News & Stories
Explore the latest news, stories, and groundbreaking research happening at the Institute of Biomedical Engineering. Stay updated on innovative projects, impactful discoveries, and the achievements of our talented students, faculty, and alumni shaping the future of biomedical science and engineering.
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Dr. Omar Khan and George Lagogianes discussing the merits & concerns of vaccine passports
Dr. Omar Khan and George Lagogianes discussing the merits & concerns of vaccine passports, why 2 doses matter, & why Canada’s policies are inevitably tied to the global COVID-19 situation.
BME minor students win Director’s Best Capstone Award
Adeen Rizwan, Jonathan Reyes, and Kent Hsieh won this year’s BME Capstone Director Award for their consultation and proposed improvements on a mobility device.
Two BME students awarded prestigious Vanier Canada Graduate Scholarships
Nebras Warsi and Joseph Sabastian are two of the BME Vanier Canada Graduate Scholarship winners of 2021. Vanier awards are given based on the merit of academic excellence, extracurricular activities, and demonstration of leadership.
Faces of BME – Samantha S.
Samantha Stuart, MASc candidate from the Frank Gu Lab is applying machine learning algorithms to biomedical applications in the lab, while leading & participating in science outreach initiatives like the Canada Wide Science Fair. Read about her journey here.
Four BME faculty promoted to associate professor
Drs. Kei Masani, Sarah Vasconcelos, Sowmya Viswanathan, and Azadeh Yadollahi were both promoted to Associate Professor at the Institute of Biomedical Engineering (BME). This promotion was based on their research excellence, teaching mandates, and community- based contributions.
Researchers develop a quantum dot smartphone device to diagnose and track COVID-19
Researchers at the University of Toronto (Institute of Biomedical Engineering, Department of Chemistry, Donnelly Centre for Biomolecular Research) in collaboration with Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre, Public Health Ontario, and Mt. Sinai Hospital have engineered a diagnostic test with a smartphone reader to surveil and track COVID-19 patients.
An innovative approach to visualize the peri-implant healing process at single-cell resolution
In a recent study, researchers from the University of Toronto employed a unique state-of-the-art imaging technique for deep tissue imaging, that has enabled the monitoring of peri-implant bony healing biology in action. This technology can lead to a better understanding of the healing process, allowing researchers to leverage this knowledge to develop faster therapeutic approaches with the use of biomaterials for the future.
Daniel Franklin joins BME/TBEP as assistant professor
Dr. Daniel Franklin officially joined the Institute of Biomedical Engineering (BME) as an assistant professor on May 1st, 2021. This is in collaboration with Ted Rogers Translational Biology and Engineering Program (TBEP). Dr. Franklin completed his doctoral degree in physics at the University of Central Florida (2018) and shortly after, pursued a postdoctoral fellowship at Northwestern University
New method can improve drug delivery in implants
An innovative biomaterial discovery by researchers at the University of Toronto in collaboration with Ripple Therapeutics Inc., has established a method that yields better control over drug release profiles in implants and has the potential to disrupt the classical drug delivery market.
A helping hand for neurorehabilitation
Dr. Jose Zariffa and his research team are developing tools that enable clinicians to evaluate rehabilitation success and track recovery. The goal is to create a personalized process for the improvement of rehabilitation from spinal cord injuries and stroke, accelerating the affected individuals back on the road to recovery.
Ontario Expands Vaccine Eligibility to All Adults 18+
Breakfast Television: Dr. Omar Khan, a professor of biomedical engineering, to talk about the province expanding vaccine eligibility to all adults.
Grand Questions: U of T’s Medicine by Design invests $3 million in the future of regenerative medicine
Treating heart failure without transplant surgery. Delivering powerful cell therapies to patients where they live – no matter how remote. Recording how cells talk to one another in the body to personalize future therapies. These are just some of the transformative advances the University of Toronto’s Medicine by Design initiative hopes to enable through its Grand Questions Program, which is investing $3 million to prepare for the future of regenerative medicine
TRANSFORM HF partnership advances novel technologies for heart failure care
A new partnership between the University of Toronto and the Ted Rogers Centre for Heart Research is forging new collaborations and designing new technologies to reimagine how high-quality, digital approaches to heart failure can be equitably delivered to all Canadians.
Two engineering community members honoured with U of T Awards of Excellence
Professor Brenda McCabe (CivMin) and graduate student Kramay Patel (BME MD/PhD candidate) have been honoured by the University of Toronto with Awards of Excellence (AWEX).
Faces of BME – Marta O.
Faces of BME – Marta O. I grew up in Ukraine in a family of artists, so it seemed natural that I too would become an artist. At the age […]
U of T Engineering professors and staff members honoured for excellence by the Faculty
Sixteen Engineering faculty and staff have been honoured for their outstanding contributions to U of T Engineering with teaching, research, and administrative staff awards. These awards recognize exceptional faculty and staff members for their leadership, citizenship, innovation and contributions to the Faculty’s teaching, service, and research missions.
Faces of BME – Amalia G.
Faces of BME – Marta O. Communication is an important skill for all engineers to develop because it doesn’t matter if you have the best idea out there, if you […]
Explainer: U of T Engineering professor Omar F. Khan on COVID-19 vaccination efficacy, misconceptions and Canada’s rollout
As Canada races to vaccinate its citizens amid an increase in variant infections, writer Liz Do spoke to Professor Omar F. Khan (BME), an immunoengineering expert. Khan, whose lab designs nanotechnology devices that can deliver RNA technology to cells for better disease treatment, explains common concerns and questions around COVID-19 vaccines.
2021 Dorrington Awards Recognize Graduate Research in Drug Discovery, Precision Medicine and Cancer Nanomedicine
Jessica Knox, Shubham Gupta and Jamie Wu are the recipients of the 2021 Jennifer Dorrington Graduate Research Award which recognizes students enrolled in graduate programs at the Temerty Faculty of Medicine who are doing doctoral research in Donnelly Centre labs.
Clearing up misconceptions surrounding COVID-19 vaccine efficacy
Many Canadians are preparing to get a COVID-19 vaccine, but does it matter which shot you get? Does one vaccine work better than another? Eric Sorensen clears up the misconceptions over vaccine efficacy, and what health experts say really matters most.
Medicine by Design and H2i form partnership to support entrepreneurs in regenerative medicine
Graduate students and post-doctoral researchers who want to translate regenerative medicine research or technology into a product or venture can now take their first steps toward becoming an entrepreneur through a new University of Toronto program.
‘The next big step’: U of T researchers pursue a treatment for vision loss
Supported by U of T’s Medicine by Design initiative, a multidisciplinary team led by University Professor Molly Shoichet (ChemE, BME, Donnely) plans to use retinal stem cells to restore vision.
Interning at Microsoft through the lens of a Biomedical Engineer
Interning at Microsoft through the lens of a biomedical engineer Saba Rahimi is a PhD candidate in Biomedical Engineering at the University of Toronto. During the summer of 2020, she completed […]
Molly Shoichet named one of the Top 100 Most Powerful Women in Canada
University Professor Molly Shoichet (ChemE, BME, Donnelly) has been named one of the Top 100 most powerful women in Canada by Women’s Executive Network (WXN). The list recognizes the country’s highest achieving female leaders in the private, public and not-for-profit sectors.