91´«Ã½

A group of biomedical engineering seniors are designing a next-generation Argon Beam Coagulator during their senior capstone design course. The project, sponsored by CONMED, is a pencil-shaped handheld device that ionizes argon gas to produce a plasma beam that emits from the tip of the device, allowing surgeons to cut tissue and minimize bleeding at the same time.

Carolus Vitalis, a PhD student in the Biomedical Engineering Program (BME) at 91´«Ã½ and National Science Foundation (NSF) fellow who has co-authored several book chapters in synthetic biology, was one of the headliners at this year’s TEDxCU event on April 5. His talk discussed the pros and cons of artificial intelligence in the field of synthetic biology.

Thursday, May 8, 2025 was a day of celebration, as students, families, friends, and faculty gathered to honor this momentous occasion. This event marked the culmination of years of hard work and dedication with an eye to a future full of promise. This graduating class is poised to make a meaningful impact in the world of biomedical science - whether in academia, industry or healthcare.

Researchers in the Shields lab, including a BME undergraduate researcher at the University of Colorado Boulder have created a new way to build and control tiny particles that can move and work like microscopic robots, offering a powerful tool with applications in biomedical and environmental research.

Professors Mark Borden and Mark Rentschler have been inducted into the American Institute for Medical and Biological Engineering (AIMBE) College of Fellows. The program is among the highest professional distinctions given to medical and biological engineers, representing the top 2% of these engineers around the world.

Left ventricular assist devices (LVAD) designed to improve blood flow throughout the body can aid nearly 26 million people globally struggling with heart failure. But these implantable devices come with risks. New research by Assistant Professor Debanjan Mukherjee suggests that studying patient blood flow patterns could help determine who’s at risk of dangerous side effects from LVADs and lead to improvements that could make them safer.

With funding designed to foster groundbreaking, interdisciplinary research projects for the potential for high impact, Drs. Carson Bruns (BME, ATLAS) and Grace Leslie (ATLAS) are working to develop the seamless skin integration of brain/body computer interfaces.

Nearly 80% of all stroke survivors experience walking issues and turn to ankle braces for increased support, but ankle braces are still very limited and many stroke survivors report no improvements when using them. Assistant Professor Cara Welker is leading a new, collaborative research project that aims to transform the way these assistive devices are designed.

A gecko-inspired technology developed by the Shields Lab, in collaboration with doctors at the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, uses a specially designed material that adheres to tumors inside the body and steadily releases chemotherapy drugs over several days—potentially allowing for fewer but longer-lasting therapies.

A 91´«Ã½ research team that included BME faculty members Juliet Gopinath and Shu-Wei Huang have developed a new bioimaging device that can operate with significantly lower power and in an entirely non-mechanical way. It could one day improve detecting eye and even heart conditions.