Environmental Science and Electron Carriers

Research Intern: Chansarina Kek
Faculty Mentor: Prof. Dongming Xie
Graduate Student Mentor: Alexandria Williams
The interns in the Biomanufacturing Science and Engineering Lab (BioSEL) at UMass Lowell focused on biomanufacturing of value-added fuels, chemicals, materials, nutraceuticals, and pharmaceuticals from renewable feedstocks. The students worked together with graduate students for several projects funded by the National Sci Science Foundation and Department of Energy. They learned how to grow yeast and bacterial cells in bioreactors for the biomanufacturing of high-value products. The students also gained experimental skills and experience in molecular biology, metabolic engineering, and bioreaction engineering during this period. 
Containers in box bathed in purple light

Plant Scaffolds for Biomedical Engineering

Research Interns:  Moustafa Alsaied 
Faculty Mentor: Prof. Yanfen Li
Graduate Student Mentor: Marla Hilderbrand-Chae
Interns on this project analyzed the mechanical properties of several fast-growing, plant-based scaffolds to optimize the matching of scaffolds to future tissues. Students learned how to decellularize plants, perform cell culture, and conduct a variety of mechanical testing. Students also learned how to translate their learning to develop an at-home learning kit that teaches high school and undergraduate students about tissue decellularization. 
Threaded metal part on plastic base

Light and Electromagnetic Waves Interactions with stuff

Research Intern: Tristan Sou
Faculty Mentor: Prof. Corey Shemelya
Graduate Student Mentor: Basil Vanderbie
The intern aided in literature review and analysis, computer aided drafting, and electrical/RF tests. The project focused on electromagnetics and how light/electromagnetic waves interact with "stuff," and its potential applications to medical imaging. The student worked closely with undergraduate and graduate researchers to gain an understanding of electrical engineering.

Tubes attached to dishes and devices

Skin Models and Skin Deformation

Research Interns: Angeliris Cabrera and Raizel Mashood
Faculty Mentor: Prof. Walfre Franco
Graduate Student Mentor: Edidong Etim
Interns on this project developed skin optical phantoms, which are laboratory models that mimic the structure and optical properties of the skin. These phantoms were used as targets for the development of optical technologies. The phantoms were fabricated using different combinations of absorbing and scattering materials, like water, India ink, Intralipid, etc.

Printing Biosensors

Research Intern:  Anielia Olivares
Faculty Mentor: Prof. Wei Guo
The interns completed hands-on, experimental work to build electronic circuits for human markers and biosensing applications. Interns built the sensor using novel additive manufacturing processes, such as printing circuits. Interns then used standard techniques to characterize the sensors and evaluate their construction.

Environmental Engineering - Soy Biomass in Plastics

Research Intern: Aiden Doherty
Faculty Mentor: Grace Chen and Yanfen Li
Graduate Student Mentor: Mdakiful Haque
Interns on this project worked to upcycle cellulose- and protein-rich agricultural waste into biodegradable mulch film for use in agricultural applications. The goal was to accelerate their biodegradation rate to match industrial needs while showing comparable performance such as mechanical properties to typical biodegradable mulch film. Interns were trained for charactering biodegradable plastic materials and analyzing plant tissues/cells using optical (optical microscope, scanning electronic microscope), surface (contact angle measurement), thermal (e.g., TGA, DSC), and chemical (E.g., FTIR, GCMS), and biological (e.g., DNA extraction) characterization instruments.

RNA Sequencing and Bioinformatics

Research Interns: Erin Sam and Sabrina Vitale
Faculty Mentor: Prof. Frederic Chain

The interns investigated how genomes evolve and populations diverge using computational methods. The research involved guided but independent (1) literature searches to get familiar with the topic and various bioinformatic applications, (2) coding in UNIX and/or R to run bioinformatic tools for analyzing/visualizing genomic data, and (3) writing a detailed notebook to develop a written training manual and accompanying video tutorial on the chosen bioinformatic application.

Dropper putting liquid in blue squares

Microwire Bundles and Brain Recording

Research Interns: Hadassah Keo-Vann and Manarineth Tann 
Faculty Mentor: Prof. Lei Chen
Graduate Student Mentor: Dongyang Yi
The interns on this project were involved in further development of technologies to advance the fabrication and implantation processes of brain-machine interfaces. The high school students assisted graduate students in the lab working on topics including (1) brain-mimicking phantom development for brain insertion tests, (2) laser-assisted sharpening of carbon fiber-based brain recording microelectrodes, (3) automatic fabrication machine for custom brain-machine interfaces, and (4) vibration-assisted insertion of microelectrode arrays.

Neural Engineering

Research Intern: Kristen Lopez- Ferreira, Princess Onyenwe, Siya Patel, and Tiffany Tran 
Faculty Mentors: Profs. Chiara Ghezzi and Bryan Black
The interns gained hands-on experience in cell line and iPSC culture, electrophysiological recordings, biomaterials processing and characterization, as well as other cell and tissue engineering functional assays. This culminated in being given an independent research question address using the design and technical methods they learned throughout this experience. 
Two computer screens with graphics on them

Modeling Blood Flow in the Heart

Research Intern: Ibraheem Amin
Faculty Mentor: Prof. Alan Wei
The intern processed images acquired by medical imaging facility and high-speed camera in in vitro experiments. The aim was to measure the effects of transcatheter heart valve (THV) configurations in order to prevent or mitigate flow stasis and leaflet thrombosis. The student learned MATLAB to analyze image data and SolidWorks to design individual parts and assemblies. 

Chemical Synthesis of Antimicrobials

Research Interns: Disha Patel and Reyni Ruiz
Faculty Mentor: Prof. Mingdi Yan
Graduate Student Mentor: Dang Truoung
The interns worked on projects evaluating the activities and/or mechanisms of the antimicrobial compounds. The project involved training in microbiology assays, data analysis, record keeping, and writing project reports.