Faculty & Research
Overview
Faculty & research are integral components of BME. With a strong focus on research, BME is located in the heart of Canada’s largest health-care research hub. Our graduate students receive their training from 14 departments at U of T, 10 partner hospitals, and 7 research institutes & commercialization centres.
At BME, our cross-disciplinary approach in biomedical and clinical engineering enables our researchers to cover a diverse set of topics. Find out what our research publication are saying about our research focus.
Faculty directory
Core Faculty
We have 30+ core faculty members that span across cell & tissue engineering, clinical engineering, and molecular engineering disciplines.
Cross-Appointed Faculty
BME currently hosts cross-appointed faculty members across more than 30 academic units, partner hospitals, research institutes, and commercialization centres.
Emeriti
Learn about some of our retired faculty members
Research streams
Clinical
BME’s clinical engineers design technologies, devices and strategies for people with chronic disease, traumatic injury, disabilities and mobility limitations to help them integrate more fully with their environment.
Cell & Tissue
Research that has the potential to change how we think about disease and aging is happening at BME. Regenerative medicine uses stem cells and biomaterials to repair, replace or regenerate damaged tissue, organ structures and function.
Molecular
BME researchers are advancing disease detection, customizing drug delivery and improving health-care outcomes with faster and more precise technologies and systems.
Latest news
New research aimed to improve early childhood music education
Researchers from the University of Toronto have unveiled a new technological breakthrough that promises to transform early childhood music education. The study addresses a critical gap in musical instrument classification, particularly concerning non-pitched percussion instruments. The findings are published in a recent issue of PLOS one.
Accelerate Seed Grant recipient aims to improve delivery of drugs that treat brain diseases using self-driving lab technology
Professor Leo Chou have received Acceleration Consortium Seed Grant funding for his research on building DNA origami as a delivery vehicle for therapeutic agents
Dr. Omar F. Khan honoured with the McCharles Prize for early career research distinction
Professor Omar F. Khan has been awarded the prestigious McCharles Prize for Early Career Research Distinction for his contributions to the fields of biomedical and immune engineering.
Enhancing Balance Rehabilitation
Researchers from UHN’s KITE Research Institute have investigated a new affordable and clinically accessible training system for improving the standing balance of spinal cord injury patients. The team led by Dr. Kei Masani, KITE Senior Scientist and senior author of the study, investigated the integration of low-cost and portable sensors like a depth camera and pressure mat, which use motion tracking and distribution of pressure, respectively, to analyze movement.
New study reveals insights into extracellular matrix’s influence on regeneration
A study published in the Journal of Cell Science, led by Professor Penney Gilbert (BME) and Jo Nguyen at the University of Toronto, shed light on the impact of culture substrate stiffness and extracellular matrix (ECM) ligands on the contractility, proliferation, and various cellular processes of human myoblasts. The study aims to understand how these factors influence the regenerative activities of muscle stem cells and their progeny, with implications for aging and disease.
Research utilizes machine learning to improve gait analysis in rehabilitation
The latest research led by Prof. Jan Andrysek published in a peer-reviewed article showcases a pioneering approach to gait analysis, a crucial aspect of rehabilitation and clinical diagnosis. Clinicians have long relied on gait indicators like step length, stride velocity, and joint angles to assess and treat gait issues. However, traditional statistical methods have limitations in analyzing the vast sets of data generated by instrumented gait analysis techniques.
Faculty startups
The following list highlights some of the startup companies that have been launched by these forward-thinking faculty members, demonstrating their commitment to translating academic knowledge into real-world applications and making a significant impact on the biomedical industry.
| Faculty Member | Commercialization Venture | Focus | Location |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan Andrysek | LegWorks | Prosthetic Knee Joint | San Francisco |
| Warren Chan | Luna Nanotech | Nanotechnology Product Supplier | Toronto |
| John E. Davies | Tissue Regenerative Therapeutics Inc. | Mesenchymal Stem Cells | Toronto |
| Milos Popovich | MyndTech Inc. | Medical Tech Company | Mississauga |
| Milica Radisic | Tara Biosystems | Cardiac Drug Discovery | New York |
| Jonathan Rocheleau | QuantM3 | Microfluidics Technology Diabetes Treatment | Toronto |
| Paul Santerre | Interface Biologics | Drug Delivery and other technologies | Toronto |
| Paul Santerre and Eli Sone | Cohesys Inc | Bone Tape to replace plate and screws in craniofacial repair; Angel investment | Toronto |
| Paul Santerre | Ripple Therapeutics | Non-polymeric anti-inflammatory drug delivery systems for ophthalmology; venture invested | Toronto |
| Molly Shoichet | AmacaThera | Injectable hydrogel platform technology | Toronto |
| Aaron Wheeler | Miroculus (formerly Kappex) | Digital Microfluidics Platform | Toronto |