-Nzeocha ’24 for earning the Sue S. Stewart Leadership and Community Service Award. Tochukwu was presented the award at the 2024 Susan B. Anthony Legacy Awards Ceremony on Saturday, 4/13. The annual award recognizes a senior woman undergraduate student whose life in the University has been distinguished by a commitment to justice, equality, and community service, as these relate to diversity and inclusion, particularly in the lives of girls and women; and whose activities reflect the spirit of these principles and dedication to these qualities as expressed and inspired by the life and career of former Senior Vice President and General Counsel of the University of Rochester, Sue Stewart.
Continue ReadingErnestina Domey awarded Two Optica Scholarships
April 12, 2024
Ernestina Domey, a first-year BME masters student working in the Baran Lab, has achieved an impressive milestone by receiving two prestigious Optica scholarships! Earlier this year, she was one of 10 students to be awarded the Optica Amplify Scholarship. More recently she was also selected as one of 20 Optica Women Scholars. These nominations were based on the innovative nature and potential impact of her research in the field of biomedical engineering and optical sciences.
Continue ReadingTochukwu Iyke-Nzeocha Receives NSBE 2024 Edward E. Barnette Jr. Community Impact Scholarship
April 8, 2024
Rochester’s chapter of the National Society of Black Engineers (NSBE) were among the 18,000 attendees at the NSBE 50th Annual Convention in Atlanta, Georgia this past March. At the convention's NSBE Annual Golden TORCH Awards, Tochukwu Iyke-Nzeocha '24, BME major and president of the UR NSBE chapter, received the prestigious 2024 Edward E. Barnette Jr. Community Impact Scholarship. This scholarship recognizes individuals who demonstrate exceptional commitment to the NSBE mission and show promise in making a positive impact on their communities and society.
Continue ReadingChloe Zhang wins award at AS&E Graduate Research Symposium
April 1, 2024
Congratulations to Chloe Zhang, PhD candidate in Biomedical Engineering, for winning "best presentation" at the AS&E Graduate Research Symposium. Zhang's poster, titled "Towards quantifying cerebral blood flow of patients undergoing extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) with diffuse correlation spectroscopy (DCS) and speckle contrast optical spectroscopy (SCOS)", was recognized alongside two other engineering student posters in this year's "engineering and math" category.
Continue ReadingNedergaard Recognized with Nakasone Award for Pioneering Research
March 26, 2024
Maiken Nedergaard, MD, DMSc, has been recognized by the International Human Frontier Science Program Organization (HFSPO) with its 2024 Nakasone Award for her “groundbreaking discovery and exploration” of the glymphatic system, the brain’s unique waste removal system, and the role that sleep plays in its function.
Continue ReadingThe science behind solar eclipse glasses
March 21, 2024
Properly protecting your eyes during a solar eclipse is crucial for avoiding long-term damage to your vision. In anticipation of the total solar eclipse happening in Rochester, New York, on April 8, 2024, James Zavislan, a professor of optics and of biomedical engineering and an associate professor of ophthalmology at the University of Rochester, wants everyone to understand the risks involved and how to have a safe, enjoyable eclipse experience.
Continue ReadingImproved neuromonitoring could prevent brain injuries for patients on ECMO life support
March 14, 2024
Regine Choe, an associate professor of biomedical engineering and of electrical and computer engineering, and Imad Khan, an assistant professor of neurology and neurosurgery, have linked together multiple devices to evaluate different aspects of the brain’s health. The devices monitor the cortex, the brain’s outermost layer where neurons reside, using electroencephalography (EEG) to study electrical activity and a new optical method called diffuse correlation spectroscopy (DCS), which measures brain-blood flow. They also use evoked potentials—measurements of the electrical signals produced by the nervous system in response to an external stimulus— to examine deeper structures in the brain.
Continue ReadingBuilding Better Tools to Predict Kidney Injury in Kids
March 5, 2024
Children who come into the ICU for any number of reasons may wind up with acute kidney injury, a dangerous condition in which kidneys can no longer filter waste from the blood. If doctors catch the warning signs early, there are several things they can do to prevent acute kidney injury in kids, but it can be difficult to predict which patients are at risk.
Continue ReadingPrinting plant-based pharmaceuticals—without plants
February 13, 2024
A multidisciplinary team of 10 undergraduates (including biomedical engineering majors: Ines Drissi Qeytoni, Allie Tay, and Wenqi Di) pioneered new technologies to more efficiently replicate useful chemicals found in plants, including those endangered by Earth’s changing climate. Calling themselves “Team RoSynth,” the students created an affordable 3D-printing system for optimizing production of in-demand, plant-derived drugs and pharmaceuticals. In November, the team entered their research in the 2023 International Genetically Engineered Machine (iGEM) competition, an event in which student-led teams from around the globe compete to solve real-world problems using synthetic biology. Synthetic biology takes advantage of engineering to build biological parts inspired by nature. The Rochester team’s project was nominated for the Best Biomanufacturing Project and Best Hardware and was awarded a gold medal, making them the third most recognized team in the United States. The team competed against 402 teams from six continents.
Continue ReadingAlayna Loiselle receives Orthopaedic Research Society’s Boskey Award
February 3, 2024
Congratulations to Dr. Alayna Loiselle on receiving the Orthopaedic Research Society’s Adele L. Boskey, PhD Award for her contributions to musculoskeletal research and mentorship of next-generation scientists. She leads the Loiselle Lab in the Center for Musculoskeletal Research, where her team’s work focuses on defining the fundamental cellular and molecular mediators of tendon homeostasis, tendinopathy development, and the tendon response to injury. Dr. Loiselle is an associate professor in the Department of Orthopaedics, with joint appointments in Biomedical Engineering, and the Pathology & Laboratory departments. She was recognized for this award at the 2024 ORS Annual Meeting on February 4.
Continue ReadingBME Welcomes Dr. Cherice Hill
January 30, 2024
We are pleased to announce that as of January 2024, Dr. Cherice Hill has officially joined the faculty of the Department of Biomedical Engineering at the University of Rochester. Dr. Hill received a BS in Biomedical Engineering from the University of Virginia, and her MS and PhD in Biomedical Engineering from Virginia Tech, focusing on movement mechanics in diverse populations as they relate to injury and disease risk. She extended her training with a postdoctoral fellowship in the multidisciplinary Clemson-MUSC Bioengineering Program studying temporomandibular joint function, structural and mechanical influences of ligamentous structures, and related health disparities.
Marvin Doyley Receives the Advocacy and Action Award
January 29, 2024
Marvin Doyley, the Wilson Professor of Electronic Imaging and chair of the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, received the Advocacy and Action Award during last week’s Presidential Stronger As One Diversity Awards ceremony.
Continue ReadingNew NIH-funded center could soon reduce the need for pharmaceutical trials on animals
January 9, 2024
The University of Rochester will house a new national center focused on using tissue-on-chip technology to develop drugs more rapidly and reduce the need for animal trials. The National Institutes of Health awarded a $7.5 million grant to establish the Translational Center for Barrier Microphysiological Systems (TraCe-bMPS) at Rochester in partnership with Duke University.
Continue ReadingAbolhassani and Chen Take 2nd Place in America’s Got Regulatory Science Talent Competition
January 8, 2024
Graduate students from across the University of Rochester presented their proposals to improve regulatory science as participants in the America’s Got Regulatory Science Talent Student Competition held by UR CTSI this past December. Individuals and teams developed their proposals to address a current area of focus of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
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