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bi engineering V O L G E N A U S C H O O L O F E N G I N E E R I N G D E PA R T M E N T O F
2020 ANNUAL REPORT
I
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II
years of innovation Since its creation in 2011, Mason’s Department of Bioengineering has grown into a leadership position in Northern Virginia. We have increased our student enrollment, hired talented faculty, started new educational programs, enlisted
the help of a prestigious advisory board, and are becoming known for impactful research. Our proximity to top research and clinical facilities sets us apart from other programs.
When students study with us, they benefit from our BS and PhD programs that include concentrations in biomedical imaging and devices, computational biomedical engineering, neurotechnology and computational neurosciences, and biomaterials and nanomedicine. We also have two additional concentrations in prehealth and health informatics in our BS program that provide a breadth of
choices to our students, and our new MS program is helping undergraduates transition to top-level industry jobs.
Our undergraduate program is distinguished by our commitment to offer research and internship experiences to all students. Our research faculty host many undergraduates in their labs, and
students benefit from scholarships. Thanks to the growing strength of local industry and government institutions, we have established a network of opportunities that our students can choose from to gain the experience they need to make crucial employment decisions after graduation.
Mason Bioengineering students benefit from strong ties and collaborations with local clinical
University centers including the Inova Fairfax Medical Campus, Children’s National Hospital, and
Georgetown University Medical Center. We recently won an National Institutes of Health grant to fund a clinical immersion experience for our rising seniors in these clinical sites where many will spend six weeks in the summer discovering the challenges that physicians face daily.
As a top-rated Carnegie R1 research institution, George Mason University is on a steep upward
trajectory in research activity, funding, publications, and technology transfer where bioengineering
plays a significant role. Bioengineering’s yearly research expenditures exceed $3 million, and last year alone we brought in more than $6 million of new funding. I invite you to look through
the extensive list of newly funded awards on page 17 that demonstrate the importance of our faculty’s research programs and the talents of our growing cohort of PhD students.
As you read about the accomplishments of our students and faculty and discover their amazing
accomplishments you will see how much progress we’ve made in our first 10 years. We look forward to more success in the next decade as we contribute solutions to society’s medical challenges. g
1
Using Ultrasound Technology to Improve the Lives of Amputees
They are collaborating with the Walter Reed National Military Medical Center to test this technology in a military population using
another new grant award from the Department of Defense. They also have a grant from the
Commonwealth Research Commercialization
Fund to explore prosthetic training applications using a wearable ultrasound system.
The team is completing additional preliminary
studies in amputee subjects using a benchtop system. In the meantime, they are in the process of miniaturizing the ultrasound instrumentation to incorporate inside a
prosthetic socket and developing and testing embedded algorithms for interpreting the ultrasound signals for controlling the
B
ioengineering Professor Siddhartha
Sikdar is using technology to help individuals with limb loss better control their prostheses.
The next steps are to perform laboratory
tests of an integrated system with people with amputations and perform safety evaluations in preparation for seeking FDA approval.
The successful completion of this research
His team is investigating a new way to operate
will lead to the first human evaluation of an
muscle activity.
portable imaging sensors and real-time image
“Our goal is to help amputees go about their
prosthetic control, he says.
Siddhartha Sikdar, who is director of the
“In the long term, we anticipate that the
Interactions (CASBBI).
of control will increase acceptance by
prostheses using ultrasound waves to sense
daily lives with improved function,” says
Center for Adaptive Systems of Brain-Body
His research group was recently awarded a Bioengineering Research Partnership grant from the National Institutes of Health to
develop this technology for commercial use and perform clinical trials.
2
prosthetic hands.
integrated prototype that uses low-power
analysis to sense residual muscle activity for
improvements in functionality and intuitiveness amputees,” Sikdar says. g
Professor Siddhartha Sikdar is director of the Center for Adaptive Systems of Brain Body Interactions (CASBBI) which pursues transdisciplinary research 3 and translational innovations aimed at challenges related to disability. He is also the principal investigator of the transdisciplinary NSF Research Traineeship (NRT) program at CASBBI which is a bold, new model for community-engaged STEM graduate training in disability-related research.
4
Associate Professor Qi Wei is fine-tuning a computer model that will help with the diagnosis and treatment of crossed eyes. Qi was recognized in 2020 with the university’s Teaching Excellence Award.
Professor’s Eyes Are on the Prize
W
hen Associate Professor Qi Wei
sees people with vision troubles, she knows
there is more to the problem than meets the eye. She researches strabismus, which is crossed
Although a few computer models for the
don’t line up to look at the same place at the
colleagues are fine-tuning their model, which
eyes. “When people have strabismus, their eyes same time,” says Wei.
One or both eyes may turn in, out, up or down.
It’s a prevalent problem, especially with children. It affects 18 million people in the United States.
“Strabismus can be debilitating because people
with the condition develop double vision, blurred
treatment of the condition exist, Wei and
will overcome others’ critical limitations. Using clinical data from 50 strabismic patients
who’ve been operated on, the team will test hypotheses that they hope will advance the knowledge on treating two common types of strabismus. g
vision, eyestrain, or other symptoms impairing daily activities.”
Wei and three other principal investigators from different universities are creating a data-driven computer model of the eye for diagnosing and treating strabismus with almost $1.8 million in funding from the National Institutes of Health.
“We hope the neuro-biomedical model we are developing will help doctors better determine how best to treat strabismus,” she says.
It’s complicated and hard to diagnose and treat effectively, she says. Typically, the condition is
Although a few computer models for
more extraocular muscles. Generally, surgeons
the treatment of the condition exist,
treated with surgery that manipulates one or
rely on experience and intuition to decide the best surgical treatment, she says.
Wei and colleagues are fine-tuning their model, which will overcome others’ critical limitations.
5
New Framework for Future Vaccines
B
ioengineering researchers’ work with
DNA nanotechnology could be adapted to fight viruses such as the coronavirus.
He and his colleagues are using DNA
“We are designing a unique vaccine
nanotechnology to lay the foundation
development of vaccines,” says Assistant
infection. Nanotechnology involves
development tool that would enable the rapid
for developing vaccines that could block
Professor Remi Veneziano.
manipulating matter on an atomic, molecular, and supramolecular scale.
“It’s a safe and elegant way to design
vaccines,” Veneziano says. “If successful,
our strategy could be adapted for emerging viruses and applied to several other
pathogens, including the new coronavirus.” Pathogens are microorganisms, such as
viruses and bacteria, which cause disease. “Many biological mechanisms involving
bacteria, viruses, and cells happen at the nanoscopic scale, which is very small
and requires specialized techniques to
investigate,” Veneziano says. “When working on the nanoscale, DNA can be made in the same shape of the virus and modified with viral proteins to mimic viruses.”
Remi Veneziano and his colleagues are using DNA nanotechnology to lay the foundation for developing vaccines that could block infection. Nanotechnology involves manipulating matter on an atomic, molecular, and supramolecular scale. 6
The goal is to make the immune cells believe the nanoparticle is a virus and trigger an immune response, he says. g
7 Assistant Professor Remi Veneziano is using DNA nanotechnology to lay the foundation for developing vaccines that could fight viruses such as the coronavirus.
8 Associate Professor Parag Chitnis is designing active bandages that will be integrated with ultrasound systems for sensing wound state.
M
Active Bandages Hasten Healing
ason Engineering researchers
are developing new “active bandages” and
implantable devices to improve the healing of serious combat wounds.
“We are tasked to reduce the healing time
There is a critical need for this innovative
two. The hope is that this will lead to better
technology because recovery and rehabilitation after traumatic injury is a major challenge for military personnel.
of difficult-to-treat wounds by a factor of healing, faster rehabilitation, and fewer
psychological consequences from a long recovery,” Chitnis says.
“The active bandages will be integrated with
The beauty of using ultrasound to assess
state as well as for triggering the release of
cost-effective, and portable, he says. g
ultrasound systems for sensing the wound
therapeutic compounds from biocompatible
wounds is that it is non-invasive, safe,
devices implanted in the wound,” says
bioengineering Associate Professor Parag
Chitnis, co-director of the Biomedical Imaging Lab, which is part of the Institute for Biohealth Innovation.
Chitnis was awarded a $1.2 million grant as a
member of a consortium of nine academic and
industry entities led by Columbia University with a total budget of $16.4 million, funded by the
Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency. Conventionally, wounds are treated with
medications and dressing, which can result
in significantly slower or incomplete healing outcomes, but the bioelectronic interfaces developed in this project combined with
There is a critical need for this
and track the progress of wound healing and
innovative technology because
artificial intelligence (AI) will be able to sense actively regulate tissue repair to tailor the treatment for each person, he says.
recovery and rehabilitation after traumatic injury is a major challenge for military personnel. 9
Getting a Leg Up on Research to Halt Knee Pain
M
ason bioengineering Professor
Caroline Hoemann is making significant
Athletes, physically active adults, people with osteoarthritis, and others sometimes have
strides in developing treatments for chronic
significant pain and limited movement in their
knee pain.
knees from damaged cartilage, she says.
She is creating new biomaterials that might
To repair the tissue, surgeons use a
a tissue that acts as a shock absorber for
make multiple small holes in the bone exposed
one day be used to treat damaged cartilage,
procedure called microfracture, in which they
the bones.
at the surface of the joint to stimulate a healing response. “They have a good success rate in younger patients, but the repair tissues regenerate in an unpredictable manner,” she says.
“My long-term goal is to restore pain-free knees to patients and reduce their need for knee replacement. It would give them back their lives.” That’s where biomaterials come in. “Our “My long-term goal is to restore pain-free
knees to patients and reduce their need for knee replacement. It would give them back their lives,” says Hoemann, director of the
Laboratory of Biomaterials and Nanomedicine
approach is to prompt the immune system
to cooperate with the bone marrow to regrow damaged cartilage. Some biomaterials have a unique potential to stimulate the patients’ own cells to preserve and regenerate cartilage,” Hoemann says.
This type of research takes years. “We’ve
been looking at the whole knee, which is why the research is drawn out. It’s a multifactorial problem because the knee is so complex,” Hoemann says. g
10
11 Professor Caroline Hoemann is developing biomaterials to help repair damaged knee cartilage.
12 Professor Juan Raul Cebral is using image-based computational modeling to study blood flow in the brain to learn more about aneurysms.
Developing Better Diagnosis, Treatment for Brain Aneurysms
B
ioengineering Professor Juan Raul
Cebral combines math and medicine to help patients who are suffering from strokes and other cerebrovascular disease.
He uses image-based computational modeling
to study blood flow in the brain so he can learn
more about aneurysms. A cerebral aneurysm is a ballooning, weak area in the wall of an artery that supplies blood to the brain. If it ruptures,
it can cause a hemorrhagic stroke, which can lead to death or brain damage.
computational models. “In those models,
“We are trying to understand how aneurysms
we’re solving the mathematical equations
Computational Sciences and Informatics ’96.
and combine this information with ex-vivo
It is not well understood how the aneurysms
conditions that predispose the walls for further
form, progress, and rupture,” says Cebral, PhD
that represent the flow inside these arteries, analysis of tissue samples to understand the
form in the first place, but it’s thought that
degeneration and failure.”
biological responses in the wall that result in
This research also may help identify which
wall progressively degenerates, the aneurysm
interventions. If physicians treat everybody,
to effectively remodel the wall to reinforce it.
invasive surgical treatment, but if they don’t
To gain insights into this process, Cebral
aneurysms may rupture, Cebral says.
aneurysms and constructing patient-specific
“I hope our work may one day result in new
abnormal blood flow conditions induce
arterial degeneration, he says. As the artery
patients to treat with medications or surgical
grows and eventually ruptures if it is not able
they may injure many people who don’t need
uses three-dimensional images of patients’
treat the patients who need it, then their
diagnostic tools and novel, non-invasive
therapies that will transform brain aneurysms into an innocuous disease that’s easy to manage,” he says. g
13
Neural Reconstruction Database Accelerates Research
G
iorgio Ascoli, a professor of
bioengineering, and his team created
NeuroMorpho.Org in 2006 to store the
large amounts of data they needed to make computational models of neurons.
have been published using or describing data available in the NeuroMorpho.Org database. The National Institutes of Health has
The open-access repository for neural
funded over 140 applications mentioning
exchange data freely. The project makes
summary. Those numbers translate to big
efficient, says Ascoli.
be awarded and spent over the duration of the
reconstructions allows researchers to
NeuroMorpho.Org in the title, aims, or
neuroanatomy research faster and more
money; more than $200 million is projected to funded projects.
Bengt Ljungquist, a research assistant
professor at Mason and IT manager for the
project, notes the exponential growth of the
database since its inception and what it means for the project’s future.
“As a now true big data project with more than 130,000 neurons, with a novel automated
data processing pipeline allowing for even
faster growth, there is increased load on the
project IT infrastructure,” he says. “In addition, not only human scientists are interacting with The reconstructions have been used to
investigate the pathways of Alzheimer’s
disease, epilepsy, and memory capacity. They have also been used to investigate the effects of cosmic radiation on astronauts’ central nervous systems.
“Real-world applications may include solving neurological and psychiatric problems and
designing next-generation computers capable of human-like cognition,” Ascoli says.
With such vital and varied applications, it is
no surprise that over 1,700 scientific papers
14
the database, but also a growing number of computers directly analyze the data.
“With the current version of NeuroMorpho.
Org using modern data cloud and virtualization technologies, we may now take the next step to develop new interfaces for both humans
and computers to scale up interactions, deliver new analysis functions, and increase search speeds,” he says. g
Professor Giorgio Ascoli developed NeuroMorpho.Org, which stores large amounts of data needed to make computational models of neurons. Ascoli is director of the Center for Neural Informatics, Structures, and Plasticity. The center pursues fundamental breakthroughs in neuroscience by fostering neuroinformatic and computational approaches to neuroplasticity and neuroanatomy.
15
Research Funding
16
Start Date
End Date
Award Amount
National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH), National Institutes of Health (NIH)
9/20/2017
5/31/2022
$2,462,500
Generation and Description of Neuronal Morphology and Connectivity
National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS), National Institutes of Health (NIH)
5/1/2020
4/30/2025
$1,844,750
Ascoli, Giorgio
Cytoskeletal Mechanisms of Dendrite Arbor Shape Development
National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS), National Institutes of Health (NIH)
7/1/2019
6/30/2024
$663,545
Ascoli, Giorgio
Contribution to Center for Neural Informatics
Unrestricted Research Support (Private donation in memory of Harold Morowitz)
3/1/2017
3/31/2027
$23,275
Blackwell, Kim L
Disruptions in Spine Dynamics Caused by Changes in Cofilin Controlled by cAMP Signaling Pathways
National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH), National Institutes of Health (NIH)
1/1/2020
6/30/2021
$89,648
Blackwell, Kim L
Synaptic Integration, Calcium Dynamics, and Plasticity in Striatum Spiny Projection Neurons
National Institute of Drug Abuse (NIDA), National Institutes of Health (NIH)
8/25/2019
8/24/2021
$67,618
Buschmann, Michael Daro
Clinical Immersion with Health Professionals and Industry Advising in Undergraduate Biomedical Engineering Capstone Design
National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering (NIBIB), National Institutes of Health (NIH)
8/19/2020
5/31/2025
$198,000
Cebral, Juan Raul
Improving Cerebral Aneurysm Risk Assessment through Understanding Wall Vulnerability and Failure Modes
National Insitute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS), National Institutes of Health (NIH)
7/1/2016
4/30/2021
$1,272,642
Cebral, Juan Raul
Neuroscience and Brain Aneurysm Research
GMU Foundation, College of Science, GMU
9/1/2019
3/14/2020
$51,000
Cebral, Juan Raul
Hemodynamics and Flow Divertion in Cerebral Aneurysms
Philips Healthcare
3/15/2018
11/30/2021
$50,000
Cebral, Juan Raul
Computational and Biological Approach to Flow Diversion
National Insitute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS), National Institutes of Health (NIH)
7/1/2016
8/31/2021
$732,757
Chitnis, Parag
TRAUMAS: Treatment and Recovery Augmented with Electrical and UntrasoundMediated Actuation and Sensing
Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA)
2/21/2020
2/20/2024
$1,199,988
Chitnis, Parag
Vaginal Birth Induced Pelvic Floor Muscle Injury and Recovery
Center for Innovative Technology Commonwealth Research Commercialization Fund (CIT-CRCF)
7/1/2019
7/15/2021
$125,000
Salinas, Armando
Chronic Ethanlol Effects on Cholinergic Interneurons of the Striatum
National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA), National Institutes of Health (NIH)
5/1/2018
4/30/2021
$287,156
Sikdar, Siddhartha
NRT-HDR: Transdisciplinary Graduate Training Program in Data-Driven Adaptive Systems of Brain-Body Interactions
National Science Foundation
9/1/2019
8/31/2024
$2,999,928
Sikdar, Siddhartha
Sonomyogaraphic Upper Limb Prosthetics: A New Paradigm
National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering (NIBIB), National Institutes of Health (NIH)
2/1/2020
1/31/2025
$3,633,133
Sikdar, Siddhartha
An Open Data Sharing Platform for Substance Use Disorders
National Science Foundation
9/1/2019
8/31/2021
$199,962
Sikdar, Siddhartha
Wearable Ultrasound System for Robust Sensing of Muscle Activation
Commomwealth Research and Commercialization Fund (CRCF)
6/17/2019
1/16/2022
$98,456
Sikdar, Siddhartha
Asymptomatic Carotid Stenosis and Correlates of Cognitive Function (ACCOF)
Department of Veterans Affairs
10/1/2017
9/30/2021
$319,440
Sikdar, Siddhartha
Planning Grant: Engineering Research Center for Technology-Empowered Communities of Recovery (TECOR)
National Science Foundation
9/1/2018
8/31/2021
$100,000
Sikdar, Siddhartha
CPS:Synergy: Collaborative Research: Closed-loop Hybrid Exoskeleton Utilizing Wearable Ultrasound Imaging Sensors for Measuring Fatigue
National Science Foundation
1/1/2017
12/31/2021
$415,931
Sikdar, Siddhartha
An Integrated Sonomyographic Prosthetic Control System
Department of Defense
9/15/2020
9/14/2024
$1,490,735
Veneziano, Remi
Exosomes on a Chip: Real-time Monitoring of Intercellular Communication and Immune Responses During Infections
National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), National Institutes of Health (NIH)
1/23/2018
12/31/2021
$429,695
Veneziano, Remi
DNA-Nanoparticles (DNA-NP) for Antigen Presentation and Vaccine Design for Aerosolized Pathogens
United States Army Medical Research Acquisition Activity (USAMRAA), Department of Defense (DOD)
1/15/2020
1/14/2022
$314,000
Wei, Qi
Data-Drive Biomechanical Simulation of Eye Movement and Strabismus
National Eye Institute (NEI), National Institutes of Health (NIH)
6/1/2019
5/31/2023
$1,722,248
Wei, Qi
The Neural Control of Internal Joint State Variables
Northwestern University/National Institutes of Health (NIH)
9/1/2014
7/31/2020
$100,000
Wei, Qi
Life STEM EAGER: Exploring the Relationship between High School Mathematics and Bioscience, Standardized Testing and College Performance in Biotechnology-related Fields
Division of Research on Learning (DRL), National Science Foundation (NSF)
9/1/2018
7/31/2021
$299,951
PI
Title
Sponsor
Ascoli, Giorgio
Anatomical Characterization of Neuronal Cell Types of the Mouse Brain
Ascoli, Giorgio
17
Learning to Make a Difference in Human Health
Multidisciplinary training makes
The curriculum provides a strong
positions in biomedical, biotech
and biological fundamentals
Bioengineers save lives.
academia, and government. Mason
bioengineering is a commitment
some of the nation’s top medical
our graduates competitive for
and pharmaceutical industries,
Choosing a degree in
bioengineers have been placed in
to a challenging and rewarding
schools and graduate schools.
solutions to improve health.
Our current concentrations in the
field dedicated to creating
BS bioengineering program are:
background in the engineering of bioengineering as well as
breadth courses in biomechanics, biomaterials, bioinstrumentation,
imaging, computational modeling, and neuroengineering.
The Mason bioengineering BS
program provides students with a
• Biomedical Imaging
complete and in-depth education
the foundations of engineering
• Computational Biomedical
attractive industry positions or
them understand and successfully
• Neurotechnology and
As undergraduates in
bioengineering, our students learn and health sciences that will help address the nation’s leading health problems.
and Devices
in bioengineering that leads to
Engineering
further graduate study. g
Computational Neuroscience
• Biomaterials and Nanomedicine • Bioengineering Prehealth • Bioengineering Health Care Informatics
18 Bioengineering student Alexander Nixon works at the Nanotechnology laboratory in the Krasnow Institute.
Engineering students in the Applied Neurotechnologies class work with faculty and clinicians in a clinical environment.
New Clinical Immersion Initiative Crosses Disciplines to Solve Medical Problems
for the summer. “Bioengineering
After the summer immersion
hospitals looking at various clinical
will start their year-long senior
students will spend time in the
issues and problems, and I will be
working with them to identify critical
The Department of Bioengineering
needs that they can target and build
College of Health and Human
design projects,” says Shani Ross,
from different disciplines together
of Bioengineering.
is partnering with units in Mason’s
solutions for, as part of their senior
Services (CHHS) to bring students
associate chair of the Department
program, bioengineering students design projects. Collaborating with students from nursing,
health administration, and health informatics, they will devise
solutions to the clinical needs that they identified over the summer.
to identify medical problems and engineer holistic and innovative solutions.
The new program, funded by a
nearly $200,000 grant from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, will take bioengineering students on a six-week clinical
immersion into major hospitals in the
D.C., Maryland, and Northern Virginia area, starting in summer 2021.
Students will be placed in Inova
Hospital, Georgetown Hospital, or
Children’s National Medical Center
19
“We are providing an enriched real-world environment for students to work in and develop their network of colleagues with complementary skill sets.” Students will also be advised by
and pathways for bioengineering
hospitals, a faculty advisor in the
education, he says. “Currently, our
a clinical mentor from one of the
Department of Bioengineering, an advisor from either the School of
Nursing, the Health Administration
program, or the Health Informatics program, and then an industry advisor from the Mason
Bioengineering Alliance. “We are providing an enriched real-world environment for
students to work in and develop their network of colleagues with
students to complete their
senior design projects are either
faculty or industry-sponsored and the problems they need to solve are already given to them. The
clinical immersion approach allows our undergraduate students to
experience a clinical environment and to identify challenges where
they can apply their knowledge and skills to find workable solutions,” says Buschmann.
complementary skill sets,” says
“Everything needs to be
Department of Bioengineering.
lot of new medical technologies is
Michael Buschmann, chair of the
This new way of completing
senior design offers new skills
considered. The end-user for a
nurses, and ease of use and patient care is the top priority from our
perspective, and health informatics and bioengineering have different
lenses too,” says Cheryl A. Oetjen, interim director of the School of Nursing. g
20
Senior Allison Dockum majored in bioengineering so she can create medical devices that help others.
Life-Changing Experience Shapes Students’ Studies Senior Allison Dockum is
used a device called an external
“I would like to work either in
new bone formed. Her legs are now
assistive technology—prosthetics
fixator to slowly stretch the limb as about the same length.
majoring in bioengineering to
“Growing up, I was fascinated by
has first-hand experience in the
and her surgeon took the time to
change lives for the better. She
how the fixator worked,” she says,
impact of this expertise.
explain his work with the surgical
Surgeons and bioengineers “gave
physician.
life, and I want to do the same for
Dockum knew bioengineers also
me the ability to live a semi-normal
tool developed by a Russian
others,” she says.
often develop such devices, and
Dockum was born with proximal
was born. “What I like about
meaning her left leg was about
of the body through an engineering
She underwent multiple limb-
on solutions to physiological
her interest in bioengineering
industry or research and focus on and biomechanical devices, says Dockum, who is earning a BS in
bioengineering in combination with an accelerated master’s degree in data analytics engineering. Dockum worked two years
as a research assistant in the
Biomedical Imaging Lab under the direction of professor Siddhartha
Sikdar, whose team is investigating a new way to operate prostheses using ultrasound waves to sense
femoral focal deficiency,
bioengineering is the understanding
half the length of her right leg.
lens. It expands your perspective
“Dr. Sikdar encouraged me to
lengthening surgeries in which
problems,” she says.
she says. “He has provided help
a surgeon cut the bone, then
muscle activity.
pursue what I’m passionate about,” and resources and mentorship.” g
21
Freshman Lina Alkarmi chose Mason for its research, faculty, and the career opportunities in bioengineering.
Making an Impact and an Impression
“The research areas were all so
and engineering, she decided the
thought, ‘wow, this is something
profit and her interest in math
Lina Alkarmi has always had
bioengineering field was a perfect fit.
a desire to help others. Through
Alkarmi chose Mason for many
bioengineering freshman, she
was the first deciding factor. “It was
an interest in for healthcare and
interesting. I looked through and that I could really see myself participate in.’”
her non-profit, and now as a
reasons, but her visit to campus
Despite all her classes being
strives to make a difference.
in February or March that there was
Alkarmi is still excited for the
In high school, she and a friend
where they invited us to tour and
opportunities in healthcare, and they
I started opening my eyes and
an accepted students’ weekend
were looking for volunteer
meet some faculty, and that’s when
decided to start their own non-profit.
realized this is where I want to go.”
“When I was a sophomore,
Alkarmi says access to
Princess Packages. We started
appealed to her. “I like how it
to young children suffering from
where there are a lot of places
online during her first semester, college experience and sees it as
another learning opportunity. “I do wish it was more traditional, but I
understand why. It’s important that we all social distance so we can
manage the cases of COVID-19.
I’m really grateful that Mason has
I co-founded a non-profit called
opportunities in the area also
by delivering handmade packages
is close to Washington D.C.,
terminal illnesses in local hospitals,
for internships and connections.”
Alkarmi knows there are
club at our high school, and now
The chance to take part in
great experiences to research, learn,
all over the U.S.,” says Alkarmi.
biggest draw for Alkarmi.
but then we expanded, started a
we deliver packages to hospitals
22
Based on her work with the non-
innovative research was the
such amazing professors who
seem like they’re trying to keep us all engaged.”
opportunities at Mason for new and and make a difference, and she is
eager to see what comes her way. g
Student-athlete Juggles Dreams and Achieves Goals Rising senior Ashley Lewis is
some bioengineering seminars
Within the broad field of
Scholarship, Creative Activities,
are still a lot of things to figure out,
through the Office of Student and Research (OSCAR).
no stranger to hard work and
She connected with one of the
student, member of the Mason
her first research position with
endurance. As a bioengineering
presenters and eventually started
track team, blogger, and former
Assistant Professor Jeff Moran.
Summer Research Program, she
“I always had an interest in
dreams and aspirations.
something works. I want to know
“I have a lot of interests, and my
way it is, but I want to know the
more things I enjoy,” says Lewis.
in biology wasn’t satisfying that
summer intern for the Stanford
has found ways to juggle her many
time at Mason showed me even
Lewis came to Mason’s
analyzing and asking how
not only why is something the
nitty-gritty, and my course work curiosity,” says Lewis.
Fairfax Campus from Boston,
After Lewis took some engineering
and member of the track team.
engineering was where she wanted
bioengineering after attending
bioengineering her sophomore year.
Massachusetts as a biology major
courses, she realized that
She discovered her passion for
to be. She changed her major to
bioengineering, Lewis admits there but she knows she will find an area within bioengineering that she is enthusiastic about.
In her internship, Lewis focused on genetics-based projects that look at how different factors
affect immune responses and
other disease pathologies. Moran says, “From the beginning of her work with me, Ashley displayed
a rare combination of work ethic, intellectual curiosity, and drive to
succeed. As soon as she started, she hit the ground running.
Throughout her time in my group, she was continually asking for
more work to do, more papers to
read, and other ways she could be helpful. Ashley has a stellar future ahead of her.” g
23 Senior Ashley Lewis is a bioengineering student, member of Mason’s track team, and a blogger.
Transforming Surgical Options David Thompson’s inspiration to
The program offers three options for
dates back to his childhood.
extra coursework, or a practicum.
pursue a career in bioengineering
“My grandfather on my father’s
side lost his leg at a factory and that lead to the deterioration of
his health. I wondered if we had
completing the degree—a thesis, Thompson chose the practicum,
and he’s currently working as an intern at Inova’s Biomechanics Research Laboratory.
easier access to higher forms of technology, would he have lived longer,” he says.
Research in bioengineering, which leads to the development of new
life-changing medical devices and technology, seemed like the best Graduate student David Thompson interned at Inova as part of his master’s degree program in bioengineering.
way to make a difference in the
lives of people like his grandfather. So Thompson decided to pursue a
tool that uses data about various aspects of the patient’s health, gathered from MRIs and other
tests, to predict how the patient would react to different surgical options, he says.
master’s degree in bioengineering.
“This kind of technology is the wave
summer 2020, one of the first students
than training. It will allow surgeons
He should be finished at the end of to receive the new degree from the Department of Bioengineering.
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He helped develop a virtual reality
of the future. It’s more for planning
to visualize and execute the things they want to do,” he says. g
Bioengineering Alumni Share Insights to Success Bioengineering opens a variety of career paths to our graduates. Here are some young alumni who are beginning their promising careers. After graduation our students have a vast array of options open to them from working in Industry or Government or continuing in Graduate School or Medical School.
g 50% Industry
g 20% Government
g 15% Graduate School
“I work in the air systems division, so I regularly operate in helicopters and fixed wing aircraft,” he says. “My job allows me to contribute to very large efforts that give me fulfillment and enables me to learn more on a daily basis.” Working in several bioengineering labs at Mason provided an excellent opportunity to hone his critical thinking skills in independent research. “My classes in machine learning and graduate image processing help me adapt to the defense environment where I apply these skills regularly,” Bussler says.
g 10% Medical School g 5% Miscellaneous
Forrest Bussler BS Bioengineering ’17, a general engineer for Night Vision and Electronic Sensors Directorate in Fort Belvoir, Virginia. Bussler says a degree in bioengineering was a perfect fit for him “because it offered electrical engineering skills along with human factors elements that are critical to interpreting algorithm performance. My job is largely image processing type work.”
Sameen Yusuf BS Bioengineering ’17, a data analyst at Socially Determined, a startup in Washington, D.C., where she analyzes how social factors impact health. She pursued a degree in bioengineering “because I wanted to build a foundation in engineering principles to think critically about healthcare disparities.” Yusuf did just that in her senior design project. She and three other bioengineering students worked with Mason researchers to develop an affordable, user-friendly diagnostic test for deadly communicable diseases such as tuberculosis. After graduation, she went to Nepal on a Fulbright research fellowship to
conduct a user acceptability study for the technology. “The degree equipped me with the problem-solving skills I need to identify social needs and address them with technical solutions,” she says.
Tyra Bookhart BS Bioengineering ’19, a patent examiner/biomedical engineer at the United States Patent and Trademark Office in Alexandria, Virginia. Bookhart, who examines patent applications for new inventions within the medical device field, decided to major in bioengineering with a concentration in biomedical signals and systems because “I have always had a passion for medicine and engineering. What better way than to pick a major where I could practice both.” She says the bioengineering classes in conjunction with working in a research lab gave her a rich college experience. “The art of problem-solving that I learned at Mason created a solid foundation for my career,” Bookhart says. “The people I work with now are knowledgeable and eager to help explain cases to me. There are a lot of novel medical devices in development.” g
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Bioengineering Faculty
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Primary Faculty AY 2020-21 Our faculty members—who combine practical experience with in-depth scholarly studies— instruct students, guide them, and make them partners in advanced research projects. For more information go to bioengineering. sitemasonry.gmu.edu/people/meet-our-faculty
Giorgio Ascoli Professor Research Interests: Neuroinformatics and Data-Driven Brain Simulations
Kim Blackwell Professor Research Interests: Mechanisms of Memory Storage in Neurons
Laurence Bray Associate Professor Research Interests: Computational Neuroscience
Michael Buschmann Professor and Chair Research Interests: Messenger RNA Nanotherapeutics
Juan Cebral Professor Research Interests: Image-based Computational Modeling of Blood Flows, Cerebral Aneurysms, Stroke
Parag Chitnis Associate Professor Research Interest: Wearable Sensors, Focused Ultrasound, Photo Acoustic Imaging, Drug Delivery
Caroline Hoemann Professor Research Interests: Biomaterials and Nanomedicine
Vasiliki Ikonomidou Research Interest: Computational Biomedical Engineering
Eugene Kim Term Assistant Professor Research Interests: Engineering Education, Synthetic Biology, Bioadhesive Materials
Nathalia Peixoto Associate Professor Research Interests: Neurotechnology and Computational Neuroscience
Shani Ross Assistant Professor and Associate Chair Research Interests: Neural Engineering
Siddhartha Sikdar Professor Research Interests: Biomedical Imaging and Devices
Remi Veneziano Assistant Professor Research Interests: DNA Nanotechnology
Qi Wei Associate Professor Research Interests: Computational Biomedical Engineering
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Administration and Staff AY 2020-21
Faculty Affiliates AY 2020-21 Our faculty affiliates are clinicians, scholars, and researchers with years of experience in industry, government, and healthcare. They bring unique and valuable perspectives to our students’ educational experience.
Michael Buschmann Department Chair and Professor
Shani Ross Associate Chair and Assistant Professor
Claudia Borke Academic Advisor and Success Coach
Jonia Alshiek Senior Research Scholar Department of Obstetrics & Gynecology Inova Health, Falls Church, Virginia Urogynecologist/Clinical Instructor Hillel Yaffe Medical Center, Hadera, Israel
Robert Caldwell President and CEO Strategic Health Solutions Washington, D.C.
David J. Hamilton Neuroscientist Intelligent Mission Consulting Services (IMCS)
Wilsaan Joiner Assistant Professor Davis Department of Neurobiology, Physiology and Behavior University of California, Davis, California
Peter Katona Former Professor Department of Bioengineering Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering George Mason University, Fairfax, Virginia
Terry McGowan Fiscal Coordinator Bong Jae Chung Assistant Professor Department of Math & Sciences Montclair State University, Montclair, New Jersey Carol McHugh Academic Program Assistant
Randy Warren Lab Manager/Adjunct Faculty, Bioengineering
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Felicitas Detmer Postdoc Research Fellow Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts
Alexander Komendantov Former Assistant Professor Krasnow Institute George Mason University, Fairfax, Virginia
Joseph Marr Chief Data Strategist Huntington Ingalls Industry Term Associate Professor Department of Computational and Data Sciences George Mason University, Fairfax, Virginia
Igor Medintz U.S. Navy Senior Scientist for Biosensors and Biomaterials U.S. Naval Research Lab, Washington, D.C.
Jay Shah Education Coordinator, Medical Section Senior Staff Physiatrist Rehabilitation Medicine Department, Clinical Center NIH, Bethesda, Maryland
S. Abbas Shobeiri Professor and Vice Chair Gynecology Inova Women’s Hospital, Fairfax, Virginia Professor of Obstetrics & Gynecology, VCU Professor of Medical Education, UVA
John Cressman Associate Professor Physics and Astronomy College of Science George Mason University
Pilgyu Kang Assistant Professor Department of Mechanical Engineering George Mason University
University Affiliates
Sridevi Polavaram Senior Information Scientist The MITRE Corporation, McLean, Virginia
Darwin Reyes Project Leader Physical Measurements Lab National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) Gaithersburg, Maryland
Ruggero Scorcioni Vice President, Principal ML Engineer Factset
Our university affiliates are professors in other departments at George Mason University who supervise our students’ research and collaborate with our faculty on research projects.
Nelson Cortes Associate Professor Exercise, Fitness and Health Promotion College of Education and Human Development George Mason University
Lance Liotta Professor College of Science Co-Director, Applied Proteomics and Molecular Medicine George Mason University
Jeffrey Moran Assistant Professor Department of Mechanical Engineering George Mason University
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Mariaelena Pierobon Associate Professor, Applied Proteomics and Molecular Medicine School of Systems Biology George Mason University
Huzefa Rangwala Professor Department of Computer Science George Mason University
Padmanabhan Seshaiyer Professor, Mathematical Sciences College of Science Associate Dean for Academic Affairs College of Science George Mason University
Amarda Shehu Professor Department of Computer Science George Mason University
James Thompson Associate Professor Psychology George Mason University
Thomas A. Haag Managing Partner, Linden Lake Venture Capital Bethesda, Maryland
Patrick Vora Assistant Professor, Physics and Astronomy College of Science Director, Quantum Materials Center George Mason University
Christopher Juncosa Life Sciences Consultant Dalya Partners Haymarket, Virginia
Martin Wiener Assistant Professor, Psychology College of Humanities and Social Sciences George Mason University
Adjunct Faculty AY 2020-21 Our adjuncts are clinicians, industry experts, and consultants who teach highly specialized courses that prepare our students for their future careers.
John F. Deeken Inova Schar Cancer Institute, Senior Vice President, Professor of Medicine Inova Fairfax Hospital, Inova Health System, University of Virginia Fairfax, Virginia
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Caitlin Laurence Adjunct Faculty, Bioengineering
Fernando Mut Research Assistant Professor, Bioengineering
Mahesh B. Shenai Clinical Director of Inova Neurosurgery Director of Functional and Restorative Neurosurgery Inova Hospital Fairfax, Virginia
Bioengineering Alliance Supports Our Mission
S. Abbas Shobeiri Professor & Vice Chair, Gynecology Inova Women’s Hospital Professor of Obstetrics & Gynecology, Virginia Commonwealth University Professor of Medical Education, University of Virginia
Behnam Tehrani Co-Director, Cardiac Catheterization Laboratories, Inova Fairfax Medical Director, Coronary Care Unit, Inova Heart and Vascular Institute Co-Director, Cardiogenic Shock Program, Inova Heart and Vascular Institute Interventional Cardiologist, Inova Medical Group Falls Church, Virginia
Marinka Tellier Director of Regulatory Affairs NSF International Washington, D.C.
The Mason Bioengineering Alliance is a distinguished group of accomplished individuals from our biomedical and health sciences community. The alliance serves as the critical industry and institutional advisor to the department’s activities and programs. Members play a key role in advising and planning new courses in biomanufacturing, biomedical robotics, and digital health. They link our department to industry and commercialization by sponsoring workshops in university startups, financing, and intellectual property. The board is composed of 32 members:
Alliance Members AY 2020-21 Robert Caldwell President & CEO Strategic Health Solutions, LLC Washington, D.C. Charles Anamelechi Manager Deloitte Consulting, LLP Strategy & Operations Arlington, Virginia Vizma Carver Founder & CEO Carver Global Health Group LLC Jeff Arndt Senior System Engineering Centauri Corp Chantilly, Virginia Jeff Conroy CEO Embody Inc. Norfolk, Virginia
Randy Warren Lab Manager/Adjunct Faculty, Bioengineering Sean Yun Deputy Division Chief Federal Communications Commission Washington, D.C.
Peter Basser Senior Investigator, Intramural Research Program (IRP), NIH Head, Section on Quantitative Imaging and Tissue Sciences (SQITS), Associate Scientific Director (ASD), Division of Imaging, Behavior and Genomic Integrity (DIBGI), Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD) National Institutes of Health (NIH) Bethesda, Maryland
Krishna Balakrishnan Senior Technology Transfer Manager National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences (NCATS), NIH Rockville, Maryland
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Kevin Cleary Scientific Lead, The Sheikh Zayed Institute for Pediatric Surgical Innovation Children’s National Medical Center Washington, D.C.
John F. Deeken Inova Schar Cancer Institute, Senior Vice President, Professor of Medicine Inova Fairfax Hospital, Inova Health System, University of Virginia Fairfax, Virginia
Ross Dunlap CEO Ceres Nanosciences, Inc. Manassas, Virginia
Arthur L. Edge III Associate Director Global Technical Operations AstraZeneca
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Stanley Thomas Fricke Director of Medical Physics, Department of Radiology Georgetown University CEO, HyperMC2, LLC Washington, D.C.
Thomas Haag Managing Partner Linden Lake Venture Capital Bethesda, Maryland
David J. Hamilton Neuroscientist Intelligent Mission Consulting Services (IMCS)
Steve Hoang Head of Computational Biology Hemoshear Therapeutics Charlottesville, Virginia
Richard Hughen CEO Linshom Annapolis, Maryland
Praduman Jain Founder and CEO Vibrent Health Fairfax, Virginia
Erin O. Johnson Executive Director, Operations, Vaccines Expansion Merck Elkton, Virginia
Christopher Juncosa Life Sciences Consultant Dalya Partners Haymarket, Virginia
Neal Koller Chairman and CEO Alphyn Biologics, LLC Annapolis, Maryland
R. Prakash Kolli CEO and Founder Blue Point Materials Research, LLC
John Newby CEO VirginiaBio Richmond, Virginia
Nnamdi Nwachukwu Vice President, Regulatory Science & Quality Operations RRD International, LLC Rockville, Maryland
Todd Pantezzi Vice President, Federal Health Business Development Perspecta Chantilly, Virginia
Roland Probst Founder & Chief Innovation Officer ACUITYnano, LLC Rockville, Maryland
Steven Roberts Research Scientist Geneva Foundation/USUHS Rockville, Maryland
Mahesh B. Shenai Clinical Director of Inova Neurosurgery Director of Functional and Restorative Neurosurgery Inova Hospital Fairfax, Virginia
Eric Vollmecke Deputy Director, Rapid Prototyping Research Center George Mason Volgenau School of Engineering Fairfax, Virginina
Morgan Sisk Modeling & Simulation Engineer Science Applications International Corporation (SAIC) McLean, Virginia
Irving Weinberg President Weinberg Medical Physics, Inc. Rockville, Maryland
Michael Tarlov Chief, Biomolecular Measurement Division National Institute of Standards and Technology Gaithersburg, Maryland
Chris Wimmer Executive Vice President SPGlobal Chantilly, Virginia
Marinka Tellier Director of Regulatory Affairs NSF International Washington, D.C.
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VOLGENAU SCHOOL OF ENGINEERING DEPARTMENT OF BIOENGINEERING 2020 ANNUAL REPORT
years of innovation
© 2020 GEORGE MASON UNIVERSITY | 4400 UNIVERSITY DR, MS 1J7, FAIRFAX, VA 22030 | 703-993-1000
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