Johns Hopkins Biomedical Engineering

Engineering the Future of Medicine

News

A model of a patient’s heart is constructed from MRI and PET scans.

New tool predicts sudden death in inflammatory heart disease

Johns Hopkins University scientists have developed a new tool for predicting which patients suffering from a complex inflammatory heart disease are at risk of sudden cardiac arrest.

The Olympic rings are lit up in front of a bridge.

The games go on, but without fans. Will athletes’ performance suffer?

Vikram Chib, whose research at Johns Hopkins focuses on the brain processes behind motivation and incentive and how they relate to motor actions, discusses what to expect from participants in the Tokyo Olympics.

A computer rendering shows virus and DNA.

Researchers partner with industry to create better gene therapy tools

A team from the Institute for NanoBioTechnology has streamlined the creation of new viral vectors for delivering gene therapy to patients.

The image shows a computer rendering of a back x-ray.

Back(s) to Life

Those with spinal cord injuries are often plagued by pain and paralysis. An ultra-high-tech spinal implant being developed by Johns Hopkins engineers could dramatically improve that bleak reality—and transform clinical medicine.

Two headshots are side-by-side. Rene Vidal at left, and Noah Cowan at right.

Safety first: Project aims to make AI-based autonomous systems more reliable and secure

Using a $7.5 million, five-year grant from the U.S. Department of Defense, a multi-university team that includes Johns Hopkins engineers is tackling one of today's most complex and important technological challenges: How to ensure the safety of autonomous systems, from self-driving cars and aerial delivery drones to robotic surgical assistants.

Scanning electron microscope image of a silicone breast implant. Credit: Josh Doloff

Study suggests that smoother silicone breast implants reduce severity of immune system reactions

According to researchers at Johns Hopkins Medicine, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and Rice University, silicone breast implants with a smoother surface design have less risk of producing inflammation and other immune system reactions than those with more roughly textured coatings.

This is a stock photo of sequencing genetics.

Study adds to evidence that most cancer cells grown in a dish have little in common genetically with cancer cells in people

Johns Hopkins scientists report they have developed a new computer-based technique showing that human cancer cells grown in culture dishes are the least genetically similar to their human sources.

An eviction notice is shown next to a surgical mask.

Pandemic Eviction Bans Found to Protect Entire Communities from Covid-19 Spread

A new study led by researchers at Johns Hopkins and the University of Pennsylvania uses computer modeling to suggest that eviction bans authorized during the COVID-19 pandemic reduced the infection rate and not only protected those who would have lost their housing but also entire communities from the spread of infections.

New study examines locomotion of aging cells

A new study by Jude Phillip, assistant professor in the Department of Biomedical Engineering, is taking a closer look at how age can impact the behavior of cells, specifically, the way in which they move around the body.

Xingde Li and Alan Cohen

Two researchers with ties to Hopkins BME earn grants through Bisciotti Foundation Translational Fund

Two Johns Hopkins professors with ties to the Department of Biomedical Engineering have received grants for their research through the Bisciotti Foundation Translational Fund.

An image of a woman's ear is shown with white lines representing sound waves.

February 15, 2021

Study in newborn mice suggests sounds influence the developing brain earlier than previously thought

Through experiments in newborn mice, scientists at Johns Hopkins report that sounds appear to change “wiring” patterns in certain areas of the brain earlier than scientists assumed and even before the ear canal opens.

February 4, 2021

3 Questions: Alexis Battle

Alexis Battle, associate professor of biomedical engineering, and her team have developed software that, if paired with expanded sample collection practices, could help identify more causes of genetic disorders.

An image of hospital gear shows a stethoscope.

January 14, 2021

Machine learning tool gives early warning of cardiac issues in COVID-19 patients

A new algorithm could warn doctors in advance of cardiac arrest or blood clots in hospitalized COVID-19 patients.

The Johns Hopkins University crest is shown.

December 8, 2020

Eight from Hopkins BME earn Johns Hopkins Discovery Awards

41 multidisciplinary endeavors have been selected to receive support this year from Johns Hopkins University's Discovery Awards program. Eight of these endeavors include faculty from the Department of Biomedical Engineering.

A CT scanner has a uv light shining on the inner bore.

December 7, 2020

Fighting COVID-19: Using ultraviolet light to decontaminate CT scanners

CT scans are vital to imaging lung diseases including COVID-19, but disinfecting the machines between use is time consuming. One team of researchers may have landed on a solution.

An x-ray of a head and spinal cord are shown.

November 11, 2020

Cross-disciplinary team will design, develop devices to better treat spinal cord injuries

Funded through the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, the project will bring together experts from across Johns Hopkins to create solutions that work on the battlefield and on the frontlines of health care.

A glucose monitor is pictured on a white background.

September 28, 2020

Johns Hopkins researchers develop system for using everyday glucose monitors to detect COVID-19 antibodies

A trio of Johns Hopkins scientists—a pharmacologist, a biomedical engineer, and a biophysicist—are pooling their knowledge to design a device that can detect whether a person has antibodies linked to SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19.

An artist rendering of sepsis under a microscope.

September 24, 2020

Septic shock starts earlier than understood and develops distinct levels of patient risk, study suggests

A new study from Johns Hopkins biomedical engineers finds that hospitals could categorize patients based on risk and develop early monitoring systems to detect early stages of septic shock.

September 10, 2020

New genetic analysis method could advance personal genomics

Geneticists could identify the causes of disorders that currently go undiagnosed if standard practices for collecting individual genetic information were expanded to capture more variants that researchers can now decipher.

A woman is resting her head on her desk with a cup of coffee in her hand.

August 26, 2020

Got fatigue? Study further pinpoints brain regions that may control it

Scientists at Johns Hopkins Medicine using MRI scans and computer modeling say they have further pinpointed areas of the human brain that regulate efforts to deal with fatigue.

The graphic representing the Johns Hopkins solution to imaging scan problems from metal implants.

Johns Hopkins researchers solve imaging scan problems caused by metal implants

Engineers at Johns Hopkins have solved the problem of distorted imaging scans that plague surgeons who need to use them to assess the placement of metal implants.

Scientists use nanoparticle-delivered gene therapy to inhibit blinding eye disease in rodents

In experiments in rats and mice, two Johns Hopkins scientists — an engineer and an ophthalmologist — report the successful use of nanoparticles to deliver gene therapy for blinding eye disease.

The image shows a drawing of the COVID-19 virus and an arrow.

SARS-CoV-2 is mutating slowly, and that’s a good thing

Johns Hopkins scientists studying the virus that causes COVID-19 say the pathogen has few variations, a promising observation that boosts the chances of developing an effective vaccine.

Dialysate Bag Almost Filled from Dialysis Machine

Johns Hopkins team develops new method to make kidney dialysis fluid for patients with COVID-19

A team of researchers and students at Johns Hopkins are working to replenish the diminishing reserve of kidney dialysis fluid to help those with acute kidney injury, including COVID-19 patients who develop the disorder.

The photo shows a microscope image representing a virus amongst red blood cells.

Researchers urge clinical trial of blood pressure drug to prevent lethal complication of COVID-19

Johns Hopkins researchers report they have identified a drug treatment that could—if given early enough—potentially reduce the risk of death from the most serious complication of COVID-19, also known as SARS-CoV-2 infection.

A computer image shows numbers and a drawing of a person to represent the concept of machine learning.

Johns Hopkins researchers to use machine learning to predict heart damage in COVID-19 victims

Johns Hopkins researchers recently received a $195,000 Rapid Response Research grant from the National Science Foundation to, using machine learning, identify which COVID-19 patients are at risk of adverse cardiac events such as heart failure, sustained abnormal heartbeats, heart attacks, cardiogenic shock and death.

Gene variant in noncoding DNA linked to heart failure

When scientists scour the genome for disease-causing culprits, they wouldn’t ordinarily look in so-called noncoding regions, areas of repetitive DNA that do not code for proteins. Yet, that’s exactly where Johns Hopkins scientists found genomic variations in a new study of people with heart failure.

A microscope view of a red blood cell coated nanoparticle.

Researchers create nanoparticle with ‘look and feel’ of red blood cells to soak up toxins

Johns Hopkins biomedical engineer Jordan Green and his colleagues have developed a nanoparticle that has the shape and “skin” of red blood cells. The red blood cell mimics can be injected into the bloodstream and circulate within vessels for long periods to absorb toxic substances.

A red circular image shows many parts that make up MemoSYS.

Scientists develop free computer program to map blood flow ‘landscape’ in tumors

Johns Hopkins researchers have created a computer program for scientists at no charge that lets users readily quantify the structural and functional changes in the blood flow networks feeding tumors.

A rocket ship blasts off with text overlay reading, "Heart cells are going on a trip..."

Little tissue, big mission: Beating heart tissues to ride aboard the ISS

Launching no earlier than March 6, Johns Hopkins University will send heart muscle tissues, contained in a specially-designed tissue chip the size of a small cellphone, up to the microgravity environment of the International Space Station for one month of observation.

Read the Johns Hopkins University privacy statement here.

Accept