Research Areas
Research in biomedical engineering spans numerous topics and application areas, from life science to translational research. The department focuses on five major areas: Biomedical Imaging, Biomedical Microdevices, Rehabilitation Engineering, Regenerative Medicine and Pharmacoengineering.
Innovative research by our faculty within these research areas includes topics on neural systems, microfluidics, rehabilitation, biomaterials, medical devices, imaging, metabolomics, single-cell assays, tissue engineering, bioinformatics and computational systems biology.
This research diversity is supported by a wealth of affiliated faculty, associated centers and initiatives across both campuses. Joint BME graduate students are actively recruited across multi-disciplinary departments and are encouraged to help foster novel research across medical, biological and engineering disciplines.
Biomedical Imaging
Imaging in biomedical engineering encompasses a range of imaging techniques and technologies that assist with visualizing inside organisms. Biomedical imaging ultimately supports biological analysis and intervention for medical or research purposes. This research area is essential to better understanding underlying biological processes, diagnosing diseases in patients, guiding the development of new medical treatments and evaluating the effectiveness of treatments. Imaging types include X-ray, computed tomography (CT), magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and ultrasound.
Biomedical Microdevices
Microdevices are small-scale devices designed to support medical analysis, diagnostics, treatment, and research. They interact with biological systems on a microscopic or nanoscopic scale and include implantable and wearable devices. These devices leverage advances in materials science, microfabrication, and electronics to enhance precision in medicine and provide new ways to understand biological processes. Research in biomedical microdevices aims to improve patient care by driving accuracy and efficiency in medical research.
Regenerative Medicine
Research in regenerative medicine is focused on finding solutions to repair or replace damaged tissues and organs to restore normal function. This cross-disciplinary field combines biology, engineering, and medicine to develop processes that can regenerate damaged cells, tissues or organs.
Biomedical engineers in regenerative medicine may also explore tissue engineering, stem cell therapy, organ regeneration, wound healing, creating cell scaffolds and contributing to personalized medicine.
Rehabilitation Engineering
Rehabilitation engineering is a specialized discipline within biomedical engineering that focuses on developing, applying, and improving technologies to assist individuals with functional impairments in regaining or enhancing their abilities.
This research area combines resources and advances in mechanical engineering, robotics, brain-computer interfaces, clinical sciences, wearable technology, data analytics, rehabilitation, and prosthetics and orthotics to create devices, systems and strategies that improve the quality of life for people with physical or cognitive impairments.
Pharmacoengineering
Pharmacoengineering combines multidisciplinary principles in engineering, pharmacology, chemistry and biology. This research area focuses on developing and optimizing drug delivery systems, improving drug manufacturing processes and enhancing therapeutic outcomes for medical patients.
Biomedical engineers in pharmacoengineering work to solve problems in drug development and delivery, making medicines more effective, safe, and accessible to target patient populations. Researchers may also work to improve process optimization, develop new systems for personalized medicine, engineer processes for new product development, enhance drug delivery systems and ensure regulatory compliance.