class of 3t5 - Engineering Computing Facility - University of Toronto

Annual Report
Institute for Biomaterials
and Biomedical Engineering
Engineering New Approaches to Health and Medicine
There were several outstanding
accomplishments at the Institute
in the last year: among them, the
awarding of several Canada Research Chairs;
the recruitment of three new faculty members
and the launching of the new Biomedical
Engineering Graduate Program. A
generous grant from the Whitaker Foundation
continues to assist many of these exciting
developments.
Four IBBME Professors, a significant
fraction of the total awarded to Engineering,
were awarded chairs to establish the University’s
“Biomaterials, Tissue Engineering
and Regeneration” cluster. This honour
is a spectacular achievement and speaks to
the national recognition of the Institute’s
work in integrating engineering with the
life sciences. Tier II Chairs were awarded
to Professors Dennis Cvitkovitch (Dentistry)
Molly Shoichet, Christopher Yip
and Peter Zandstra.
We have been successful in recruiting
three accomplished new faculty members.
Dr. Milos Popovic’s research focuses on
the creation of rehabilitation devices for
stroke and spinal cord injured patients. Dr.
William Stanford, a geneticist, will be using
his expertise to address questions related
to the development of embryonic stem
cells. Dr. Julie Audet, an expert in stem cell
bioengineering, will join the Institute in
July, 2003.
In August, Professor Shoichet presented
a paper at the American Chemical Society
on research that may eventually lead to
regeneration of spinal cords. Her team’s
hopeful, but early-stage results were widely
reported in the media. Professor Stephen
Davies has begun work on creating classic
circuit components (e.g. a toggle switch) out
of DNA, leading perhaps to the building of
DNA-based electric circuits.
Professor
Michael Sefton
The fact that four
IBBME Professors were
selected as Canada Research
Chairs is a spectacular
achievement.
The new Biomedical Engineering Graduate
Program was launched this year and
proactive recruitment resulted in acceptance
of eight superior students in the first year.
Running in parallel with our long-standing
collaborative program, we are able to expand
our capacity for advancing the frontiers of
our discipline.
We are working towards the completion
of a dedicated biomedical engineering teaching
laboratory equipped with multi-functional
workstations combining computer and
microscope-based equipment for both undergraduate
and graduate students. The novel
lab design will encourage the building of
hybrid tools, linking these two approaches.
The R.S. McLaughlin Foundation and
Ontario Innovation Trust have generously
supported the creation of the McLaughlin
Centre, which together with the Centre for
Cellular and Biomolecular Research (CCBR)
includes activities in cellular and molecular
bioengineering. We are excited by the
prospects of our new CCBR building and
delighted by the progress we have made
towards creating one of the best biomedical
engineering units in North America.
30 FACULTY OF APPLIED SCIENCE & ENGINEERING/skulematters