YSM Issue 87.4

NEWS
biomedical engineering
MENG 404 project wins design competition
BY MILANA BOCHKUR DRATVER
From concept to creation, learning at Yale
transcends the confines of a classroom.
Through their work in the Medical Device
Design Course (MENG 404), a team of Yale
students won the first place prize of $10,000
in the BMEStart competition. Natalie Pancer
(YC ’14), Andrew Crouch (YC ’14), Brian
Loeb (YC ’14), Raja Narayan (YSPH ’14),
and Kristi Oki (YC ’14) developed a novel
method of preserving and transporting the
small intestine during the transplant process.
The BMEStart Competition, sponsored
through VentureWell, aims to distinguish
excellent undergraduate feats in biomedical
engineering. The Intestine Perfusion,
Preservation, and Transportation Device
(IPPTD) is a revolutionary design expected
to improve the current standard of care in
intestinal transplants.
Currently, many intestinal transplants
do not remain functional after the transfer
Clever device tackles challenges in organ transplantation
process. Once the organ is collected, it is placed in a plastic bag
with a standard solution and moved using an ice cooler. Though
it typically works for other organs, this system cannot support the
many blood vessels throughout the small intestine, resulting in tissue
damage and death. With the support of Professor of Surgery and
Director of Surgical Research John
Geibel and others at the Yale School
of Medicine, the team of students
sought to improve the technique.
The team invented a pump
perfusion system to help the
carrying solution reach more blood
vessels. The IPPTD is composed of
two pumps that suffuse the small
intestine from the inside with a
specialized solution: a closed loop
for the lumen and an open system
for the vasculature. This approach
helps to remove cellular waste
product and harmful oxidizing
agents from the intestine, increasing
the viability of the transplanted
organ. In addition, the team developed a more stable container to
steady the intestine during transportation, preventing mechanical
damage.
After designing the device, the students ran experiments to prove
its potential. Collaborating with engineers, professors, and surgeons,
the students were able to build and test a prototype. Using pig
intestines, the team compared the traditional method with their new
device. Partnering with the Department of Pathology, they showed
that the intestine transported using the IPPTD
was more intact and had sustained less damage
after arriving at its destination than the control
intestine.
The team not only won the BMEStart
Competition, but also presented at the Society
for Surgery of the Alimentary Tract meeting
this past May. The product is in the process
of gaining a full patent and is being further
developed for clinical use.
The pilot course MENG 404 was a success.
Taught by Assistant Director of the Center
for Engineering Innovation and Design
Joseph Zinter and former School of Medicine
research scientist Richard Fan , the class was
intended to spur undergraduate innovation in
medicine. “[We] wanted to design a class that
could help Yale engineering students get a
better understanding of the practical aspects of
bridging engineering and medicine, and see if
[they] could find new interesting opportunities
for innovation,” Fan explained.
At the beginning of the semester, several doctors presented issues
they had observed in the clinic. Students then formed teams to focus
on specific cases. Pancer, Crouch, Loeb, Narayan, and Oki found
Geibel’s pitch on intestine transport to be the most interesting
and joined together to tackle the
challenge of increasing small
intestine transplant success.
The entire process proved to
be rewarding for instructors and
students alike. Loeb reflected on his
experience: “This was an incredible
view of the design process from
start to finish. I’ll now always be
able to look at products and have a
deeper appreciation for what goes
into them—or what can make
them better!”
IMAGE COURTESY OF RAJA NARAYAN
Brian Loeb (YC ‘14) poses with the
transport device.
IMAGE COURTESY OF NATALIE PANCER
Members of the student team. From left to right: Raja Narayan,
Kristi Oki, Andrew Crouch, Natalie Pancer, and Brian Loeb.
Pancer dubbed this project “the
most amazing experience of [her]
Yale career” because she was able
to work on a “hands-on project
that actually affects people.” “This was a course designed to take
real world problems, put engineering students on them, and see if
they could come up with a solution in a very short period of time,”
described Geibel. “I was very excited by how it worked out.”
Other teams last fall advanced home monitoring for epilepsy,
new tools for oral surgery, and mechanisms for subcutaneous drug
delivery. Now in its second year, the course will offer a new group
of students the opportunity to solve real-world medical challenges.
8 Yale Scientific Magazine October 2014 www.yalescientific.org