Student led special topic courses which vary by semester

We will learn to bridge the gap between the fields of bioengineering and the science of how drugs interact with biological systems, i.e., Pharmacology, including the principles of biochemical reaction kinetics and engineering; how such principles can help us describe, model, predict and modulate the outcome of biochemical reactions in cells and biological reactors, and apply these principles to the understanding of pharmacological phenomena. Prerequisites: BME 2104 AND APMA 2130

Students will design treatment strategies for cancer and cardiovascular disease based on molecular bioengineering principles. Special topics will include design of nanoparticle drug and gene delivery platforms, materials biocompatibility, cancer immunotherapy, and molecular imaging. Prerequisite: BME 2102 and BME 2315 or instructor permission. Recommended prerequisite: BME 2104 or BME 4414.

Applies engineering science, design methods, and system analysis to developing areas and current problems in biomedical engineering. Topics vary by semester. Recent topics include Medical Imaging Systems Theory, BME Advanced Design, BME Electronics Lab, and Systems Biology Modeling and Experimentation. Prerequisite: third- or fourth-year standing or instructor permission.

Introduces techniques for constructing predictive or analytical engineering models for biological processes. Teaches modeling approaches using example problems in transport, mechanics, bioelectricity, molecular dynamics, tissue assembly & imaging. Problem sets include 1) linear systems and filtering 2) compartmental modeling 3) numerical techniques 4) finite element / finite difference models and 5) computational automata models. Prereq: CS 1110 or CS 1111 or CS 1112. Co-requisites: APMA 2130 or MATH 3250 or APMA 2501- Differential Equations & Linear Algebra or instructor permission.

Introduces biomaterials science and biological interactions with materials with overview of biomaterials testing (in vitro and in vivo) and characterization. Emphasis on emerging novel strategies and design of biomaterials. Areas of concentration include polymers and ceramics in biomaterials, drug delivery, tissue engineering (orthopaedic and vascular) and nanotechnology. Prerequisite: BME 2101, BME 2104, or instructor permission.

Introduces principles of continuum mechanics of biological tissues & systems. 1) Review results used in biomechanics field, 2) properties of living tissue; 3) mechanical basis & effects of pathology & trauma: 4) intro to mechanotransduction, circulatory transport, growth & remodeling & tissue-engineered materials; 5) low Reynolds number flows in vivo & microsystems. Prerequisites: APMA 2120 or MATH 2310 or MATH 2315 and BME Major or Minor

A year-long design project required for BME majors. Students select, formulate, and solve a design problem related to a device or a system. Projects use conceptual design, skills obtained in the integrated lab and substantial literature and patent reviews. Projects are sponsored by faculty, physicians and/or companies. Students may work on their own with outside team members when appropriate or with other students in integrative teams. Prerequisite: 4th year standing in the Biomedical Engineering major or instructor permission.

Introduces the fundamental principles of tissue engineering. Topics: tissue organization and dynamics, cell and tissue characterization, cell-matrix interactions, transport processes in engineered tissues, biomaterials and biological interfaces, stem cells and interacting cell fate processes and tissue engineering methods. Examples of approaches for regeneration of cartilage, bone, ligament, tendons, skin and liver are presented. Prerequisites: APMA 2130 or MATH 3250 or APMA 2501 - Differential Equations & Linear Algebra, and BME 2101, and BME 2104, or instructor permission.

Introduces the physiology of the kidney, salt and water balance, gastrointestinal system, endocrine system, and central nervous system, with reference to diseases and their pathophysiology. Prerequisite: (CHEM 1410 or CHEM 1610 or CHEM 1810) AND (PHYS 1425 or PHYS 1420 or PHYS 1710) AND BME 2101, or instructor permission.

Provides a grounding in molecular biology and a working knowledge of recombinant DNA technology, thus establishing a basis for the evaluation and application of genetic engineering in whole animal systems. Beginning with the basic principles of genetics, this course examines the use of molecular methods to study gene expression, deliver viral and non-viral vectors, and its critical role in health. Prerequisite: BME 2101. Co-requisites: BME 2104.

Provides students with the skills necessary to engage in meaningful engineering design, and focuses on the latter stages of the engineering design process - detailed design, prototyping, and evaluation. Students develop skills in computer assisted design, embedded controls, prototyping, analysis and teamwork. A major focus of the class is the execution of a design project. Prerequisites: PHYS 1425, and BME major or minor. Recommended Corequisite: PHYS 2415 or ECE 2200.

Presents analytical tools used to model signals & linear systems. BME examples include multicompartment modeling of drug delivery, modeling of dynamic biomechanical systems & electrical circuit models of excitable cells. Topics: signals & systems, convolution, continuous time Fourier transforms, electrical circuits & applications of linear system theory. Prerequisite: PHYS 2415 & APMA 2130, & CS 1110 or equivalent

You will learn how excitable tissue, nerves and muscle, and the cardiovascular and respiratory systems function. You will develop an understanding of mechanisms, with an introduction to structure, an emphasis on quantitative analysis, and integration of hormonal and neural regulation and control. Prerequisites: (PHYS 1425 or PHYS 1420 or PHYS 1710) AND (APMA 1110 or MATH 1320) AND (CHEM 1410 or CHEM 1610 or CHEM 1810) AND BME Major or Minor

Introduces principles and application of fluid and mass transport processes in cell, tissue and organ systems. Topics include intro to physiological fluid mechanics in the circulation and tissue, fundamentals of mass transport in biological systems, effects of mass transport and biochemical interactions at the cell and tissue scales and fluid and mass transport in organs. Prerequisites: APMA 2130 or MATH 3250, or APMA 2501 - Differential Equations & Linear Algebra, and BME 2101, and BME 2104, or instructor permission.

Intro to fundamentals of cell structure and function, emphasizing the techniques and technologies available for the study of cell biology. Content includes cell structure and function; energy flow in cells; information flow in cells focuses on modern molecular biology and genetic engineering, and includes DNA replication, the cell cycle, gene expression, gene regulation, and protein synthesis. Prerequisite: CHEM 1410 or CHEM 1610 or CHEM 1810 or instructor permission.

An overview of modern medical imaging modalities with regard to the physical basis of image acquisition and methods of image reconstruction. Topics cover the basic engineering and physical principles underlying the major medical imaging modalities: x-ray (plain film, mammography, CT), nuclear medicine (PET) and (SPECT), ultrasound, and MRI. Prerequisite: BME 2315, BME 3310, or instructor permission.

An introductory course to neural networks research, specifically biologically-based networks that reproduce cognitive phenomena. The goal of this course is to teach the basic thinking and methodologies used in constructing and understanding neural-like networks. Cross-listed as NESC 5330. 3rd or 4th year standing; or permission of the instructor.

Second half of a year-long design project required for BME majors. Students select, formulate, & solve a design problem related to a device or a system. Projects use conceptual design, skills obtained in the integrated lab & substantial literature and patent reviews. Projects are sponsored by faculty, physicians and/or companies. Students may work on their own with outside team members when appropriate or with other students in integrative teams. Prerequisite: 4th year standing in the Biomedical Engineering major or instructor permission.

Second part of a year-long course integrating concepts and skills from prior courses to formulate and solve problems in biomedical systems, including experimental design, performance and analysis. Prerequisite: 3rd Year standing in BME major, or instructor permission

A year-long course integrating concepts and skills from prior courses to formulate and solve problems in biomedical systems, including experimental design, performance and analysis. Testing in tissues/cells & manipulation of molecular constituents to determine structural and functional characteristics for design of therapeutic or measurement systems. Methods incl biochemical, physiological, cell biology, mechanical, electrical and computer, systems, chemical, imaging, and other approaches. Prerequisite: 3rd and 4th Year standing in Biomedical Engineering major

Project-driven course focusing on biomedical product design with emphasis on marketability, innovation, entrepreneurship and business. Topics include design fundamentals, problem/needs identification, delineation of realistic constraints and product specifications, intellectual property, market analysis, entrepreneurship, specific advanced design, business plan development, venture funding, and medical product testing methods. Pre-requisite: BME 2000 or instructor permission.

This course introduces techniques for constructing mathematical and computational models of biological processes and utilizing experimental data to validate those models at many levels of organizational scale -- from genome to whole-tissue. Prerequisites: APMA 2130 or MATH 3250 or APMA 2501 - Differential Equations & Linear Algebra, and APMA 3110 or APMA 3100 or MATH 3100, and BME 2101, and BME 2104, and BME 2315 and BME major or minors

Introduces genomics and bioinformatics theory and tools to analyze large scale biological data. Specific topics covered are Introduction to Linux and R statistical programming language, computations on the high-performance computational cluster, analysis of sequencing data with applications in gene expression and protein/DNA interactions, differential expression analysis, pathway and co-expression network analysis. Prereq: (APMA 3110 or APMA 3100 or MATH 3100) and (CS 1110 or CS 1111 or CS 1112 with grade of C- or better or successfully completed CS 1110 place-out test) and BME major or minor

Intro to systems-level measurement techniques for capturing molecular information and the mathematical and computational methods for harnessing the information from these measurements to improve our understanding of cell physiology and disease. Practical implementation of the concepts in MATLAB or Python will be applied to existing, real data from published journal articles. Pre-requisites: APMA 3100 or APMA 3110, BME 2104, BME 2315, and CS 1110 or CS 1111 or CS 1112

This course will provide students with a quantitative framework for identifying and addressing important biological questions at the molecular, cell, and tissue levels. The course will focus on the interplay between methods and logic, with an emphasis on the themes that emerge repeatedly in quantitative experiments.

"We will explore engineering methods to use ""microbes as tools"" for human wellbeing, to understand and combat ""microbes as enemies"" in infectious disease, and to characterize and manipulate ""microbes as partners"" in human health and wellbeing. We will learn how facets of BME are used to test hypotheses of human/microbe relationships and to design strategies to understand and treat disease and improve human wellbeing. Prerequisites: BME 2000 AND (BME 2101 OR BME 2102) AND BME 2104 AND BME 2315"

In-depth study of a biomedical engineering area by an individual student in close collaboration with a departmental faculty member. Requires advanced analysis of a specialized topic in biomedical engineering that is not covered by current offerings. Requires faculty contact time and assignments comparable to regular course offerings. Prerequisite: instructor permission.

A year-long research project in biomedical engineering conducted in consultation with a department faculty advisor; usually related to ongoing faculty research. Includes the design, execution, and analysis of experimental laboratory work and computational or theoretical computer analysis of a problem. Requires a comprehensive report of the results. Prerequisite: third- or fourth-year standing, and instructor permission.

Students learn to motivate research, design experiments, analyze/display data, present results for their own research. Receive training in professional skills, including project leadership and management, best practices for collaborative research, and developing resilience. Prereq: BME 6001-6004, or permission by instructor

Students learn principles and techniques to computationally approach biomedical research and practice. Students obtain hands-on experience using computational thinking/strategy and build computational models to describe biomedical phenomena or analyze biomedical data. Prereq: BME 6001-6004 and ability in MATLAB or Python.

A project-based grounding in biomedical product design, with emphasis on clinical immersion and topics including design fundamentals, problem/needs identification, delineation of realistic constraints and product specifications, intellectual property, market analysis, entrepreneurship, specific advanced design topics, business plan development, venture funding, and medical product testing methods. Prerequisite: Instructor Permission

A professional development course for biomedical engineering graduate students.

In a team, develop, prototype, and conduct verification and validation tests on engineering solutions to clinical challenges, demonstrating concept viability. Formal Design Control, Life Cycle, Risk Analysis, Project Management and Intellectual Property Strategies are introduced. Using Product Development Protocols, prepare a regulatory and implementation pathway analysis for commercialization into clinical practice. Prerequisite: BME 6550 Special Topics: Clinical Technology Continuum of Care

Students will gain a fundamental understanding of the theoretical principles underlying biomedical measurements. Topics are organized sequentially from signal initiation through signal processing to downstream statistical analysis of measurements. Students will be exposed to the practical implementation of general principles through homework assignments that involve the analysis and evaluation of molecular, cellular, and clinical measurements. Prerequisites: 1. BME 6101: Physiology I (or equivalent) 2. SEAS graduate student status 3. Some previous exposure to probability-statistics, Fourier analysis, and linear systems 4. Or Instructor Permission

Introduces techniques for constructing mathematical and computational models of biological processes at many levels of organizational scale from genome to whole-tissue. Topics include choice of techniques, quantitative characterization of biological properties, assumptions and model simplification, parameter estimation and sensitivity analysis, model verification and validation and integration of computational modeling w/experimental approaches.Prerequisites: BME 6101, and BME 2104 or BME 7806 (or equivalent).

Applies engineering science, design methods, and system analysis to developing areas and current problems in biomedical engineering. Topics vary by semester.

The course will cover human genetics and genomics, including the human/mammalian genome variation, determination of genomic variation on phenotype and disease risk, mapping and characterizing genetic variants on phenotype, determining the putative impact of genetic variants on gene expression (transcriptomics, epigenomics), the promise and implications of genome science on precision medicine and the ethical, legal & social implications.Pre-requisite: BIOL 3010 or BIOL 4210 or instructor consent.

Provides students with a quantitative framework for identifying and addressing important biological questions at the molecular, cell, and tissue levels. Focuses on the interplay between methods and logic, with an emphasis on the themes that emerge repeatedly in quantitative experiments. Prerequisites: BME 6101 (or equivalent), SEAS graduate student status, or instructor permission.

Provides biomedical engineers with a grounding in molecular biology and a working knowledge of recombinant DNA technology, thus establishing a basis for the evaluation and application of genetic engineering in whole animal systems. Beginning with the basic principles of genetics, this course examines the use of molecular methods to study gene expression and its critical role in health and disease. Topics include DNA replication, transcription, translation, recombinant DNA methodology, methods for analyzing gene expression (including microarray and genechip analysis), methods for creating genetically-engineered mice, and methods for accomplishing gene therapy by direct in vivo gene transfer. Prerequisite: BME 6103, undergraduate-level cell and/or molecular biology course. (e.g., BME 2104) or instructor permission. Suggested preparation: biochemistry, cell biology, genetics, and physiology..

For master's students.

FOR GRAD STUDENTS ONLY. A research project in biomedical engineering conducted in consultation with a faculty advisor. Includes the design, execution, and analysis of experimental laboratory work and computational or theoretical computer analysis of a problem. Fulfills the project requirement for the Biomedical Engineering Masters of Engineering degree. Prereqs: Instructor Permission Required.

Master's Research

Formal record of student commitment to doctoral research under the guidance of a faculty advisor. May be repeated as necessary.