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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
One Drop At A Time
The annual International Genetically Engineered Machine (iGEM) competition is a momentous opportunity for engineering students with a passion for synthetic biology to gain valuable hands-on experience and make their big ideas into solid reality. More
BU’s Christopher Chen Elected a National Academy of Inventors Fellow
Imagine a future where we can build replacement organs as easily as tech companies churn out new phones. Or where a heart attack can be cured with a simple patch. Or where liver failure can be reversed with a supercharged tissue implant. More
Immune Cells Engineered to Battle Cancer Can Be Turned “On” or “Off”
The billions of immune cells that help protect us from diseases do amazing things, but sometimes they need a little boost. For decades, scientists have been trying to figure out ways to engineer living immune cells to better combat aggressive diseases, like cancer. More
The Kilachand Fund’s Impact on Science’s Biggest Challenges
In the past, scientists had it relatively easy, according to biomedical engineer Christopher Chen. They could spend their days diligently working alone in a private lab, inventing the commercial light bulb (Thomas Edison) or developing the polio vaccine (Jonas Salk). More
Runyon Grant for BME Study of Tumor “Design Principles”
What does yeast have to do with cancer? When it comes to studying how tumors form and grow, the answer is quite a lot, says Heidi Klumpe. A BME postdoctoral researcher, Klumpe has won a fellowship from the Damon Runyon Cancer Research Foundation to figure out how cells aggregate into tumors. More
With Keck Funding, BU-UCI Team to Study Cell Signaling
A continent-spanning team that includes Associate Professor Ahmad (Mo) Khalil (BME) has garnered a $1 million award from the W.M. Keck Foundation for a cell signaling study that might lead to heart and pain therapies with fewer side effects. More
Schmidt Award Will Empower Khalil to Pursue Cross-Disciplinary Research
Associate Professor Ahmad “Mo” Khalil (BME) has earned the Schmidt Science Polymaths Award, recognizing him as a bold researcher and fueling the possibility of advances toward the engineering of new multicellular systems, including plants, that can help humanity address devastating diseases and grapple with climate change. More
From the Lab to Your Life
Tiny rings that stop chronic pain. A molecule that targets deadly lung cancer. Robotic hands that can pluck even the most delicate fruit. These are just a few of the innovations under development by Boston University faculty this year—and each of them may be the starting point for new commercial ventures thanks to the BU Ignition Awards. More
The Quest for a Heart Attack Cure
Heart disease is one of the world’s most deadly and insidious killers. In the United States alone, it causes one in every four deaths nationwide—that’s a staggering 659,000 people each year, or roughly equivalent to the entire population of Portland, Ore. More
The Line Between Biology and Technology Has Blurred—There’s No Going Back
Have you used Waze to route you from point A to point B as quickly as possible? Have you asked Alexa or Siri to suggest some music, or has autocorrect improved spelling in your texts or emails? Do you ever stop to think about the influence these technologies have over your decisions and behaviors, or have these technologies simply blended seamlessly into the way you interact with the world? More