News

BioInspired Institute Hosts Inaugural Research Symposium Oct. 7

BioInspired Institute faculty and student researchers, along with campus leaders, community biotech and biomaterials workforce innovators and institutional research partners will gather to discuss progress, celebrate discoveries and build community at the inaugural BioInspired Symposium on Friday, Oct. 7.

The conference takes place from 9:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. in the Life Sciences Complex atrium. It is the first time the institute has been able to host an in-person gathering of like-minded individuals for a formal scientific conference since waves of COVID-19 in 2020 and 2021 postponed original plans. Continue Reading

Hehnly Announced as an Inaugural Renée Crown Honors Professor

The College of Arts and Sciences (A&S) is pleased to announce that Heidi Hehnly, associate professor of biology and leader in the BioInspired Institute, is the inaugural Renée Crown Professor in the Sciences and Mathematics and Karin Nisenbaum, assistant professor of philosophy, is the inaugural Renée Crown Professor in the Humanities. The professorships are made possible thanks to a generous gift from the family of esteemed alumnae and Trustee Emerita Renée Schine Crown ’50, H ’84. Continue Reading

3D Bioprinting at the Frontier of Medical Innovation

Four people wearing white lab coats draw on a window in a laboratory
Professors Pranav Soman and Chris Santangelo (middle and far right, respectively) with Ph.D. students Zachary Geffert and Anna-Blessing Merife.

More than 106,000 Americans are waiting for a lifesaving organ transplant, with a new name added to the list every nine minutes. The demand is critical, explains Syracuse University professor Pranav Soman, and includes people of every age, gender, race and ethnicity. “There are as many people dying from organ disease as those needing a transplant. It’s a huge public health issue,” he adds. Continue Reading

Professor Zhao Qin Receives NSF CAREER Award to Support Mycelium Research

The future of construction materials may exist just inches below the surface of a typical lawn. In between the rocks and soil, a vast microfiber network is constantly assimilating wood chips along with plant waste. You may not see the network building, but you do see what it produces once mature–mushrooms.

“When temperature and humidity produce the right conditions, mushrooms grow out of the mycelium network that has existed beneath the ground,” says Civil and Environmental Engineering Professor Zhao Qin. Continue Reading

NIH ESTEEMED Grant to Enhance Diversity and Elevate Undergraduate Research in Bioengineering

After a two-year process spearheaded by biomedical and chemical engineering Professor Shikha Nangia, the College of Engineering and Computer Science (ECS) bioengineering program has been awarded a National Institutes of Health Enhancing Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math Educational Diversity (ESTEEMED) Learning and Discovery through Engineering Research at Syracuse (LEADERS) grant. Continue Reading

BioInspired Biologists Say Southern Right Whale Habitat Choice is Key to Keeping Young Calves Safe

Sitting on a beach looking out to sea, it may seem unusual to spot one of the world’s largest animals swimming in shallow, coastal, 30-foot-deep waters. But each winter, female southern right whales migrate thousands of miles to bay habitats to give birth and care for their young. So why do they choose such shallow nursery grounds that may be within dangerous proximity to human activity and where food supply is scarce? Continue Reading

Three BioInspired Faculty Receive NSF CAREER Awards

Eight Syracuse University faculty members have received CAREER awards from the National Science Foundation (NSF) Faculty Early Career Development program during the 2021-22 academic year. This is the largest number of the prestigious NSF awards earned in a single year.

Three of the awardees are faculty are members of the BioInspired Institute. Zhao Qin teaches in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering; Davoud Mozhdehi, in the Department of Chemistry; and Minghao Rostami, in the Department of Mathematics. Mozhdehi and Rostami have received funds from BioInspired as part of its Seed Grant Program. Continue Reading

Monroe Research Group Receives Multiple Awards at Society for Biomaterials Conference

Biomedical and chemical engineering Professor Mary Beth Monroe attended the Society for Biomaterials (SFB) 2022 meeting in Baltimore, Maryland, with Ph.D. students Anand Vakil, Henry Beaman, Changling Du and Maryam Ramezani, master’s student Natalie Petryk ’21, G’22 and undergraduate students Caitlyn Greene ’22, Grace Haas ’23, and Avery Gunderson ’23. The national conference included more than 850 presentations from all over the world. The Monroe lab’s research abstracts and presentations were recognized in several competitions that took place during the conference, highlighting the excellent biomaterials work at Syracuse University. Continue Reading