At the 2019 Annual Northeast Bioengineering Conference (NEBEC), held at Rutgers University on March 20-22, BME PhD student, Bryan Choate, won the 2nd Place Graduate Poster Award for his research with Professor Karen Troy on developing methods to validate a subject-specific magnetic resonance based finite element model to predict strain in the femur. Bryan enjoyed explaining his work on developing a safe technique for estimating bone strength in adolescents and ultimately contributing to research on osteoporosis prevention.

The Prof. Robert A. Peura Founder Scholarship in Biomedical Engineering provides recognition and reward to a junior or senior, majoring in BME at WPI, who, among other accomplishments, has achieved truly outstanding academic credentials. This year’s recipients are Sarah Boermeester ’21 and Jessica Brewster ’20. The BME Department thanks the Potvin and Peura Families for their generosity to endow these scholarships. 

With a three-year, $446,563 collaborative grant from the National Science Foundation, Kristen Billiar, professor and head of the Department of Biomedical Engineering at Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI), hopes to close an important gap in our understanding of physical factors that help regulate the life and death of cells in our bodies, and the important roles they play in the development of a wide range of disorders—from heart disease to cancer.

Take a look at one of the ways that tissue engineering is being applied in the BME department at WPI. Professor Rolle's lab is creating artificial human blood vessels to be used as a model for vessels affected by intimal hyperplasia, a complication of cardiovascular surgery. 

"The Salisbury Prizes are awarded to highly meritorious members of the WPI graduating class who have faithfully, industriously, and with distinguished attainment completed all requirements for the Bachelor degree." This year, there were 22 winners from the class of 2019. The BME department congratulates their three talented and accomplished winners, Shion Matsumoto, Olivia Leavitt and Rosanna Heidt (from left to right).