The BNB laboratory specializes in applying micro- and nano-scale techniques to solve problems in medicine. Researchers focus on the general areas of biomedical engineering, nanoscience and nanotechnology, particularly on two major themes 1) point-of-care disease diagnostics and 2) structural biomaterials for bone-implant systems.

LAB DIRECTOR

ACTIVE PROJECTS

Microfluidic Devices for Tagless Identification/Quantification of Diseased Cells

An accurate, quick and inexpensive enumeration of blood cells including lymphocytes is critical for early diagnosis of various physiological disorders and has been the subject of much attention. Nanotechnology empowers us with tools to investigate fetal diseases like cancer and HIV at cellular/molecular scales. Several approaches have been used for cell sorting and identification, but most of these are limited by low throughput, need for fluorescent tags, or lack of quantitative analysis on single cell level. Early stage detection and precise enumeration of cells is crucial for efficient therapeutics and improved survival rate of cancer/HIV patients. There is a great clinical need to develop new inexpensive and portable point-of-care (POC) devices for early-stage diagnosis of these fetal diseases. We are developing a novel, low-cost, stabilized (refrigeration-free storage) micro-fluidic-based cell monitoring tool for rapid and accurate quantification from unprocessed whole blood at POC settings.

Nanofabricated and 3-D Printed Materials for Rapid Bone Healing

Traumatic fractures, age-related fragility, and disorders cause structurally unstable fracture sites, which require metal fixative devices for mechanical support. Titanium (Ti) is the most widely used material for fixative devices but Ti is bioinert and doesn't promote osteogenesis. Bioactive glass coatings onto Ti implants show promising results by incorporating osteoinductive properties, but macroscale fabrication techniques cause inhomogeneity in the coatings and have thermal expansion mismatch with the underlying Ti, leading to delamination and instability of the coatings. 3-D printing is an additive manufacturing technique that allows fabrication of modular and patient-specific scaffolds with high structural complexity and design flexibility. The major drawback that limits the widespread acceptance of 3-D printing in biomanufacturing is the lack of diversity in "biomaterial inks." We are developing novel bioinks for 3-D-printed structural biomaterials to understand the role of biomaterial surface morphology and chemistry in cellular attachment, surface bioactivity, and gene expressions for rapid fracture healing.

Development of Highly Sensitive Novel Biosensors for Molecular Detection

Nano-biosensors are low-cost, fast and easy to use, have multiple applications including health, food, and environmental changes. They are small-scale transducers that detect the chemical specificity and sensitivity of a system using biological agents. The advent of nanotechnology permitted the development of improved, micro- and nano-scale biosensors, allowing scientists and engineers to monitor the biological and chemical interactions on the sensor surface. Nanoscale biosensors provide more accurate and sensitive measurements of biomolecules/ viruses. We are developing nanofabricated, ready-to-use microchips to sense and characterize important biomarkers for various diseases including cancer and HIV.

RECENT PUBLICATIONS

• Ilyas, M. Velton, A. Shah, F. Monte, H. K.-W. Kim, P. B. Aswath and V. G. Varanasi, "Rapid Regeneration of Vascularized Bone by Nanofabricated Amorphous Silicon Oxynitrophosphide (SiONP) Overlays," Journal of Biomedical Nanotechnology, vol. 15, no. 6, pp. 1241–1255 (2019).
• S. Alyas, N. Roohi, S. Ashraf, S. Ilyas, and A. Ilyas, "Early pregnancy biochemical markers of placentation for screening of gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM)," Diabetes and Metabolic Syndrome: Clinical Research and Reviews, vol. 13, no. 4, pp. 2353–2356 (2019).
• S. Sharma, R. Zhuang, M. Long, M. Pavlovic, Y. Kang, A. Ilyas and W. Asghar, "Circulating tumor cell isolation, culture, and downstream molecular analysis," Biotechnology Advances, vol. 36, no. 4, pp. 1063–1078 (2018).
• V. G. Varanasi, A. Ilyas, M. Maginot, Ami Shah, W. A. Lanford, and P. B. Aswath, "Role of Hydrogen and Nitrogen on the Surface Chemical Structure of Bioactive Amorphous Silicon Oxynitride Films," The Journal of Physical Chemistry B, vol. 121, no. 38, pp. 8991–9005 (2017).
• A. Ilyas, T. Odatsu, A. Shah, F. Monte, H. K.W. Kim, P. Kramer, P. B. Aswath and V. G. Varanasi, "Amorphous Silica: A New Antioxidant Role for Rapid Critical-Sized Bone Defect Healing," Advanced HealthCare Materials, vol. 5, no. 17, pp. 2199–2213 (2016).