Research

Lighting up cancer and heart disease

Much like a fresh set of eyes, a small pen-shaped device is showing surgeons a more accurate way to treat cancer and heart disease. The device uses new technology developed at UC Davis to scan and illuminate unhealthy tissue in real time so it can be removed.

Cyborg Cells Could Be Tools for Health and Environment

Biomedical engineers at the University of California, Davis, have created semi-living “cyborg cells.” Retaining the capabilities of living cells, but unable to replicate, the cyborg cells could have a wide range of applications, from producing therapeutic drugs to cleaning up pollution.

Randy Carney Receives National Science Foundation CAREER Award

Biomedical Engineering Assistant Professor Randy Carney has received the National Science Foundation Faculty Early Career Development, or NSF CAREER, Award.   The CAREER program offers the foundation’s most prestigious awards in support of early-career faculty who have the potential to serve as academic role models and lead advances in the mission of their department. 

Expanding Alzheimer’s Diagnostics and Treatments with Extracellular Vesicles

Alzheimer’s is a disease without a clear diagnostic test nor a cure. However, researchers are developing new techniques and methods every day and in Professor Aijun Wang’s Lab at UC Davis, Biomedical Engineering graduate students Leora Goldbloom-Helzner and David Wang are exploring potential diagnoses and treatments for Alzheimer’s patients using extracellular vesicles.

Ultra-Low Dose Total Body PET/CT Effective for Evaluating Arthritis

Total body PET/CT scans can successfully visualize systemic joint involvement in patients with autoimmune arthritis, according to new first-in-human research published in the October issue of The Journal of Nuclear Medicine. The total body PET/CT scans showed high agreement with standard joint-by-joint rheumatological evaluation and a moderate to strong correlation with rheumatological outcome measures.

The Operating Room of the Future

As medical technology keeps advancing, one thing is clear: AI-controlled machines are just as good, if not better, than humans at certain medical tasks, such as detecting cancerous abnormalities. UC Davis’ Department of Biomedical Engineering is at the forefront of these AI-informed medical diagnosis innovations because of the work of Professor Laura Marcu.