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.
awards
Peng and Rosenbluth named to 40 Under 40
PhD alumni Lily Peng (2012) and Kate Rosenbluth (2009) have been named to the 2020 Fortune Magazine “40 Under 40”, an annual list of 40 young professionals of exceptional talent and influence in their fields. Peng, now Product Manager at Google Health, aims to bring health care to the masses through the use of artificial intelligence. She has personally designed algorithms including the firm’s diabetes-related eye disease detection program. Rosenbluth, Founder and CEO of Cala Health, has designed an FDA-cleared wrist device that eases hand tremors for the 7 million Americans who suffer from essential tremors.
Sanjay Kumar named AAAS Fellow
Congratulations Professor Sanjay Kumar, named to the 2020 class of Fellows of the American Association for the Advancement of Science. Kumar was recognized for his “distinguished contributions to the field of bioengineering, particularly the development of biomaterial and single-cell technologies to investigate mechanobiological signaling in health and disease.”
Time’s Best Inventions of 2020: Pivot Bio PROVEN
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.
Congratulations Prof Vandsburger, new Guertin Chair
Congratulations to Associate Professor Moriel Vandsburger, the first holder of our new Timothy and Karen Guertin Chair in Bioengineering. Timothy Guertin (B.S. alum, EECS) is the former Chief Executive Officer of Varian Medical Systems, a member of the Board of Directors at Teradyne Inc., and Chair of the Global Access to Cancer Care foundation, which works to expand the availability of modern cancer care in developing countries. The Guertins are passionate supporters of biomedical research and global access to quality healthcare, and have endowed this faculty chair to provide additional support to an early career professor pursuing promising research.
Schaffer wins AIChE Progress Award
Congratulations to Professor David Schaffer, 2020 recipient of the Andreas Acrivos Award for Professional Progress in Chemical Engineering from the AIChE Foundation.
Eko wins Best Hospital Diagnostics at UCSF Digital Health Awards
BioE spinout company Eko won the Best Hospital Diagnostics category at the 2020 UCSF Digital Health Awards digital stethoscope and ECG.
Five bioengineers are new Siebel Scholars
Congratulations to five Berkeley-based bioengineers named to the 2021 class of Siebel Scholars! Nicolas Altemose is developing microfluidic and molecular tools for studying genome regulation in single cells; Tiffany Chien is building a flexible simulation framework for calcium neuron imaging, simulating the 3D physical sample and the lens-less imaging system; Anjali Gopal is investigating the progression and resistance mechanisms of HER2 isoforms in HER2+ breast cancer via simultaneous single-cell proteoform and RNA sequencing measurements; Marc Lim is studying the physiological transport of three-helix-micelle (3HM) nanocarriers in solid tumors; Zoë Steier has developed totalVI, a computational framework for the joint probabilistic analysis of paired transcriptome and proteome measurements in single cells; and Alison Su is designing and validating measurement tools and workflows for biomedical applications ranging from bench to bedside.
Amy Herr appointed MacArthur Professor
Professor Amy Herr has been named the John D. & Catherine T. MacArthur Professor at UC Berkeley. The MacArthur Professorship is one of the most prestigious endowed chairs on campus, providing an annual stipend for scholarly activities and well-deserved recognition of Herr’s exceptional research, teaching, and service to the Berkeley community.