News & Media
Newsletter
Stay connected with the latest breakthroughs in biological design with The Biodesign Bulletin. This recurring digest highlights new research, major publications, center updates, and upcoming opportunities.
Current Edition
Explore the Biological Design Center’s 2025 Impact Report
Inside the report, discover research on self-amplifying RNA, engineered cells, plant synthetic biology, and microscale technologies; meet the trainees building careers through BDC’s interdisciplinary programs; and see how initiatives such as STEM Pathways and iGEM are extending the impact of biological design beyond the lab. Read the 2025 Impact Report... More
Advancing Multi-Cancer Early Detection Screening
ARPA-H Leaders Visit Boston University to Support Development of the POSEIDON Program: Boston University recently welcomed representatives from the Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health (ARPA-H) for a strategic visit that focused on Boston University’s role in the development of the innovative POSEIDON (Platform Optimizing SynBio for Early Intervention and Detection... More
NSF Awards Boston University $20 Million to Help Create National “Cloud Lab” Network
The National Science Foundation (NSF) has awarded Boston University $20 million to help create a national network of cloud labs, artificial intelligence-infused research facilities that can remotely run science and engineering studies. The network will allow researchers from anywhere in the country to request complex experiments and tests that they... More
How CMOS Sensors and AI Are Making Fermentation Smarter
CMOS is a technology that enables researchers to build small, inexpensive sensors capable of monitoring conditions inside the bioreactor. By measuring the electrical signals produced by redox reactions (chemical reactions in which electrons are transferred between species), the sensors provide real-time information about the conditions inside the tank – a... More
Detecting Disease Earlier: The Vision Behind Dr. Liangliang Hao’s Research
Long before she began developing new tools and methods to detect disease, Dr. Liangliang Hao was drawn to the overlap between different fields; where biology and engineering intersect. Dr. Liangliang Hao grew up in Henan, China, a region shaped by the Yellow River and thousands of years of history, often described... More
Smarter Cellular Warriors Take On the Toughest Tumors – Wilson Wong Lab’s novel immunotherapy sees success in Senti trials
A novel cancer cell therapy out of a Boston University lab might lead to safer, faster, less costly and more effective treatments for some of the toughest types of cancer. This immunotherapy, developed by a team of researchers under Professor Wilson Wong (BME), is a new form of chimeric antigen... More
Biomedical Engineer Wilson Wong Is Boston University’s Innovator of the Year
It’s not his first breakthrough to make it to clinical trials or to help patients. The holder of more than 10 patents and author of over 100 peer-reviewed research papers, Wong is cofounder of three biotech companies that are pursuing new vaccines, autoimmune disorder therapies, and advanced cancer medicines. It’s... More
Rethinking Antibiotic Resistance Through Engineered Biology
Inside the Dunlop Lab at BU’s Biological Design Center At Boston University’s Biological Design Center, researchers are rethinking how engineering biology can illuminate—and ultimately help solve—some of today’s most pressing challenges. Among them is Biomedical Engineering Professor Mary Dunlop , whose work is uncovering the subtle but powerful differences in how... More
Ezira Wolle Yimer, PhD Candidate, Khalil Lab
In his graduate school program, Ezira Yimer‘s doctoral work centers on the HT-Evolver, a high-throughput evolution system for cellular and molecular engineering. But his path to this platform wasn’t straightforward. Before landing on tool development, Ezira worked for a startup focused on microbiome therapeutics, and explored ways to evolve receptors to... More
Another Year of Gold for BU iGEM
The team, going by the name FloraSynse, developed FloraDX, an at-home diagnostic tool for monitoring bacterial vaginosis (BV), a condition that affects nearly one in three women. Unlike current diagnostics, which offer only a single snapshot of the vaginal microbiome, the BU team’s approach uses daily sampling and continuous monitoring... More