Environment

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photos of Nixon, Yang, Chen

Three BioE alumni in Forbes 30 Under 30!

December 17, 2020

Congratulations to three bioengineering alumni named to the 2021 Forbes 30 Under 30 list. Joshua Yang (MTM 2016) and Robert Chen (BS 2013) were named in Healthcare: Yang for his work on developing non-invasive tools to measure kidney injuries through startup company Nephrosant, and Chen for designing therapies for undernourished children, using links between certain gut bacteria and stunted growth. Joshua Nixon (BS 2016) and co-founder were named in the Social Impact list for founding Prime Roots, a company developing plant-based meat and seafood alternatives.

photo of used plastic bags

Upcycling: Turning plastic bags into adhesives

December 17, 2020

Professor Phil Messersmith’s lab has collaborated on a new chemical process that converts polyethylene plastic into a strong and valuable adhesive, and could make plastic bag recycling economically worthwhile.

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Time’s Best Inventions of 2020: Pivot Bio PROVEN

November 23, 2020

PROVEN, the world’s first microbial biofertilizer for cereal crops, has been named one of the 100 Best Inventions of 2020 by Time Magazine. Developed by PivotBio, a BioE spinout company founded by Karsten Temme, PhD 2010, the product replaces synthetic solutions with nitrogen-fixing microbes, which capture nitrogen from the air and convert it into a form that plants can use.