(6e) Microfluidic Bioanalytical Systems: From Point of Care Detection of Infectious Agents to Analysis of Biomarkers on Mars

This poster will present my research and development activities in bioanalytical microfluidics, instrumentation, and systems integration. This includes the development of a DARPA-sponsored field-deployable mobile analysis platform (MAPs) for analysis of infectious agents and the the Mars Organic Analyzer (MOA) for the in-situ detection of biomarkers as part of a JPL / European Space Agency mission called ExoMars.

Research Interests:

As a PI in a “skunk works” division of Abbott Labs I was awarded ~3 million dollars in extramural government funding in nanopore technology and microfluidics. As a scientist I was a technical lead on $60M of government funded projects for infectious agent detection and sample to next gen sequencing projects. I would like to continue research in these areas and my future faculty research goals will be focused on:

(1) Combating the emerging threat of antibiotic and multi-drug resistant bacteria through creation of rapid point of care diagnostics via the development of microfluidic and biosensor technologies, partnering with medical colleagues for the bioinformatic analysis of massively-parallel next-generation-sequencing data, and linking genetic information to phenotype via single cell level bacterial population demographics (e.g. using TB and ESKAPE bacteria) (2) Creation and development of bioanalytical sensors and bio-inspired materials that interface the nano, micro, and macroscope world to enable high throughput, portable, and cost effective diagnostics (3) Understanding the role of epigenetics in aging and disease and the creation of new methods and tools for predictive diagnostics (4) Astrobiology and the study of Extremeophiles by working with collaborators at the Jet Propulsion Lab (JPL) and Academia for the chemical exploration of the universe.

Teaching Interests:

My teaching experience is highlighted by a dual level undergraduate and graduate course (Surface Science and Colloidal Phenomena) which I co-taught with my advisor as a graduate student at Northwestern University modeled after a teaching apprenticeship program intended for preparing future faculty. This was excellent opportunity for me to learn by doing and I directly gave half the lectures and designed some of the questions on the final exam. For my lectures, I used a combination of the chalk board augmented with power point slides featuring videos and graphics of current literature. Additionally, the course feature a lab “field trip” (down the hall on the ground floor) to examine a working Langmuir-trough and observe surface phase transitions of surfactants using fluorescence microscopy. The course covered topics adjacent to but not directly covered by many fields such as surface energy and surface tension, light scattering, adsorption isotherms, and colloidal stability. The course was generally received well by the students. For other teaching experiences, I previously served as a teaching assistant for this same class and twice served for a laboratory section of process dynamics and controls in the Chemical Engineering department at Northwestern University. Given the opportunity, I would like to continue to teach the course in surface science and colloidal phenomena as these concepts are becoming more and more important in the chemical and biomedical sciences to understand things at the micro- and nano- scales.

On my wish list would be to teach a polymer science course with laboratory sections that tie into lectures. For instance, during the lectures surrounding free radical kinetics and chain transfer agents, students would be split into several small groups to produce polyacrylamide with varying molar mass by altering the amount of isopropanol. The students would then learn light scattering theory and also how to use a gel permeation chromatography system including software to analyze those polymers to reinforce the lectures for polymer characterization. DNA and proteins can also be considered polymers and specific techniques for their analysis would also be covered. Polymers are becoming more and more important to chemical and biomedical engineers and, within my industry experience, polymers can be found in a multitude of products including dissolvable stents, drug eluting pacemakers, anti-fouling surfaces, pharmaceuticals, membranes, diagnostics, and general biomedical instrumentation.

Other traditional ChemE courses I would enjoy teach would be Chemical Kinetics and Reactor design, Material and Energy Balances, Statistical Analysis, and ChemE Labs. For my laboratory sections and where possible, I like to get my hands dirty and follow the “watch one, help me with one, then teach me one” methodology. I also now have 7+ years of industrial experience to draw upon and can impart some of that professional knowledge onto students.

I have an interest in developing a course or an incubator environment with a startup or “maker space” mentality to foster the tinkering and innovation centers of the brain – e.g. what makes an engineer and engineer. When it comes to design and prototyping I agree with the philosophy of Fail Early, Fail Fast, Fail Often. This course would be taught as a design, measurement, and prototyping capstone course or as an independent study class with an open lab space for science majors and engineers. This would include use of SolidWorks, 3D printing, laser cutters, LabView, desktop milling machines, basic electronics, programming, control theory, and integration of internet of things (IoT) devices like a Raspberry PI to address a real world challenge or research problem. In my experience, undergraduates may know how to run a piece of equipment like a gas chromatograph or use technology such as flying a drone but not many have taken one apart, modified it and or built their own device to meet some new engineering challenge. I want students to think about how things are made and then how they can make their own parts. Students would be encouraged to collaborate with professors as part of an undergraduate research experience. Each project would have its own unique challenges and rewards. It would be my role as the professor to keep projects within a realistic scope and budget and offer technical advice along the way. Evaluation of students would be based upon a definition of a problem statement and requirements, initial intended approach, experimental design process, documentation of build schematics / prototypes, discussion related to the design iteration process, and a final project summary.

As a graduate student, post doc, staff scientist, and industrial scientist, I have directly mentored the research of 40 undergraduates, graduate students, post-docs, and high-school teachers through various REU, RET, and internship programs. The mentorship role is one that I thoroughly enjoy and will look forward to supervising students in my own labs and sponsoring and then directing REU programs through NSF / NIH granting agencies. My classes will use a balanced evaluation with homework, short quizzes (which are also useful for classroom attendance), and equally weighted midterms and finals with the option of dropping one midterm for having a final count twice with a better score.