BME MONDAY ROUNDTABLE

February 21, 2022

HEAD MESSAGE

Dear Weldon School,

Graduate student recruiting visit is this upcoming Thursday through Saturday. Graduate student recruits are arriving on Thursday, Feb 24th and we have a number of exciting opportunities for your engagement. Thursday includes Science on Tap and BMEGSA Game Night. Friday includes a number of activities throughout the day that provide a deeper dive into the activities and opportunities in our school. The full schedule is attached!

One Faculty candidate this week! Please continue to participate in the faculty candidate seminars! We will have several candidates over the next 2-3 weeks. Area chairs- please remind your area to review the website and take notes for updates that are needed.

PROTECT PURDUE

Masks are still required in certain areas! Check for updates (as of Feb. 18^th)
https://protect.purdue.edu/required-covid-19-protocols/
Vaccines are strongly encouraged (though not required)
https://protect.purdue.edu/vaccine-information/
Updated guidance for research SOPs, etc. and Protect Purdue are coming quickly. Please make sure you are staying current with Purdue guidelines.

UPCOMING IMPORTANT DATES

Week of Feb. 21

Mon., Feb. 21 – Prospective BME Faculty Seminar: “Automated single-cell analyses of neurons in the living brain,” Craig Forest, Professor of Mechanical Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology, 9:30 a.m., MJIS 1083 and via Zoom, https://purdue-edu.zoom.us/j/94147441278?pwd=RXo4NEFhRkZOL1dkMnVnejZxaEg2QT09

Tues., Feb. 22 – Preclinical Innovation of Biomedical Translational Research: Indiana Clinical and Translational Science (CTSI) Virtual Retreat from 10AM - 3:30PM Eastern.

Wed., Feb. 23 – BME Distinguished Seminar Series, “Fibronectin, an endogenous ECM mechanosensory is a major orchestrator of stromal cell behaviors in tissue repair, fibrosis and regeneration,” Thonmas H. Barker, Professor of Biomedical Engineering and Cell Biology and Director, UVA Fibrosis Initiative, University of Virginia, 9:30 a.m., MJIS 1001 and via Zoom, https://purdue-edu.zoom.us/j/95150439811?pwd=a3hOK0o0bmpkS3poTVBCbVhDNU9FZz09

Wed., Feb. 23 – BME Bytes Seminar, 1:30 pm, Location: MJIS 1083. Presenter: Angel Enriquez. Open to all undergraduate and graduate researchers. Lunch will be provided.

Wed., Feb. 23 – Thurs., Feb. 24: Fourth Annual Conference for Associate Professors, sponsored by Susan Bulkeley Butler Center for Leadership Excellence, Purdue University (see below)

Thurs., Feb. 24 – Science on Tap: “Novel Neurotechnologies for Elucidating Brain Dynamics Across Scales,” Dr. Krishna Jayant, 6:00 p.m., Lafayette Brewing Company (622 Main Street, Lafayette) Open to ages 21+. “An informal conversation about science”

Thurs., Feb. 24 – Sat., Feb. 26: Graduate Admissions Open House visit—planning for hybrid (virtual and in-person) event

Upcoming important deadlines and info.

Mon., Feb. 28 – Deadline to submit a poster to the Graduate School’s Office of Interdisciplinary Graduate Programs (OIGP) for their annual Spring Reception honoring interdisciplinary graduate student research. Details below.

Mon., Feb. 28 – Deadline to register for Graduate Faculty Mentoring Workshop through the Graduate School. Details below.

Mon., Feb. 28 – BME PhD Defense announcement for Ravinderjit Singh (Hari Bharadwaj, advisor), 11:00 a.m., via Zoom: https://purdue-edu.zoom.us/j/98527554349?pwd=amdzWGxmS2U1ZzE0aWVMandOUkMzdz09 . Title: Auditory tracking and scene analysis - perceptual timescales and neural correlates.

Fri., Mar. 4: Coffee Chat with Faculty: 11:00 am-noon, Location TBD. Faculty host: Nan Kong. Potential discussion topics: academic job search, initiate multi-disciplinary research, make social impact with your research

Sun., Mar. 6 (midnight) – Nominations due for Excellence in Teaching Awards for BME and IBSC graduate students. Details below.

Mon., Mar. 7: ISP (Integrated Safety Plan) documentation, specifically ISP self-audit checklist, needs to be returned to Bill Schoenlein and/or Susan Hardy. This covers ALL BME labs and occupied space in MJIS and areas in other buildings assigned to BME faculty. See below for details.

Mon., Mar. 7: BME Preliminary Exam Announcement for Anastasiia Vasiukhina (L. Solorio, advisor), 1:00 p.m. via Microsoft Teams: https://teams.microsoft.com/l/meetup-join/19%3ameeting_Y2NkOTdmOGMtNjljZC00MjIzLTg0YjMtYTk0Mzc4NTI5NTJk%40thread.v2/0?context=%7b%22Tid%22%3a%224130bd39-7c53-419c-b1e5-8758d6d63f21%22%2c%22Oid%22%3a%223b20b828-cd1e-4e49-814f-ddbb6a766496%22%7d

Thesis Title: “Micro and nanoscale technologies for enhanced diagnostics and therapeutics”

Wed., March 9 – BME Bytes Seminar, 1:30 pm, Location TBD. Presenter: Antonia Susnjar. Open to all undergraduate and graduate researchers. Lunch will be provided.

Thurs., Mar. 10 - Coffee Chat with Faculty: 4:00 pm-5:00 pm, Location TBD. Faculty host: Elsje Pienaar. Potential discussion topics: time management, teaching and diversity statements, work/life balance; imposter syndrome

Tues., March 15 – MJIS air handling shutdown, beginning at 7:30 AM and lasting until approx. 3:00 PM for preventative maintenance of the building’s air systems. This includes air ventilation supplies to all public, classroom and research areas, including chemical fume hoods. There should be NO chemicals used anywhere! All chemical fume hood activity should terminate by 5 PM Monday Oct. 11^th. You must make sure all chemical containers are sealed at that time. Chemical fume hoods will have notices posted - do not resume activity until BME staff have verified that work is complete, and have removed postings.

Mon., March 21 – Deadline for proposals to Women’s Global Health Institute & the Catherine Peachey Fund. Request for proposals on Breast Cancer Research. Funds Available: $15,000.

Wed., March 23 – BME Bytes Seminar, 1:30 pm, Location TBD. Presenter: Luke Brennan. Open to all undergraduate and graduate researchers. Lunch will be provided.

Wed., March 30 – BME Bytes Seminar, 1:30 pm, Location TBD. Presenter: Mazin Hakim. Open to all undergraduate and graduate researchers. Lunch will be provided.

Wed., April 6 – BME Bytes Seminar, 1:30 pm, Location TBD. Presenter: Tommy Jenkins. Open to all undergraduate and graduate researchers. Lunch will be provided.

Fri., Apr. 8: Coffee Chat with Faculty: 11:00 am -12:00 pm, Location LYLE (Room TBM). Faculty hosts: Mike Heinz and Hari Bharadwaj. Potential discussion topics: writing grants (fellowships), talking to a lay audience, open science, academic job interviews/negotiating

Wed., April 20 – BME Bytes Seminar, 1:30 pm, Location TBD. Presenter: Apekshya Chhetri. Open to all undergraduate and graduate researchers. Lunch will be provided.

Thurs., April 28-Fri., Apr. 29: Vanderbilt University will be hosting the annual Vanderbilt Integrative Training Alliance (VITA) Symposium, a conference focused on biomedical sciences graduate students. Attendees have a unique opportunity to connect with the Vanderbilt community, obtain a long-term mentoring relationship with a Vanderbilt faculty member, and gain training in scientific communication. The event will also feature a keynote address from Vanderbilt postdoc alumna, Dr. Shaneda Anderson. This year the conference will be virtual. Details below.

Thurs., May 5: Coffee Chat with Faculty: 11:00 am -12:00 pm, Location LYLE (Room TBM). Faculty host: Alexandria Volkening. Potential discussion topics: website development, public science and outreach, social media, academic job materials (with an interdisciplinary perspective)

Upcoming prospective faculty seminars.

Mon., Feb. 21 – Craig Forest, 9:30 a.m., MJIS 1083 and via Zoom

Mon., Feb. 28 – Taimoor Qazi, 9:30 a.m., MJIS 2001 and via Zoom

Thurs., March 3 – Abhay Ramachandra, 9:30 a.m., MJIS 1001 and via Zoom

SPRING 2022 BME Faculty Meetings

All faculty meetings will begin at 11:30 a.m. in MJIS 2001

Fri., March 25

Fri., April 22

SPRING 2022 BME Primary Committee Meetings

Fri., April 15, 10:00-5:00, MJIS 2001 (LONG meeting!)

Committee Updates

Academic Programs

Global Engineering Programs & Partnerships is very fortunate to be connecting with several universities globally. We are currently seeking proposals for VIRTUAL short courses for this Summer 2022. Please fill this survey out if you are interested in giving a virtual course this summer. We have six weeks of courses to fill (6-12 courses depending on length) for a group of students at King Khalid University in Saudi Arabia. Students are year 3 or 4 undergrads and courses are given in English. Your participation is appreciated. Pay is $200.00/course hour--flat; placed in a discretionary fund for your use. Questions? Please contact Rhonda von Werder, PAGE Program Manager for Global Engineering: vonwerde@purdue.edu Here is the link to the Short Course Submission Survey.

Student Background: Year 3 or 4 students from Saudi Arabia in various engineering disciplines. King Khalid University

Short Courses Needed: Stand-alone courses with no pre-requisite knowledge: Can be a topic of a course semester, for instance. May include Python (beginning) and MATLAB (beginning). 10-15 hours of instruction per week

Pay for Faculty: $200.00/course hour. Paid at the completion of their summer training (early August). Deposited into a discretionary fund at the quoted flat rate

Why Participate? Connect with global students and universities. Identify potential graduate students. Test out new material virtually. Receive extra pay in the summer 😊. Contribute to your CV. Represent the best of the CoE. The students are really fun and extremely motivated!

If you have any questions or concerns, please feel free to reach out.

Graduate Admissions (****TIME SENSITIVE****):

Recruiting season is upon us. Please be proactive about talking to candidates to build rapport and to increase our recruiting pool.
We will be hosting Science on Tap on Feb. 24^th, 6:00 p.m. at Lafayette Brewing Company as part of our recruitment event. Krishna Jayant will speak on “Novel Neurotechnologies for Elucidating Brain Dynamics Across Scales.” Open to ages 21+

Graduate Programs – update

The Graduate School will be hosting two Graduate Faculty Mentoring Workshops in West Lafayette this spring. The first will be on Wednesday, March 9, 2022 from 9:00 a.m. to 11:30 a.m.; and the second will be on Thursday, March 10, 2022 from 9:00 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. Both workshops will be held at the Stewart Center in Room 202 unless we have to move to virtual.

The workshop provides an overview to the policies, procedures and expectations associated with mentoring graduate students at Purdue University. Participation in the workshop is required for any faculty member who wishes to seek appointment to the Graduate Faculty at Purdue University.

Historically it has been the practice of the Graduate School to require faculty new to Purdue to attend a Graduate Faculty Mentoring Workshop before they could obtain graduate faculty status. While a practice, it is not “policy” so we will not hold up faculty appointments due to logistics of when the workshops are offered. This does not negate the request for faculty new to Purdue to attend one of the new faculty workshops, but it does mean the Graduate School will not hold an appointment request based on workshop completion.

In addition to attending one of these two workshops, faculty who wish to hold a position as a regular member of the Graduate Faculty must also be recommended by their unit and be a tenure-track or voting status faculty member. This process must be initiated in the Graduate School Database, and is typically done by the department graduate contact. Appointment to the graduate faculty permits a faculty member to teach graduate-level courses, to serve on graduate student advisory committees, and to chair or co-chair master’s and Ph.D. committees. The level of appointment is dependent upon the faculty member’s position, rank and credentials.

Graduate coordinators and contacts - Please provide faculty members the instructions below to register online. I will also still accept email registrations if there are any complications but my preference would be to direct them to use the electronic system. It is very important that participants arrive on time and do not leave early. Missing part of the presentation could cause their attendance to not count toward fulfilling the requirement needed to advise students or become a regular faculty member. Please make sure that he registering faculty members are aware of this.

To register for one of the workshops, please go to the following link and complete the Qualtrics survey GradFacultyWkshp2022 or copy and paste the following link into your browser: https://purdue.ca1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_3lPEgXEbrU2Aej4

Deadline for registration is Monday, February 28, 2022. Additional workshops (including workshops on regional campuses) will not be held until September 2022.

If you have any additional questions, please do not hesitate to contact me

Casey Hollingsworth
Executive Assistant to the Dean | The Purdue University Graduate School

She/her/hers

Young Hall, Room 169 | 155 S. Grant Street | West Lafayette, IN 47907

o: 765-494-2604 | chollingsworth@purdue.edu

Three Minute Thesis (3MT) Competition

It is officially Three Minute Thesis (3MT) competition season! This year, the Graduate School’s annual Three Minute Thesis (3MT) competition will be hosted in-person on April 12 in the Loeb Theater.

To increase academic representation in our 3MT competition, we are asking that West Lafayette graduate faculty members nominate talented graduate student(s) to represent their academic units in this year’s 3MT competition. Nominees must be current Purdue graduate students studying at the West Lafayette campus.

Nominees will be contacted by Graduate School staff and encouraged to register for the competition. I have shared the link to the nomination form below, as well as some additional information about the Graduate School’s 3MT competition. Please email me, Allison Loy (Loy2@purdue.edu), with any questions!

Virtual 3MT 2022 Nomination Form: https://purdue.ca1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_1G2Q9X0VcWgBuzc

What is 3MT?

Three Minute Thesis (3MT®) is a research communication competition that helps graduate students develop academic, presentation, and research communication skills so that they can effectively explain their research to a non-specialist audience. During each competition, graduate students will have three minutes to present a compelling discussion on their research topic, including its significance and relevance, to the general public. This is a fast-paced competition where the top 10 finalists compete by summarizing their two to three-plus years of research in only three minutes with only one slide.

There are three cash awards for this competition, including $2,000 for first-place, $1,000 for second place, and $1,000 for the People’s Choice Award winner. The first-place winner will also be invited to compete in the Midwestern Association of Graduate School’s (MAGS) annual 3MT competition.

Learn more about Purdue University Graduate School’s 3MT competition here: https://www.purdue.edu/gradschool/professional-development/competitions/3mt/index.php

Undergraduate Curriculum Committee Update

In Spring 2022, the UCC will continue working on introducing BME pathways. The UCC will request each Research Area to present the corresponding Pathway to sophomore students in the next month. This will help the students to decide on their area of specialization. The presentation should clarify the knowledge and skills the students would gain as well as the future career opportunities for each BME Pathway. The UCC will also work on developing the Engineering Design courses for the re-structured undergraduate program, including the Junior and Senior Design and professional development courses. The committee will create a task force for collecting benchmark data on curriculum redesign for the future ABET accreditation. Also, the UCC will work on increasing our offering of honors courses or honors sections within courses.

DEI Committee Update

February is Black History Month

2022 National Theme is Black Health and Wellness. Purdue's celebrations of Black excellence this month can be found at: https://lifeat.purdue.edu/black-history-month/

Office of Diversity, Inclusion and Belonging will host the 2022 Maximizing Student Potential conference “Belonging — A Virtual Gathering for Exploring, Reflecting, and Acting" (virtual) from noon to 5 p.m. Feb. 23. Conference registration is free and open to all faculty, staff and students throughout the Purdue system.

Purdue BMEs have a strong presence in the Purdue Chapter of National Society of Black Engineers (NSBE) with Junior Kyndall Davis (Treasurer), Sophomore Mozen Mertami (Programs Chair), Lindsey Momo (Parliamentarian), and recent BME grad Zafe Udegbe (Membership Chair) all taking on leadership positions in NSBE.

Remaining Graduate Peer Mentoring meeting days are: 11-1pm on March 11th, April 8th, May 13th

The next in the NIH Series RAISING A RESILIENT SCIENTIST for faculty and administrators who mentor students and postdoctoral fellows will be Mar 1^st from 12:00–1:15 pm

NIH Grant Supplements to Recognize Excellence in Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility (DEIA) Mentorship are available for up to $250,000 and grants are due April 8th

Faculty are encouraged to respond to the COACHE Survey email (subject: Help Purdue assess the academic workplace, from: coachefaculty@abtsurvey.com) a confidential assessment to inform priorities for university change.

Staff Appreciation Day is March 4th. Be on the lookout for appreciation lunch date and recognition.

Winter Warming Station Meal Sign up Lafayette Urban Ministry (LUM) – Meals are needed each day Nov 15 through Apr 15.

Resources, attachments, further information

BME Prospective Faculty Seminar - Monday, February 21, 9:30-10:20am, MJIS 1083 or Via Zoom: https://purdue-edu.zoom.us/j/94147441278?pwd=RXo4NEFhRkZOL1dkMnVnejZxaEg2QT09 “Automated signgle-cell analyses of neurons in the living brain,” presented by Craig Forest, PhD, Professor of Mechanical Engineering, George W. Woodruff School of Mechanical Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology.

Abstract: Whole-cell patch clamp electrophysiology enables the recording of electrical events in cells with great precision and supports a wide diversity of cellular morphological and molecular analysis experiments. However, high levels of skill are required in order to perform patching clamping, especially in the living brain, and the process is time-consuming and painstaking. Automated patching robots would not only empower a great number of neuroscientists to perform such experiments, but also open up fundamentally new kinds of experiments enabled by the resultant high throughput. In the past decade, in collaboration with Ed Boyden’s lab, we discovered that in vivo blind whole cell patch clamp electrophysiology could be implemented as a straightforward algorithm, and developed an automated robotic system capable of performing this algorithm. Our robot achieves yields, cell recording qualities, and operational speeds that are comparable to, or exceed, those of experienced human investigators, and is simple and inexpensive to implement. We have extended this technology in many directions, including include coupling patch clamping to optogenetics, pharmacology, brain organoids, automatically recording multiple neurons simultaneously and serially, and patch clamping deep structures including mouse thalamus and brain stem.

Bio: Craig Forest is a Professor and Woodruff Faculty Fellow in the George W. Woodruff School of Mechanical Engineering at Georgia Tech where he also holds program faculty positions in Bioengineering and Biomedical Engineering. He conducts research on miniaturized, high-throughput robotic instrumentation to advance neuroscience and genetic science. Prior to Georgia Tech, he was a research fellow in Genetics at Harvard Medical School. He obtained a Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering from MIT in June 2007, M.S. in Mechanical Engineering from MIT in 2003, and B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from Georgia Tech in 2001. He is cofounder/organizer of one of the largest undergraduate invention competitions in the US—The InVenture Prize, and founder/organizer of one of the largest student-run makerspaces in the US—The Invention Studio. He was a Fellow in residence at the Allen Institute for Brain Science in Seattle WA; He was named Engineer of the Year in Education for the state of Georgia and was a finalist on the ABC reality TV show "American Inventor.”

~BME Host: Hugh Lee~

BME PhD Defense Announcement for Hannah Cebull (C. Goergen, advisor)

Everyone is invited to attend the public presentation beginning at 3:00PM ET.

Title: Noninvasive biomechanical characterization of the aorta

Date: February 21, 2022

Time: 3:00 PM ET

Location: MJIS 2001 and Zoom – link below*

Advisory Committee: Craig Goergen, Chair; Luis Solorio; Vitaliy Rayz; Ntobeko Ntusi

Abstract: The aorta has many complex features including valve and vessel wall geometry, blood flow, and wall composition. Diseases such as aortic aneurysms and aortic valve lesions affect vessel function and may even lead to rupture, which can be fatal. However, current clinical diagnoses of aortopathies mainly rely on simple parameters such as diameter and growth rate. To better understand aortopathies and ultimately provide better patient diagnoses and treatments, it is important to investigate disease progression as well as the effect of vessel wall composition changes and hemodynamic forces on aortic biomechanics, such as strain and wall shear stress distribution. Preclinical research using small animals allows for disease progression to be studied while controlling outside factors. The next important step is to apply the methods used in the preclinical studies to human patient data. Both preclinical and clinical studies often focus on noninvasive, patient-specific methods for further characterizing the biomechanics of the aorta using advanced techniques such as 4D flow magnetic resonance imaging, 4D ultrasound, computational fluid dynamics (CFD), and fluid structure interaction (FSI) modeling. Yet the challenge of bridging these research techniques to a clinical setting remains. Factors such as financial costs, acquisition time, and ease of analysis must be considered. Therefore, the following document highlights two specific aims to extend our knowledge about the effects of aneurysms and aortic valve lesions. We will 1) characterize the regional effects of murine abdominal aortic aneurysms on strain over time, and 2) use CFD and FSI to simulate the hemodynamic effects on the thoracic aorta using both murine and human patient imaging data. Conducting research using clinically translatable methods of biomechanical characterization that consider the complexity of the aorta on a patient-specific basis will contribute to our understanding and lead to better patient outcomes.

*Join Zoom Meeting

https://purdue-edu.zoom.us/j/95658148163?pwd=djlCN1BaN1MyZzdLeTdNS0hHMDZMUT09

Meeting ID: 956 5814 8163

Passcode: 539840

One tap mobile

+13126266799,,95658148163#,,,,*539840# US (Chicago)

+16465588656,,95658148163#,,,,*539840# US (New York)

Find your local number: https://purdue-edu.zoom.us/u/adoKmAYkr3

Preclinical Innovation of Biomedical Translational Research: Indiana Clinical and Translational Science (CTSI) Virtual Retreat

Please join us for the Indiana Clinical and Translational Science (CTSI) Virtual Retreat hosted by Purdue University on Tuesday, February 22, 2022 from 10AM - 3:30PM Eastern.

REGISTER HERE

A keynote address will be given by Dr. Christopher Austin, CEO Partner of Flagship Pioneering and previous founding Director of the National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences (NCATS).

The agenda includes:

Introduction from Indiana CTSI
Keynote speaker: Dr. Christopher Austin
Virtual Poster Session
Discussion Panels, including:

Novel technologies and capabilities at the CTSI institutions
Imaging techniques supporting many preclinical studies
Innovative preclinical animal models
Best practices for industry-academia collaboration in preclinical studies

Partners of Indiana CTSI are Purdue University, Indiana University and the University of Notre Dame.

CALL FOR POSTERS: https://engineering.purdue.edu/BME/AboutUs/News/2022/call-for-posters-indiana-ctsi-retreat-at-purdue

BME Distinguished Seminar Series, Wed., Feb. 23 – “Fibronectin, an endogenous ECM mechanosensory is a major orchestrator of stromal cell behaviors in tissue repair, fibrosis and regeneration,” Thomas H. Barker, Professor of Biomedical Engineering and Cell Biology and Director, UVA Fibrosis Initiative, University of Virginia, 9:30 a.m., MJIS 1001 and via Zoom, https://purdue-edu.zoom.us/j/95150439811?pwd=a3hOK0o0bmpkS3poTVBCbVhDNU9FZz09

Note: Presentation will be virtual, but students enrolled in BME 690 are expected to attend in person.

Abstract: The Extracellular Matrix (ECM) is not only a physical scaffold that supports multi-cellular organization and tissue function but it is also a potent cellular signaling framework. ECM proteins directly interact with cellular receptors including integrins and syndecans to drive classical biochemical signaling. They also bind and present growth factors to cells for canonical receptor tyrosine kinase signaling; regulating their availability, presentation and signaling persistence. Because of its structural/physical nature, the ECM also presents biophysical signatures that can be interpreted by cellular receptors and converted into intracellular signals, so-called mechanotransduction. The diversity of the ECM enables this structure to both take on a wide diversity of forms and to drive a wide diversity of cellular programs from tissue homeostasis and “quiescence” to tissue development and remodeling. In this seminar, I will highlight the ECM protein fibronectin. This provisional ECM protein emerges early in development and tissue repair programs and acts as a complex orchestrator of diverse signals and diverse cell populations with a key function being the formation of tissue. Fibronectin serves as a template for mature collagen deposition and thus play a pivotal role in tissue repair and remodeling. These functions also highly implicate fibronectin in the initiation and progression many diseases from rheumatoid arthritis to cancer and fibrosis. Fibronectin is itself a mechanotransductory molecule and, without external aid, can directly translate biophysical forces into unique biochemical signatures that significantly impact cell behaviors and gene expression programs. I will highlight three new insights into this complex molecule and its ability to direct tissue fate: 1) fibronectin’s “integrin switch”, 2) posttranslational modifications that add an additional layer of information, and 3) fibronectin’s unique means of mechanical memory.

Bio: Dr. Barker is a Professor of Biomedical Engineering and Cell Biology at the University of Virginia and the Director of the UVA Fibrosis Initiative. Dr. Barker received his Bachelor of Science in Chemistry and Physics in 1995 and his PhD in Biomedical Engineering in 2003. Dr. Barker’s research activities center cell-extracellular matrix biology, mechanobiology, and biotechnology focused primarily on fibroblast-ECM interactions that drive tissue repair, regeneration, and fibrosis. His research integrates engineering applications and basic cell and molecular biology approaches to understand and control cell phenotype through cell engineering/synthetic biology and ECM engineering.

~BME Faculty Host: Dr. Luis Solorio ~

BME Bytes Seminar, February 23, 1:30 p.m. in MJIS1083. Angel Enriquez (advised by Dr. Hugh Lee) will speak on “Magnetic actuators for smart functionality in biomedical devices.” Magnetism provides numerous advantages to actuating systems, specifically for biomedical applications. The untethered transfer of energy and scalability of magnetic actuators enables functionality to an otherwise passive system. For example, wireless magnetic actuation can turn static 2D and 3D cell cultures into a more physiologically-relevant dynamic environment while limiting contamination. Moreover, indwelling catheters are typically stationary devices that are notorious for their short lifespan when implanting into the body due to immune responses. Magnetic microactuators may be used for wireless actuation for in situ removal of biological materials accumulated on chronically implanted devices. In this presentation, I will demonstrate examples of novel biomedical microdevices enabled by magnetic actuation for added functional benefits.

About BME Bytes: BME Bytes is designed to help introduce undergraduate Purdue students to the breakthrough research happening at the Weldon School as well as help graduate students develop their professional portfolio by giving invited talks.

Seminar for Neurotrauma and Diseases

Join the Center for Paralysis Research as we host the Spring 2022 installment of the Seminar for Neurotrauma and Diseases, sponsored by Plexon Neurotechnology Systems! Remaining seminars this semester are on February 23, March 9, March 23, April 6, and April 20, all from 4:00 PM-5:00 PM EST on Zoom.

This neurotrauma-focused seminar will host speakers from Purdue, Harvard, and Carnegie Mellon universities. Distinguished experts in their respective fields will present on a variety of neurobiology- and SCI/TBI-related topics, sharing their unique focuses and cutting-edge research. Individual announcements, including abstracts and other presentation information, will be coming shortly, so keep an eye out for those!

View the seminar live at https://bit.ly/3tDZOfm. Some seminars will be recorded, so if you can’t make the live event, make sure to check out our website for the latest updates.

Fourth Annual Conference for Associate Professors set for Feb. 23-24

The Susan Bulkeley Butler Center for Leadership Excellence in collaboration with the Office of the Provost will hold the Fourth Annual Conference for Associate Professors on Feb. 23-24 in Purdue Memorial Union. The conference is titled "Charting Your Path to Promotion." The conference will include a keynote address and two panel sessions. Over the course of the conference, attendees will have opportunities to network, share information and learn from others in ways that will enable associate professors, particularly women associate, to accelerate their progression to full professor. The panel sessions comprise speakers from within and outside Purdue. Although this conference targets associate professors, the strategies and insights offered by the keynote speaker and the panelists will be useful for all faculty members.

Conference details include:

o Keynote address: Elizabeth Field Hendry, provost and senior vice president for academic affairs, Queens College, CUNY.

o Panel session 1: "Managing Time: Service, Teaching, Mentoring, and Research."

o Panel session 2: “Promotion to Full Professor.”

The conference is free for Purdue faculty, who must email butlercenter@purdue.edu for the code before registering. Faculty from outside Purdue will pay a registration fee. Registration will open in about two weeks. More information, including the conference schedule, keynote and panel sessions, is available on the conference webpage.

Mon., Feb. 28 – BME PhD Defense announcement for Ravinderjit Singh (Hari Bharadwaj, advisor), 11:00 a.m., via Zoom: https://purdue-edu.zoom.us/j/98527554349?pwd=amdzWGxmS2U1ZzE0aWVMandOUkMzdz09 . Title: Auditory tracking and scene analysis - perceptual timescales and neural correlates.

Advisory committee: Hari M. Bharadwaj, Chair; Edward L. Bartlett; Gregory S. Francis; Michael G. Heinz

Abstract: Temporal processing and temporal coherence processing are fundamental components of auditory processing and the focus of the work in this thesis. Cortical temporal processing in particular is understudied in humans. This dissertation makes three contributions that help characterize auditory temporal processing, and its relationship to auditory perception in humans. Experiment 1 develops a novel systems identification approach utilizing modified maximum length sequences (m-seq) to robustly measure cortical temporal processing noninvasively. Using this technique, it is found that cortex's ability to track dynamic spatial auditory cues can explain ability to utilize dynamic binaural information to do a spatial unmasking task. This result combined with behavioral data demonstrating FM tracking extends out to similar rates as spatial tracking demonstrates how auditory tracking broadly is constrained by the temporal properties of late areas of cortex. Experiment 2 develops a novel measure of temporal processing, called the modulation temporal response function (mod-TRF), which can separate the underlying sources contributing to modulation processing along the auditory system from short, middle, and late latency regions. The mod-TRF has a robust SNR at the individual level giving it the potential to become an ubiquitous tool to assess temporal processing and auditory activity generally across individuals. The utility of the mod-TRF is demonstrated by evaluating how attention affects different sources along the auditory pathway differently. Other studies utilizing the mod-TRF could explore how temporal processing in early and late areas of the auditory system changes with aging, hearing loss, musicianship, and neuropsychiatric disorders. Experiment 3 establishes a novel physiological measure of across channel temporal coherence processing to measure auditory binding ability across individuals. It is demonstrated how this novel temporal coherence measure can explain performance at a behavioral temporal coherence detection task, speech-in-noise task, and comodulation masking release. Lastly, it is explored how social and communicative features in individuals, measured via the Autism Quotient, align with differences in auditory ability at various tasks.

Zoom Info: Ravinderjit Singh is inviting you to a scheduled Zoom meeting.

Topic: Ravinderjit Singh's Thesis Defense

Time: Feb 28, 2022 11:00 AM Eastern Time (US and Canada)

Join Zoom Meeting

https://purdue-edu.zoom.us/j/98527554349?pwd=amdzWGxmS2U1ZzE0aWVMandOUkMzdz09

Meeting ID: 985 2755 4349

Passcode: 381616

Please plan on joining The Graduate School’s Office of Interdisciplinary Graduate Programs (OIGP) for our annual Spring Reception in celebration of interdisciplinary graduate student research on Wednesday, May 4, 2022 from 10:00 AM to 12:00 PM in the Purdue Memorial Union North and South Ballrooms. Please consider submitting a presentation and applying for the Most Outstanding Interdisciplinary Project Award (MOIPA—winner receives $1000). Poster and Award Submission Deadline: Monday, February 28, 2022. Details can be found at the links below:

Raising A Resilient Scientist Workshop Series

(Message from Sharon Milgram, Director, NIH Office of Intramural Training & Education): Over the last year I have interacted with many trainees across the U.S. as part of the NIH Becoming a Resilient Scientist series. After carefully considering input from students, postdocs, faculty and program administrators who participated in the program, I have decided to offer a series, RAISING A RESILIENT SCIENTIST, for faculty and administrators who mentor students and postdoctoral fellows in the biomedical, behavioral, and social sciences. The goal of the Raising a Resilient Scientist series is to promote the mental health and well-being of the academic research community by supporting faculty and administrators to develop self-management, relationship-management, and mentoring skills. A variety of topics will be covered with a specific focus on communication and shared problem-solving to help trainees deal with the inevitable setbacks experienced in high knowledge environments. There will be five units in the series; each unit will consist of a 75-minute lecture, which can be watched in real-time or asynchronously, followed by a 1-hour facilitated discussion with peers. There will be two opportunities for participation in the small groups following each webinar. There is no charge for participation, but advanced registration is required. For more information, and to register, please visit our webpage. I do not anticipate offering this series again in the future; participation in the entire series is recommended but is not required. Please do not hesitate to email me if you have any questions. Current scheduled workshop dates are March 1, March 29, April 26 and May 24.

Excellence in Teaching Awards DUE: March 6^th (Midnight): We are seeking nominations for the Excellence in Teaching Awards for BME and IBSc students. The award, which is considered the highest honor given to Purdue teaching assistants, is accompanied by a $1000 prize. Please send your nominations to tsiemers@purdue.edu by the deadline.

Eligibility Requirements:

Applicants must be registered as full-time graduate students (enrolled for eight credits or more) during the Spring 2022 semester.
Applicants must have served as a Graduate Teaching Assistant for at least two sessions during their Purdue graduate program.

Application Requirements:

Please address the following items, in the order listed below, in the application. While you are not limited to the items listed, any additional information is subject to the four (4) page limit.

Application: Please limit the application to four (4) pages, 12 pt. Times Roman, 1.5-line spacing.

Evidence/Examples of Excellence in Teaching (including, but not limited to)
Statement of Teaching Philosophy
Courses Taught and Number of Students (if known)
Course Responsibilities
Instructional Materials Developed (for example, laboratory exercises, online guides, etc.)
Student Evaluations/Comments (Cindy Holderbaum can provide these if needed cholderb@purdue.edu)

Evidence/Examples of Excellence in Student/Colleague Mentoring
Professional Development and Engagement/Service Activities Focused on Teaching (including, but not limited to)

Professional Development Events (facilitated or participated in on or off campus)
Publications and Presentations
Engagement Activities at the Professional, University, and Community Level

List of Awards and Honors

Integrated Safety Plan Self-Audit Checklist due to Bill Schoenlein and/or Susan Hardy, Mon., Mar. 7.

BME Faculty and Faculty with labs in MJIS: It is again time for us to complete our ISP (Integrated Safety Plan) documentation for REM. It covers all BME labs and occupied space in MJIS. We also need to cover areas in other buildings assigned to BME Faculty. Most of the forms can be completed by anyone who regularly works in your lab but the documents must be signed by the PI. If you are new to this process or need help in any way, please contact Susan Hardy or me, we are glad to help.

The ISP program. when successfully completed, provides Weldon School and the investigators protection from fines which may be incurred for safety violations. To obtain recertification, we need 100% participation. https://www.purdue.edu/ehps/rem/isp/index.html

Please start with item 1, The ISP self-audit checklist these need to be returned to Susan or me by Monday, March 7. Remaining items should be completed by Monday, March 14. This schedule will allow us to arrange the walkthrough (inspection of facilities and documentation) for early December. Susan and I will be glad to help you complete the process and answer questions to make it as painless as possible.

1) Every lab or occupied space must complete an ISP (Integrated Safety Plan) self-audit checklist.

https://www.purdue.edu/ehps/rem/documents/forms/ispcheck.pdf

The check list must be completed by someone who regularly works in the lab and it must be signed by the PI within the last six months. The purpose is to find problems so we can help you with corrections. Please complete this step as soon as possible; we need to have these reviewed by REM before we can schedule our final walk through later in March.

2) Please check the emergency contacts list, update if needed and post at each lab entrance. Template: https://www.purdue.edu/ehps/rem/documents/forms/doorpost.pdf

3) Update the hazard assessment, sign and date by the PI, then post it in an obvious place. If there are no changes, the old one may be signed again and re-dated. Several formats are acceptable.

https://www.purdue.edu/ehps/rem/documents/forms/HazAsTmp.doc

This template should be edited to reflect the actual hazards and practices of your lab. (delete the sections that do not apply)

4) Complete and document current annual PPE (Personal Protective Equipment) training. https://www.purdue.edu/ehps/rem/documents/forms/CertT.pdf

This brief review is typically done in lab meetings; be sure undergrads working in the lab are included. Attendance record form should be signed by everyone in attendance. All of the research labs in MJIS are covered by the Purdue Chemical Hygiene Plan. The hazard assessment and PPE requirements are best described in the CHP document, starting on Pg. 61.

https://www.purdue.edu/ehps/rem/documents/programs/chp2014.pdf

Thank you,

Bill Schoenlein

BME Preliminary Exam Announcement for Anastasiia Vasiukhina (L. Solorio, advisor), Mon., Mar. 7, 1:00 p.m. via Microsoft Teams: https://teams.microsoft.com/l/meetup-join/19%3ameeting_Y2NkOTdmOGMtNjljZC00MjIzLTg0YjMtYTk0Mzc4NTI5NTJk%40thread.v2/0?context=%7b%22Tid%22%3a%224130bd39-7c53-419c-b1e5-8758d6d63f21%22%2c%22Oid%22%3a%223b20b828-cd1e-4e49-814f-ddbb6a766496%22%7d

Thesis Title: “Micro and nanoscale technologies for enhanced diagnostics and therapeutics”

Advisory Committee: Luis Solorio, Chair; Craig J. Goergen; David J. Cappelleri; Yoon Yeo

Abstract: “Miniaturization of technologies to micro and nanoscale offers numerous advantages for diagnostic and therapeutic applications. When compared to their macroscale counterparts, micro and nanosystems are more portable, less invasive and less costly. These systems can facilitate rapid, sensitive and high throughput detection of abnormalities, help track disease progression, reduce sample consumption and improve therapeutic efficacy of drug delivery while decreasing toxicity. Thus, there is clearly a critical need to create innovative micro and nanoscale tools that can open up new possibilities in detection and treatment of diseases. The overall objective of this work is to develop novel natural and synthetic polymer-based micro and nanotechnologies that could help enhance diagnostic and therapeutic patient outcomes. First, we developed a stable and echogenic nanoparticle ultrasound contrast agent for potential applications in diagnostic extravascular tumor imaging and targeted therapies. Then, we created a polymer blend microparticle-based abuse-deterrent formulation to deter smoking of common prescription opioids. Our next step is to design a tumbling magnetic microrobot system with diagnostic capabilities for applications in cancer precision diagnostics.”

Virtual Judges needed for the 2022 Lafayette Regional Science and Engineering Fair, March 9-21

Hello! Would you be willing to act as a virtual judge at the 2022 Lafayette Regional Science and Engineering Fair? If you are receiving this message, it means you are eligible to volunteer as a judge in the 2022 Lafayette Regional Science and Engineering Fair in March 2022. This year, we have over 200 young experimentalists (5-12 graders) eagerly awaiting a chance to share their projects with you. The fair is only a few weeks away, so right now they are working hard on their projects. Students are going the extra mile this year to prepare virtual presentations, and having many judges from a variety of disciplines helps us award prizes most fairly to deserving projects. That’s where you come in.

Students will be submitting their work in a brief, 7-10 slide powerpoint, along with a 30 second introduction and optional narration. If you sign up to judge you will be assigned about 10 projects to score, which should take 2-3 hours at most, and will need to submit feedback through a google form. Judging will occur in two sets based on age group, and you may participate in either one or both sets according to your availability. The judging materials are made available on the morning of the first day, and we ask that you submit your responses by midnight on the final day. The dates for judging rounds are as follows: Senior (grades 9-12): March 9-18; Junior (grades 5-8): March 9-21

If you are able to judge, please sign up using the link below. You will receive an email closer to the time of the fair with your category assignment and detailed instructions.

Sign-up link: https://forms.gle/C8DKTpMFPd7cZuuU8

Feel free to email me at lrsef2022@gmail.com with any specific questions or concerns not covered in the survey. Thank you so much for your help, and we hope to hear from you!

Best Regards,

Vicki Bower (lrsef2022@gmail.com), 2022 Judge Coordinator and Dr. Cynthia Stauffacher, 2022 Director

WOMEN’S GLOBAL HEALTH INSTITUTE & THE CATHERINE PEACHEY FUND Request for Proposals on Breast Cancer Research

Proposal Deadline: March 21, 2022

Funds Available: $15,000

The Purdue Women’s Global Health Institute (WGHI) together with the Catherine Peachey Fund are pleased to announce a request for proposals of outstanding scientific merit for research focused on breast cancer. Proposals from a variety of disciplines, proposals addressing prevention and early detection, or proposals having potential collaborations with clinicians or other collaborations outside Purdue are welcome. The funded project is expected to gather preliminary data to submit competitive applications to external funding agencies, or to seek support from an outside organization (e.g. companies, foundations, etc.) for continuation of the research.

Funding: The research team may request up to $15,000.

Eligibility: The PIs must be tenured/tenure-track, research, or clinical faculty at or above the assistant professor rank on the West Lafayette campus of Purdue University.

Please see the attached for details. Thank you.

Vanderbilt Integrative Training Alliance (VITA) Symposium, April 28-29: On April 28-29^th, Vanderbilt University will be hosting the annual Vanderbilt Integrative Training Alliance (VITA) Symposium, a conference focused on biomedical sciences graduate students. Attendees have a unique opportunity to connect with the Vanderbilt community, obtain a long-term mentoring relationship with a Vanderbilt faculty member, and gain training in scientific communication. The event will also feature a keynote address from Vanderbilt postdoc alumna, Dr. Shaneda Anderson. This year the conference will be virtual. The complete two day schedule can be found here. While the symposium is open to all, we particularly encourage individuals from backgrounds underrepresented in academia to apply, including but not limited to those who identify as Black, African-American, Latino, Hispanic, Native American, or Pacific Islander, those who have a disability, first generation college-goers, those from disadvantaged socio-economic backgrounds, and those underrepresented on the basis of gender identity or expression or sexual orientation. I am hoping that we will have representation from every Big 10 school (University of Illinois, Indiana University, University of Iowa, University of Maryland, University of Michigan, Michigan State University, University of Minnesota, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, Northwestern University, Ohio State University, Pennsylvania State University, Purdue University, Rutgers University-New Brunswick, and the University of Wisconsin-Madison). Do you know of any students who would be interested in applying? If so, please respond to antentor.o.hinton.jr@Vanderbilt.Edu with their name and email and a member of our team will reach out.