April 2026 - Embrio-list - ecn.purdue.edu

Registration is Open! EMBRIO Advancing Morphogenetic Biosciences & Bioengineering Symposium + Workshops
by Brent Thomas Ladd 30 Apr '26

30 Apr '26

[cid:7de27ec6-cd3e-42b8-aef1-41ee5d070951] EMBRIO Members, 👉Registration link, draft schedule, and details are available for our summer workshops and joint symposium - early registration is encouraged through May 18th: https://www.purdue.edu/research/embrio/research/jointsymposium.php Note: additional speakers and final schedule will be announced soon. [cid:a6d300d5-fca2-4df9-a572-58762c112cfb]<https://www.purdue.edu/research/embrio/research/jointsymposium.php> Brent T. Ladd, Senior Research Program Manager, EMBRIO Institute<https://www.purdue.edu/research/embrio/> Weldon School of Biomedical Engineering, Purdue University Office: Hall for Discovery Learning and Research, Ste. 203 207 S. Martin Jischke Drive West Lafayette, IN 47907 laddb(a)purdue.edu

1 0

Upcoming Events + New Publications
by Brent Thomas Ladd 21 Apr '26

21 Apr '26

[cid:9b95e19f-46ea-47b2-8bad-38318bde808e] Dear EMBRIOnic People, Thanks to the Zartman Lab members and Magana Lab members for presenting research updates yesterday. You can access the videos and associated meeting documents on our shared Box account in the All-Hands Meeting Recordings folder<https://nam04.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fapp.box.c…>. We will be back on May 18th for research presentations from Thrust 4 with the Gardner Lab, and Thrust 1 with the Kinzer-Ursem Lab + Evans Lab. EMBRIO JOINT SYMPOSIUM + WORKSHOPS The website for our summer events Advancing Morphogenetic Biosciences & Bioengineering Symposium + Workshops<https://www.purdue.edu/research/embrio/research/jointsymposium.php> is now live. Please continue to hold your week of June 22nd - schedules, speakers, registration, travel, and lodging details will be available very soon. * Symposium on June 25th * Mini-workshops June 22nd: * AI Applications for Biological Image Analysis and Parameter Optimization * From Pixels to Pipelines: Practical Image Analysis with Fiji/ImageJmini-workshop. * Two-day team-based workshop June 23rd-24th * Tools-4-Cells & Tissues (T4CT) Design Challenge Workshop. CHICAGO CYTOSKELETON MEETING The next Chicago Cytoskeleton Meeting is coming up on Friday May 1st at Loyola University Chicago Water Tower Campus. This includes selected trainee talks, keynote by Dr. Dyche Mullins, poster session, and social. Please register and sign-up for a poster spot on the website<https://nam04.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fsites.goo…>. Poster sign-ups are due next Wednesday, April 22nd. Note that registration is free. NEW PUBLICATIONS Congrats to the Jayant Lab, and EMBRIO members Shulan Xiao and Krishna Jayant with co-authors on two recent publications highlighted here: Blood-catalyzed n-doped polymers for reversible optical neural control. Science. Samal S, Xiao S, Nelson S, Kolhe O, Khan HF, Habibi Matin M, Lee W-J, Ahmed M, Wang D, Wang T, Pikes T, N. Scott, A, Alejandra Rodriguez, J, R. Olson, M, Deng, Q, I. Parkinson, E, Rochet, JC, Jayant, K, and Mei, J. Blood-catalyzed n-doped polymers for reversible optical neural control. Science. 2026;392(6793):eadu5500. DOI:10.1126/science.adu5500<https://nam04.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fdoi.org%2…> [https://www.science.org/cms/10.1126/science.adu5500/asset/640a7a54-b8c2-47d…] * Biology as a Fabrication Engine for Neural Interfaces This work demonstrates that endogenous blood chemistry can catalyze the formation of functional n‑doped conducting polymers directly in living tissue, eliminating the need for rigid implants or exogenous catalysts. For EMBRIO, this represents a paradigm shift toward bio‑assembled, self‑integrating materials as a foundational strategy for neural engineering. * Reversible, Nongenetic Optical Neuromodulation The in situ–formed polymers enable millisecond‑scale, reversible optical suppression of neural activity without genetic modification. Neural control arises through thermo‑ionic shunting and altered ion channel excitability, highlighting a soft, analog modality of neuromodulation aligned with EMBRIO’s emphasis on minimally invasive control of biological systems. * Scalable Pathway Toward Translational Bioelectronics By leveraging ubiquitous biological components (blood, light) and avoiding permanent hardware, the platform offers a generalizable and potentially scalable route to clinical neuromodulation. This directly supports EMBRIO’s mission to bridge fundamental materials science with deployable bioelectronic medicine. Mild focal cooling decouples dendrites to reconfigure cortical output. Advanced Science Habibi Matin M, Xiao S, Jayant K. Mild focal cooling decouples dendrites to reconfigure cortical output. Advanced Science. 2026. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/advs.202520773<https://nam04.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fdoi.org%2…> [Details are in the caption following the image] * Dendrites as Primary Targets for Circuit Reconfiguration The study shows that mild, focal cooling (~4 °C) selectively disrupts dendritic–somatic coupling—especially in apical tufts—without silencing neurons outright. This reframes neuromodulation as control over subcellular computation, a key EMBRIO concept linking physics to function. * Thermal Gradients Enable Analog Control of Neural Output Rather than acting as a global suppressor, cooling introduces graded, compartment‑specific changes in excitability, leading to reconfigured cortical output patterns. This establishes temperature as a precision biophysical control variable, complementary to electrical or optical approaches championed by EMBRIO. * Non‑Destructive, Reversible Modulation of Brain Computation The effects are rapid and reversible, preserving baseline circuit integrity while transiently altering information flow. For EMBRIO, this highlights energy‑efficient, non‑destructive strategies to probe and control neural systems across scales—from dendrites to behavior. Brent T. Ladd, Senior Research Program Manager, EMBRIO Institute<https://www.purdue.edu/research/embrio/> Weldon School of Biomedical Engineering, Purdue University Office: Hall for Discovery Learning and Research, Ste. 203 207 S. Martin Jischke Drive West Lafayette, IN 47907 laddb(a)purdue.edu

1 0

Today at 3: All-Hands Research Updates Zartman Lab + Magana Lab
by Brent Thomas Ladd 20 Apr '26

20 Apr '26

[cid:55d757ef-fdf6-4718-9130-d384190addbf] Dear EMBRIOphytes, Join us this afternoon at 3pm EDT for the All-Hands Research Updates for the latest on Thrust 2B with the Zartman Lab , a quick data management update from Beatriz Borrelly, and Thrust 4 projects with the Magana Lab: https://purdue-edu.zoom.us/j/92296822713?pwd=m8tGuX9zXUL2MnYguV8KlCa9w0Tj4j…<https://nam04.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fpurdue-ed…> More news on our upcoming events will be shared tomorrow. Thanks, Brent Brent T. Ladd, Senior Research Program Manager, EMBRIO Institute<https://www.purdue.edu/research/embrio/> Weldon School of Biomedical Engineering, Purdue University Office: Hall for Discovery Learning and Research, Ste. 203 207 S. Martin Jischke Drive West Lafayette, IN 47907 laddb(a)purdue.edu

1 0

EMBRIO News April 10, 2026
by Brent Thomas Ladd 10 Apr '26

10 Apr '26

[cid:fc4402b6-0170-4bca-9ebb-72aa4d1cf204] Dear EMBRIO Community, Our next All-Hands Research Updates will be Monday, April 20th 3PM EDT for the latest on Thrust 2B with the Zartman Lab and Thrust 4 projects with the Magana Lab: https://purdue-edu.zoom.us/j/92296822713?pwd=m8tGuX9zXUL2MnYguV8KlCa9w0Tj4j…<https://nam04.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fpurdue-ed…> The remaining All-Hands Thrust Research Updates Spring schedule is below. Abbie Rogers Ph.D. Thesis Defense: Please join Abigail Rogers today, April 10 at 10:00 AM in LILY 2-425 for her final exam seminar. (see attached flyer) There will also be a zoom option: https://purdue-edu.zoom.us/MY/ABBIEROGERS.<https://nam04.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fpurdue-ed…> Congratulations to Stephanie Gardner being chosen as a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science! Nice article about Stephanie here<https://www.bio.purdue.edu/news/articles/2026/ximena-bernal-and-stephanie-g…> Please keep your calendar holds for the EMBRIO Annual Retreat 2026 Summer Workshops & Joint Symposium - June 22 - 26, University of Notre Dame (more details below) Reminders: 🆕 ❇️ EMBRIO Annual Retreat 2026 Summer Workshops & Joint Symposium - June 22 - 26, University of Notre Dame. Please keep your calendar holds. Stay tuned for release of registration, lodging, travel, speaker and poster details coming soon. A joint EMBRIO BII NSF - Notre Dame (RECODE NSF) symposium "Advancing Morphogenetic Biosciences and Bioengineering” is slated for June 25th, preceded by a multi-day T4CT (Tools4Cells&Tissues) Design Challenge Workshop June 23-24th, and a half-day workshop on June 22nd AI and Modeling: Intro to Deep Learning–Based Surrogate Models (further details coming). The Symposium will feature EMBRIO speakers, along with additional speakers from Notre Dame, invited Key Notes, and research poster session. Friday June 26th is set aside for focused retreat activity for EMBRIO members. Hosted at University of Notre Dame, South Bend, Indiana, EMBRIO will organize and help provide transportation and lodging for Purdue members to attend, as well as reimburse travel for EMBRIO trainees from our partner institutions to participate. ⭐ EMBRIO Data Management - See EMBRIO Supported Publications w/ links to Code and Images<https://purr.lib.purdue.edu/data-inventory/embrio?size=50> Data management training materials<https://www.purdue.edu/research/embrio/resources/data-management-training.p…> developed by Scott Bolton for uploading PURR pages, OMERO image data, and raw data to Data Depot are available on the Institute website. You can also contact Beatriz Borrelly ( bborrell(a)purdue.edu<mailto:bborrell@purdue.edu> ) for assistance with data management. Beatriz is working with EMBRIO labs that have recent publications to aid in the preparation and upload of published data. 👀 Chicago Cytoskeleton Meeting Friday May 1st, 2026 Loyola University Chicago’s Water Tower Campus Chicago Cytoskeleton Meeting<https://nam04.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fsites.goo…> Spring Meeting will be Friday, May 1st, 2026. Trainees have an opportunity to present a lightning talk, along with a poster session. ________________________________ Updated Spring 2026 Schedule: EMBRIO All-Hands Thrust Research Updates Thank you, Research Thrust Leaders, for your available dates to present EMBRIO research updates this semester. Based on your availability, I've set the schedule as below. As a reminder, we are alternating bi-weekly meetings between 1) thrust level research updates and 2) focused working proposal teams discussion/writing groups. Two thrust level updates are scheduled at each research update meeting, and will need to limit each thrust project to ~25 minutes total (incl. Q/A/Disc). Please focus on the most integrative outcomes to date, key findings/challenges/next steps. Trainees and Research Staff are welcome and encouraged to present/co-present.   Jan 26 Feb 23 Mar 23 Apr 20 May 18 June TBD Ondrej Maxian, Notre Dame Alexandria Volkening, Purdue Mullins Lab Deng Lab Zartman Lab Magana Lab Gardner Lab Kinzer-Ursem + Evans Labs Staiger Lab Iyer-Pascuzzi Lab Brent T. Ladd, Senior Research Program Manager, EMBRIO Institute<https://www.purdue.edu/research/embrio/> Weldon School of Biomedical Engineering, Purdue University Office: Hall for Discovery Learning and Research, Ste. 203 207 S. Martin Jischke Drive West Lafayette, IN 47907 laddb(a)purdue.edu

1 0