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.

Researcher's in the Donnelly Centre wearing masks and standing in a staircase

Meet Donnelly Centre Team Developing on-the-go Test for COVID-19

April 22, 2020

While most people are sheltering at home, for a team led by Professor Warren Chan it’s business as usual as they continue to develop an automated, more sensitive and rapid test for COVID-19 to help curb the pandemic.

Researchers holding a new therapeutics tool

U of T precision medicine initiative launches task force to fight COVID-19

April 17, 2020

The PRiME Task Force on Advanced Diagnostics and Therapeutics for COVID-19 brings together U of T researchers with expertise in a variety of fields to develop new diagnostic tools and therapeutics

fingertip probe monitor

COVID-19: ECE team programs single-board computers to remotely monitor patients and protect health care workers

April 16, 2020

A U of T Engineering team, led by Professor Willy Wong (ECE/IBBME) has created a simple, scalable solution to remotely monitor the vital signs of COVID-19 patients. This technology could help preserve vital personal protective equipment (PPE) for health-care workers.

Hand washing

U of T startup develops technology that encourages hand hygiene to prevent the spread of COVID19

April 13, 2020

Dr. Geoff Fernie is developing a wearable technology that reminds first-line responders to wash their hands despite their busy schedules. This technology could significantly reduce the spread of Hospital-Acquired Infections (HAIs) including COVID19.

Milica Radisic

How does COVID-19 invade our bodies so easily? U of T Engineering team uses ‘organ-on-a-chip’ model to find out

April 9, 2020

Milica Radisic (ChemE, IBBME) is working with Axel Guenther and Edmond Young (both MIE) to create tiny models of the nose, mouth, eyes and lungs to better understand how COVID-19 infects organs

COVID19 virus in a cell

Review paper summarizes diagnostic tools and surveillance for COVID19

April 7, 2020

Prof. Warren Chan, Dr. Samira Mubareka, Dr. Jonathan Gubbay and their trainees have summarized current diagnostic tools for detecting and surveilling COVID-19 in the journal ACS Nano. This article aims to guide researchers in developing COVID19 diagnostics by discussing current and emerging diagnostic tools.

Kramay Patel wearing a mask

As COVID-19 protective supplies dwindle, U of T Engineering grad students are stitching face masks for Toronto

April 3, 2020

U of T Engineering graduate students Kramay Patel (IBBME MD/PhD candidate) and Chaim Katz (IBBME PhD candidate) are temporarily trading in their electrodes and amplifiers for sewing machines and cotton threads.

Gimmy Chu

Engineering alumni startup Nanoleaf to source more than one million masks amid COVID-19 shortages

April 1, 2020

Engineering alumni startup Nanoleaf to source more than one million masks amid COVID-19 shortages

Paul Santerre

Paul Santerre receives lifetime achievement award from Canadian Biomaterials Society

March 25, 2020

Paul Santerre receives lifetime achievement award from Canadian Biomaterials Society

Bob Nerem

Celebrating the Life of Robert M. Nerem

March 11, 2020

Celebrating the Life of Robert M. Nerem

Mollu Shoicet in lab with graduate students

Smart finger pads for robots among six U of T Engineering projects awarded with Connaught Innovation funding

March 10, 2020

Smart finger pads for robots among six U of T Engineering projects awarded with Connaught Innovation funding

microrobot

Donnelly Centre Investigators Win Inaugural Canada-UK Funding to Develop Microrobots for Brain Surgery and Cell Manipulation

February 24, 2020

Donnelly Centre Investigators Win Inaugural Canada-UK Funding to Develop Microrobots for Brain Surgery and Cell Manipulation

Tom Chau

IBBME professor Tom Chau receives U of T President’s Impact Award

February 21, 2020

IBBME professor Tom Chau receives U of T President’s Impact Award

Portrait of Dorrington Awards Winners

2020 Dorrington Awards Recognize Graduate Research in Rare Diseases, Computer Vision and 3D Cancer Modelling

February 18, 2020

2020 Dorrington Awards Recognize Graduate Research in Rare Diseases, Computer Vision and 3D Cancer Modelling

Buddhisha Udugama and Pranav Kadhiresan holding a pill-sized heating device for diagnostic testing

IBBME researchers develop pill-sized heating device for diagnostic testing

February 17, 2020

IBBME researchers develop pill-sized heating device for diagnostic testing

Student pointing to a computer screen in Rodrigo's lab

Rodrigo-Fernandez Gonzalez Lab

February 7, 2020

Dr. Rodrigo Fernandez-Gonzalez is interested in understanding how cells coordinate with one another during wound repair and embryogenesis.

Michael Sefton

Engineering Professor and Alumnus Elected to the U.S. National Academy of Engineering

February 7, 2020

Engineering Professor and Alumnus Elected to the U.S. National Academy of Engineering

3D skin printer

Handheld 3D skin printer demonstrates accelerated healing of large, severe burns

February 4, 2020

A new handheld 3D printer can deposit sheets of skin to cover large burn wounds – and its “bio ink” can accelerate the healing process.

Graduate Students in a lab

Researchers develop method to improve artificial islet transplantation success rate

January 17, 2020

Researchers from IBBME developed a method to improve the transplantation success rate of artificial islets.

Group of Researchers sitting. From left to right: Jessica Ngai, Dr. Shrey Sindhwani, Dr. Abdullah Syed and Benjamin Kingston.

Most Engineered Nanoparticles Enter Tumours Through Cells, Not Between them, U of T Researchers Find

January 13, 2020

University of Toronto researchers have discovered that an active rather than passive process dictates which nanoparticles enter solid tumours, upending decades of thinking in the field of cancer nanomedicine and pointing toward more effective nanotherapies.

Daniel Szulc

Margaret Cheng Lab

December 17, 2019

Dr. Hai-Ling Margaret Cheng is developing cell and tissue scaffold tracking contrast agents to visualize how they are moving in the body.

Professor Craig Simmons in a lab talking to graduate students

Professors and alumnus elected Fellows of the Engineering Institute of Canada

December 13, 2019

Professors and alumnus elected Fellows of the Engineering Institute of Canada

Laura Smith holding her lab coat

By raising lab coats to the rafters, U of T biomedical engineering lab celebrates its student MVPs

December 12, 2019

By raising lab coats to the rafters, U of T biomedical engineering lab celebrates its student MVPs

Sarah Sarabadani, Michael Li, and Marija Cotic at Klick Health lab

Exit Strategy

December 10, 2019

Sarah Sarabadani, Michael Li, and Marija Cotic worked in different Biomedical Engineering labs at the University of Toronto. Now they have all converged at Klick Health, a rapidly growing healthcare marketing and commercialization agency, headquartered in Toronto. We sat down to talk about their day-to-day activities and how they were able to leverage their skills to transition into non-traditional healthcare roles.