Department of Biomedical Engineering
Chair: Professor Van C. Mow, 351 Engineering Terrace, 212-854-8462
• biomechanics
• design of instrumentation for testing soft tissues
• software development for joint modeling and computer-assisted surgery
Student participants will be involved in the testing of biological soft tissues for the determination of material and tribological properties, and in the design of instrumentation for performing such measurements. Possible credit or remuneration, 12 hours per week term-time and full time during the summer.
Contact: Professor Gerard A. Ateshian, , 220 Mudd, 212-854-8602
• MR spectroscopy
• functional imaging of the brain
• image and data analysis and processing
• MR instrumentation development
Opportunities for junior and senior students include the following: image and spectroscopy data analysis, MR scanner data acquisition, analysis software and MR sequence development, techniques to measure cerebral metabolism, flow, and perfusion; experience with Matlab and mathematical literacy very helpful. The weekly commitment is 6–10 hours primarily on the Health Sciences Campus; possible credit or remuneration.
Contact: Professor Truman R. Brown, , 710 West 168th Street, 212-305-1864
• MEMS application in bone cell biology
• image analysis and modeling of bone microstructure
• tissue engineering of cartilage-bone interface
• micromechanics of bone tissue
Opportunities for undergraduate research assistants working on various projects in the laboratory: in vivo animal studies of cellular and molecular response of bone tissue to mechanical stimuli; application of MEMS technology in bone cell biology; image analysis and modeling of bone microstructures, tissue engineering of cartilage-bone interface (in collaboration with Professors Ateshian, Hung, and Lu); micromechanics testing and modeling of bone microstructures. Students seeking long-term association are preferred. Possible credit or remuneration, 12 hours per week during academic year and full time during the summer.
Contact: Professor X. Edward Guo, , 351 Engineering Terrace, 212-854-6196
• design and testing of instrumentation for optical medical imaging
• software development for medical image reconstruction
• functional brain imaging studies
This laboratory works toward a novel medical imaging modality in which near-infrared light is used to obtain cross-sectional images of various body parts, such as the breast, brain, or limbs. Possible projects include a wide range of topics such as studying light-tissue interactions, setting up clusters for parallel processing, numerically solving large-scale optimization problems with finite-difference and finite-element schemes, designing electro-optical circuits for light amplification and detection, and performing clinical studies concerning rheumatoid arthritis, cerebral vascular diseases, and others. Possible credit or remuneration, 12 hours per week term-time and full time during the summer.
Contact: Professor Andreas Hielscher, , 351 Engineering Terrace, 212-854-5080
• development of laser imaging and CCD-camera based systems
• acquisition of in vivo data to investigate neurovascular coupling in the brain,
electrical propagation in the heart, and skin cancer
• data analysis and reconstruction of dynamic optical imaging and microscopy data
Undergraduates joining our lab will learn about different high-resolution optical imaging methods. We apply these methods primarily to study the function of the brain in vivo, but also have projects relating to dermal and cardiac imaging. Students may wish to gain experience developing imaging systems, applying and learning electronics, optics, data acquisition hardware, and graphical user interface software development. Students may also wish to learn to acquire in vivo data and investigate some of the fundamental aspects of brain function such as neurovascular coupling—the way that neurons in the brain communicate with the blood supply. Image processing, computer simulations, and data processing are also major aspects of our work to which students can contribute. Possible credit or remuneration, 12 hours per week term-time and full time during the summer.
Contact: Professor Elizabeth Hillman, , 351L Engineering Terrace,
212-854-2788
• mechanotransduction of cardiovascular cells
• cell-cell interactions and control of cell behavior
• tissue engineering
• fundamental disease mechanisms
Research opportunities available for undergraduates interested in cell mechanics or mechanotransduction research. The projects’ goal is to understand how mechanical stresses and junctional molecules regulate cell migration, stiffness, and mechanotransduction. Cell culture experience useful but not necessary. Student will learn basic cell culture and microscopy techniques, as well as select molecular techniques depending on the project direction. Instrumentation modification, design, and implementation are available as well. Two research focus tracks are available: (1) effect of genetic mutations on cell mechanics from a cardiac disease model (disease mechanism); and (2) effect of mechanical stresses on cell behavior (tissue engineering applications). Possible credit or remuneration, for a commitment of at least 10 hours per week per term, through the academic year and possibly full time during the summer.
Contact: Professor Hayden Huang, , 351 Engineering Terrace
• evaluation of functional material/biochemical properties of growing tissue constructs
• studies of orthopedic mechanotransduction-cell response to mechanical forces
Students will be involved with multidisciplinary research of the Cellular Engineering Laboratory that is aimed at the study of physical regulation of articular cartilage as well as orthopedic tissue engineering. Students seeking long-term associations are preferred. Possible credit or remuneration, 12 hours per week term-time and full time during the summer.
Contact: Professor Clark T. Hung, , 351 Engineering Terrace, 212-854-6542
• evaluation of the response of cells expressing mutant mechanosensing proteins
• microscopic determination of the mechanical behavior of cells
• in vivo evaluation of the skeletal response to mechanical loads of mutant mice
The Cell and Molecular Biomechanics Laboratory is focused on determining the molecular mechanism that bone cells use to sense and respond to changes in their mechanical environment. Opportunities for undergraduate research assistants include utilizing techniques from cell and molecular biology to determine the role of specific proteins in mechanosensing. These insights are translated into in vivo mouse models with mutations of specific proteins that are, in turn, evaluated in terms of the ability of their bone to adapt to changes in the mechanical demands they are exposed to. Possible credit or remuneration, 12 hours per week during the academic year and full time during the summer.
Contact: Professor Christopher R. Jacobs, , 351 Engineering Terrace,
212-854-4460
• 3-D cardiac ultrasound imaging: dynamic segmentation
• methods for automated recognition of protein crystals
• nodule detection algorithms in spiral CT lung screening
• CAD for digital mammography
• quantification of adipose tissue in MR imaging
Students are sought who are interested in assisting in the testing, performance evaluation and development of quantitative and qualitative methods of image analysis. Projects include the detection and diagnosis of disease through the modalities of ultrasound, MRI, PET, CT, and digital mammography. Participation requires competence of programming in Matlab, C, IDL, or Java and an interest to learn underlying algorithms. Students with knowledge of signal processing and applied mathematics are preferred. Projects can provide academic credit and remuneration, 8–12 hours per week during the academic year and full-time opportunities in the summer.
Contact: Professor Andrew Laine, , 407 CEPSR, 212-854-6539
• development of novel biomaterials for musculoskeletal tissue regeneration
• study of interactions between cells and biomaterial surfaces
• dental tissue engineering
• research projects: design and custom-built small devices, literature search
Student participants will be introduced to various stages of the development of tissue- engineered scaffolds and hybrid matrices for musculoskeletal and dental tissue engineering, focusing on applications at the interface between bone and soft tissue. The student may be involved in the background literature search, in the design of experiments, as well as in data analysis, modeling, and interpretation. An interest in biomaterial design and/or cell-material interaction is expected. Possible credit or work study, 10–12 hours per week term-time or full time during the summer.
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Contact: Professor Helen H. Lu, , 351 Engineering Terrace, 212-854-4071
• development of the necessary instrumentation to simulate brain injury
• tissue culture of rat brain tissue
• electrophysiological measurements and signal processing
Matriculating juniors with a minimum 3.0 GPA are invited to apply for research opportunities to explore the molecular, cellular, and functional consequences of traumatic brain injury. These opportunities will span the full gamut of projects from instrumentation development and assembly, feedback control systems, image analysis, signal processing, tissue culture, application of molecular biology, etc. Experience in any of the above-mentioned fields is beneficial but not a prerequisite; however, an enthusiasm to reduce the societal impact of head injury is required. Students seeking long-term associations are preferred. Possible credit or remuneration, 12 hours per week term-time and full time during the summer.
Contact: Professor Barclay Morrison, bm2119@columbia.edu, 363 Engineering Terrace,
212-854-6277
• flow properties of biomacromolecular solutions
• computer-aided surgical planning
• design and construct instrumentations
• quantitative imaging and MRI
• biomaterial testing
Opportunities for participation include paper study, mathematical and computer projects, library research, engineering and scientific design, mechanical and electrical assembly, material testing, experimental surgery, computational or computer analysis (including material testing), and artwork and graphics. Project could provide academic credit and remuneration
Contact: Professor Van C. Mow, Stanley Dicker Professor of Biomedical Engineering
and Orthopedic Bioengineering; Director, Orthopedic Research Laboratory; , 630 West 168th Street, 212-305-1515
• computational vision
• analysis of spatiotemporal and spectral imagery
Student participants will be involved in development and evaluation of biomimetic models of perceptual organization and object recognition. An interest in learning-related aspects of neuroscience and computer vision is expected. Good programming skills required (e.g., MATLAB, C, C++, Java). Background in linear algebra and introduction to probability theory would also be helpful (but not required). Possible credit or remuneration, 12 hours per week term-time and full time during the summer.
Contact: Professor Paul Sajda, , 1013 CEPSR, 212-854-5279
• studies of human stem cells
• advanced biomaterials and bioreactors
Opportunities for undergraduate research assistants to work on biophysical regulation of stem cells (adult and embryonic), tissue engineering of functional grafts (cardiac “patch,” orthopaedic tissues, vascular beds). Both experimental and modeling studies will be available. Laboratory skills and experience with cell culture are a great plus. Work for credit during the semester. The weekly commitment is 10 hours or more.
Contact: Professor Gordana Vunjak-Novakovic, ,
622 West 168th Street (Vanderbilt), 12-201 and 12-234, 1605-1611, 212-305-2304