The CellScope team in Professor Dan Fletcher’s lab have made another breakthrough in mobile microscopy, using video to automatically detect and quantify infection by parasitic worms in a drop of blood. The new device can help revive efforts to treat common, neglected filarial diseases in Africa, such as river blindness.
BioE News
Whitaker Fellowship for Cheung
Congratulations to graduating senior Shin Yu Celia Cheung, recipient of a 2015 Whitaker International Fellowship! Cheung will begin research this Fall at Imperial College London, under the mentorship of Dr. David Klug.
Congratulations also to incoming PhD student, Alisha Geldert, also a 2015 Whitaker Fellow.
Marriott lab finds uses for bioluminescent protein
Professor Gerard Marriott’s lab has found amazing applications for a new type of genetically encoded fluorescent protein that is found in a symbiont populating the light organ of the ponyfish. The uniquely low mass and long fluorescence lifetime of the protein make it potentially useful as a biosensor to carry out rapid, quantitative and proteome-wide analyses of specific protein interactions, or to screen for drugs designed to disrupt a specific protein complex in a living cell.
Neira wins Ford Foundation Fellowship
Congratulations to bioengineering PhD student Hector Neira, awarded a prestigious 2015 Ford Foundation Predoctoral Fellowship.
Murthy Lab develops transcription factor delivery system
Researchers in Professor Niren Murthy’s lab have developed a way to efficiently deliver therapeutic transcription factors in living cells.
Schaffer talks gene therapy delivery
Professor David Schaffer explains his directed evolution approach to solving the Delivery Problem in gene therapy.
Capstone team takes second at Stanford Design Challenge
BioE senior capstone design team of Hannah Adelsberg, Celia Cheung, Eric Katz, and Suzanne Chou took second place at the annual Stanford Design Challenge for their invention, the HandleBar.
Lee and Murthy fight drug-resistant microbes
Professors Luke Lee and Niren Murthy are leading a team, with Dr. Riley of the School of Public Health, to develop tools to quickly spot and identify drug-resistant pathogens. Their project will receive $5.8 million over five years from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) as part of the agency’s effort to develop diagnostics to rapidly detect antimicrobial-resistant bacteria.
Johnson and Kurpinski at WonderCon
Bioengineers Terry Johnson and Kyle Kurpinski hosted a packed panel on “Science and Science Fiction” at WonderCon 2015.