YALE BME Department of NEWS Biomedical Engineering
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YALE BME Department of NEWS Biomedical Engineering WWW.ENG.YALE.EDU/BME Vol. 1 / No. 1 / Fall 2007 Letter BME From The Chair It is an exciting time to be a biomedical engineer at only a few. After a short Yale. This first issue of Yale BME News, a newslet- time at Yale, Rich Car- ter from the Department of Biomedical Engineering son is leading our gradu- Notes at Yale University, marks our fifth year as a depart- ate admissions, serving ment. During this time, we hired 6 new faculty mem- as Director of Yale’s PET bers, who have built first-rate research programs in Center, and continuing drug delivery, tissue engineering, biophotonics, and to win awards for his pi- imaging science. We moved into the Malone Engineer- oneering research, most ing Center, a 5-story, glass-covered, inspirational new recently the Kuhl-Lassen research building on Yale’s historic central campus. Lecture Award for Re- And we developed a department that bridges Yale’s search in Brain Imaging. outstanding schools of engineering and medicine. We Jim Duncan continues to worked hard in these years, but we had great help be a key person in bridg- from colleagues throughout Yale, and we are sup- ing the engineering and ported by engineering and medical schools with long medical campuses: he was recently appointed Associ- histories of excellence in research and education. ate Chair of the department to facilitate his work in this area. Significantly, Jim was also named the Eb- As you browse through this inaugural issue, you will enezer K. Hunt Professor of Biomedical Engineering, find evidence of our progress in research, education, which is well-deserved recognition for his consistently and collaboration. What this issue cannot capture is outstanding work in image analysis research, teach- the spirit of adventure, scholarship, and community ing, and mentorship. that fills our labs and classrooms. Still, I want to high- light a few things of which I am most proud. In upcoming issues we will tell you more about other exciting developments such as the new Core Center We have awarded Yale degrees in biomedical en- for Quantitative Neuroscience with Magnetic Reso- gineering to outstanding students for over 10 years nance, led by Fahmeed Hyder; and newly occupied now; students appeared before we became a de- laboratories for Vascular Biology and Therapeutics, an partment. Biomedical engineering continues to be a interdisciplinary community in which Laura Niklason, popular choice for Yale engineering undergraduates: Themis Kyriakides, and I have laboratory space that is twenty-three exceptional students earned the B.S. uniquely designed and equipped for vascular bioengi- in BME at Yale in 2007. These young people are now neering. pursuing advanced degrees in engineering, studying medicine and law, and building careers in industry. I am delighted to be part of this vibrant, expand- Our graduate program is currently populated by 48 ing community. I invite you to learn more about us: of the brightest young biomedical engineers in the through this newsletter, through our website, or by country, working on projects ranging from design of visiting us in New Haven. new vaccines, to repair of damaged optic nerves, to construction of image-guided neurosurgery systems, to analysis of microscopic changes in the brain during activity and disease. Our faculty continues to grow in both number and ac- complishments. Our newest junior faculty members— Erin Lavik, Michael Levene, and Tarek Fahmy—have W. Mark Saltzman, Ph.D. quickly established themselves as outstanding inde- Goizueta Foundation Professor of Chemical pendent researchers, graduate student mentors, and and Biomedical Engineering teachers. Of the many recent accomplishments of our Professor of Cellular & Molecular Physiology senior faculty members, I have space to enumerate Chair, Biomedical Engineering • BME • Fall 2007 2 Newly Funded In This Issue NIH Awards $7.2 Million Grant Research to Cardiovascular Imaging at Yale Programs Malone The National Institute of Health Led By (NIH) recently awarded a group of Engineering Notes Yale University researchers $7.2 Yale BME Center: million for their project entitled Faculty A Home For BME “LV Strain Quantification from 4D Echocardiography.” Professor Recent James Duncan of Yale biomedical Publications engineering will team up with Yale the properties of bacteria and viruses cardiologist Albert J. Sinusas, M.D., as a safe and effective vaccine deliv- Faculty professor of medicine and diagnos- ery system. In addition, the group Spotlight tic radiology, to develop hardware will track the nanoparticles using An introduction of and software with the capability to dendritic cells to analyze their inter- the Yale BME faculty analyze three-dimensional images nalization and release characteris- of the human heart. These faculty tics. Co-investigators for the grant Conference In will work with collaborators from include Dr. Mark Saltzman, BME, The Windy City the University of Washington and and Dr. Michael Caplan, professor A trip to Chicago with Philips Medical Systems to create a of physiology and cell biology. Yale BME viable imaging system using math- ematical models that will provide Spring 2007 doctors with real-time quantitative NIH Provides $2 Million Yale BME information for cardiac imaging. for New Magnetic Seminar Series Resonance System A group of Yale imaging faculty, led Yale BME NSF Funds Vaccine Delivery Through the Use of by Douglas L. Rothman, professor Undergraduate of diagnostic radiology and biomed- Internships Nanoparticles ical engineering, have received a $2 A group of Yale scientists includ- million High-End Instrumentation Life After ing biomedical engineers and cell (HEI) grant from the National Cen- Graduate School biologists, were recently awarded a ter for Research Resources (NCRR). $1 million grant from the National The funding was recently used to Yale Science Foundation (NSF) to study purchase a 7-Tesla human magnet- Undergraduates the delivery of nanoparticles for dis- ic resonance (MR) system that will ease treatment and prevention. Led help to explore the diagnosis and In Motion by biomedical engineering professor treatment of diseases such as epilep- Tarek Fahmy, this two years of fund- sy, diabetes, and learning disorders. It’s Never Too ing will provide the means to ana- As a facet of the National Institute Early for Science lyze the development of nanoparti- of Health (NIH), the NCRR serves A High School cles with the capability to evade to, “...provide laboratory scientists Student’s Research barriers in the body while stimulat- and clinical researchers with the en- Journey ing an immune response through an- vironments and tools they need to tigen-presenting cells. These “smart understand, detect, treat, and prevent nanoparticles” will serve to mimic a wide range of diseases.” BME • Fall 2007 • 3 In Focus... Malone Engineering Center: A Home for BME Facilities The Yale University campus welcomed its newest ad- dition, the five-story, 63,117 square foot “Daniel L. Malone Engineering Center,” on October 10, 2005. An element of Yale’s $500 million commitment to science and engineering, the building is located on Prospect Street near the Arthur K. Watson Hall, and is the second new engineering building to be commis- sioned since the 1900s. Designed by Cesar Pelli & Associates, the center features a limestone veneer and glass wall, designed to reflect its historic New Haven surroundings. The Daniel L. Malone Engineering Center was built largely due to a generous $24 million contribution by John C. Malone, ’63 E. John Malone has served as the chair of Liberty Media since 1990 and the chair of Media International since June 2004. In addition, he worked at Tele-Communications Inc., serving as the president, chair, and chief executive officer, and earned a Sheffield Fellowship in 1999. The Center is named after John C. Malone’s father, the late Daniel L. Malone. Daniel Malone served as an engineer for General Electric, building wartime radar systems, commercial televisions, and military communications. In 1960, Daniel Malone co-found- ed La Pointe industries, which is a supplier of military communication systems and components. Yale President Richard C. Levin, John C. Malone, and various engineering deans and faculty attended the dedication ceremony on October 10, 2005. The highlight of the dedication featured a nylon polymer ribbon cutting ceremony, in which a member of the department mixed chemicals to create a nylon ribbon. With President Levin holding the blue strand, Malone did the honors, commemorating the noteworthy day. According to the dean of Yale Engineering, Paul Fleu- ry, the building, “Stands as a statement to all that Yale Engineering is an integral part of this university’s most vibrant intellectual life. The research and teaching • BME • Fall 2007 4 that will take place here will center upon those fore- building, saving 95,000 gallons of water a year. In ad- front areas of biomedical engineering, materials sci- dition, the 100% filtered outdoor air that supplies the ence and nanotechnology that underpin 21st-century building maintains the high indoor air quality. These progress.” intricate design parameters helped earn the building a LEED Gold Rating in 2006, a standard created by the The building boasts many sustainable design features, U.S. Green Building Council in 2000 to promote sus- such as sensors that reduce energy consumption and a tainable design. plumbing system that promotes water conservation. It Facilities was constructed from materials of high recycled con- The Center features undergraduate facilities, such as the tent, and when possible, locally manufactured materi- Frederick P. Rose Teaching Laboratory, as well as offic- als and products. Over 75% of the building’s wood- es and laboratories for students and faculty to conduct work came from sustainably-managed forests and research. The architects and engineers of the building the building is designed so that the wastewater from designed the labs so that they can be modified as their the labs are treated on sight and reused as water for research evolves.