The expansion and augmentation of research and education efforts within the Weldon School of Biomedical Engineering is off to an outstanding start with the hiring of six new faculty members. Read the full story here

When Greg Ayers, CEO of CryoCor, Inc. is asked about his days at Purdue, the memories come flooding back. "I have many great memories of Purdue, in the classroom, lab, and outside of the classroom. Purdue was a place that changed my life in more ways than one," he says.

In order to give back to his alma mater, Greg donates both his resources and his time to further enhance the Weldon School. A perfect opportunity was presented to him in naming a space in the new Biomedical Engineering Building. Along with alumnus John DeFord, Vice President of Science and Technology at C.R. Bard, Ayers' name will be forever associated with BME at Purdue and the building through the DeFord/Ayers Student Lounge.

"While in graduate school, John and I spent many long, fun, hard, challenging hours in the student lounge in Potter. It was always a place to blow off some steam, collaborate with other students, especially in the late hours of the day," states Ayers. "This gift met my requirement of benefiting students and was also a way to contribute in a meaningful way to the new Biomedical Engineering Building. This was a perfect fit and one I am honored to do."

Ayers not only wanted his gift to help students, he also wanted others to follow his lead. "I have met some great people at Purdue, both faculty and students. The naming of space in the building is a unique idea, one that is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. While not difficult, I'm glad I was able to convince John to participate in this opportunity with me. It adds additional meaning for me, given the time John and I spent together at Purdue."

Several naming opportunities still remain for the new Biomedical Engineering Building. To learn more about making a gift to Purdue and the Weldon School, please contact Brian Knoy at bjknoy@purdue.edu or 765-494-6241.

An interdisciplinary team from the Weldon School of Biomedical Engineering and the Department of Chemistry is exploring the use of gold nanorods for advanced medical imaging. This research, led by Assistant Professor Ji-Xin Cheng, represents a possible way to overcome barriers in developing techniques that use light to analyze blood vessels and underlying tissues, and has been featured online in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. Read the full story here.

Family is important to Sherry Voytik-Harbin (on right in photo), and two different but complementary families share this dynamic researcher. The first is her nuclear family, which is the most important part of her life. The second is the larger family of faculty, staff, and students at the Weldon School of Biomedical Engineering who are helping her advance understanding of the complex multi-dimensional interactions of cells with the surrounding extracellular matrix (ECM). From that understanding comes the possibility of engineering ECM-based biomaterials that better interface with cells for improvedrepair and regeneration of damaged tissues. Read the full story here.

When George Wodicka and Assistant Head Andrew Brightman talked about placing Weldon students as interns last summer, Brightman quipped, "If we were to place two quality interns, I would be thrilled." Well, like most things at Purdue, that goal was surpassed -- and then some. Eight BME students participated as interns last summer, with the goal of 16-20 taking positions this year.

Gina Settle, newly hired Intern Liaison, replaces Surelys Galano to take this important component of the Weldon School to a new level.

"The decision to create the internship program was based upon the desire to provide our students with a practical, supervised engineering experience that would both stimulate independent and critical thinking and assist to clarify career goals and interests," states Settle. She adds, "It not only benefits the students but also raises company awareness at Purdue. The partnerships also showcase Purdue's research capabilities and can initiate research relationships with our School." The building of strong, ongoing relationships with industry and alumni is a key goal of the BME Internship Program.

Since the concept of taking ideas to market is fostered in the Weldon School, many companies find interns, like our graduates, to be a hot commodity. Our students understand the importance of clinical trials, market factors, and profitability -- things that drive a company's bottom line.

Jenna Miller, a junior at Weldon who recently completed a summer internship at Cook Biotech in West Lafayette, had nothing but positive things to say about her experience. "The obvious benefits of my internship were the lab skills I acquired and the connections I made," she says. "Beyond this, I learned how to function in an industrial environment and what goes on in a company to take a product to market."

Her class experience not only helped her understand a lot of the projects she worked on, but her work at Cook Biotech also gave her a new perspective when classes started in the fall. Miller states, "Upon returning to classes after my internship, I think that I began to see more depth in the topics presented. That is, I began to peer behind the scenes and look for the practical applications and how they would function."

Miller is looking forward to her next internship experience and hopes to build on her experience at Cook Biotech. "My internship was an invaluable experience, and I feel sincerely lucky to have the opportunity to work with the people that I did. I was able to both learn and enjoy myself on a daily basis."

Companies interested in hosting a summer intern should contact Gina Settle at gsettle@purdue.edu or 765-494-7871.

"It's the South, except it snows."

This is how Lester Smith describes the similarities in hospitality and kindness between Purdue and his hometown of New Orleans. Read the full story here.

The American Institute for Medical and Biological Engineering has named three members of the BME family as Fellows. Professor Ben M. Hillberry, John A DeFord (VP, Science and Technology, C. R. Bard, Inc.), and Greg Ayers (CEO, CryoCor, Inc.) will be inducted in a ceremony to be held at the National Academy in March.

Founded in 1991, this professional society represents the field of medical and biological engineering. The society works to promote awareness of the field, encourage public policies that advance the field, improve relations and cooperation within the field, and recognize outstanding individual and group achievements within the field.

Ben M. Hillberry is a Professor of Biomedical Engineering and a Professor of Mechanical Engineering at Purdue and founded the Biomechanics Laboratory for simulation and evaluation of knee and spinal implants. His research interests include the development of total joint prosthesis, the mechanical factors contributing to the development of arthritis, motion and force analysis of skeletal systems, and performance evaluation of human systems.

John A. DeFord earned his B.S. and M.S in Electrical Engineering, and his Ph.D. in Biomedical Engineering from Purdue. He served as President and CEO of Cook, Inc., Managing Director of Early State Partners (a venture capital fund), and currently serves as Vice President for Science and Technology at C. R. Bard, Inc. and as a member of the Advisory Board for the Weldon School of Biomedical Engineering.

Dr. Gregory M Ayers earned his Ph.D. in Biomedical Engineering from Purdue and his M.D. from Indiana University. He served as Vice President of InControl, Inc., and currently is founder and CEO of CryoCor, Inc., CEO of SonarMed, Inc., is a Venture Partner at MPM Capital, serves on the board of Hemosense, Inc., and as a member of the Advisory Board for the Weldon School of Biomedical Engineering.

"This is a well deserved honor for these outstanding individuals," states George Wodicka. "AIMBE is the premier biomedical engineering organization, and serves as a key voice of the field to a variety of audiences. We are glad that they have chosen to honor the important contributions of these members of our BME family."

Jan. 9th - Spring Semester Classes Start

March 13th - 18th Spring Break

April 29th - Classes End

May 1st - 6th - Final Exams

May 13th, 9:30 a.m. - Spring 2006 Commencement, Engineering

September 22nd - BME Building Dedication

September 23rd - Purdue Homecoming Football Game against Minnesota