John Viator, associate professor of biological engineering at MU, employs photoacoustics to scan lymph node biopsies with laser pulses. Viator’s work could help doctors identify melanoma stages with greater accuracy. Photo by Nicholas Benner.
The University of Missouri is one of six institutions nationwide awarded a $3.6 million grant from the Wallace H. Coulter Foundation through the Coulter Translational Partnership Award in Biomedical Engineering Program. The award will help accelerate and increase the capacity for biomedical innovation that will ultimately help improve patients’ lives, address unmet clinical needs and reduce suffering. Funds from the program will be distributed to support collaborative projects between biomedical engineers and clinicians that are explicitly translational, developing new technologies for direct application in clinical settings.
“Too often, new medical discoveries get ‘stuck’ in the laboratory and don’t make their way to the bedside,” says Dr. Jinglu Tan, James C. Dowell Professor and chair of biological engineering in the College of Engineering and the College of Agriculture, Food and Natural Resources. “This award will help advance MU innovations to the point at which they can qualify for funding from investors and licensees, thereby bridging the critical gap that prevents many university discoveries from reaching the market place and benefitting patients.”
One example of innovation that is already benefiting from the “Coulter Process” arose from cancer research by John Viator, an associate professor of biological engineering. In 2006, Viator received an individual Coulter Translational Research Award from the Foundation which supported the collaborative research of Viator and MU surgical oncologist Dr. Paul Dale. As a result of Dr. Dale’s interest in earlier diagnoses of cancer, Dr. Viator applied his research in laser acoustics to melanoma detection. The outcome is a new technology that can “hear” single melanoma cells in the bloodstream. Dr. Viator is working on adapting the technology for detection of additional forms of cancer and other diseases.
As part of the Coulter Translational Partnership Award, the Foundation will provide $3.6 million, while MU will contribute $1.4 million, totaling $5 million over five years. The University plans to sustain the program at the end of the five years through the establishment of an endowment. If you are interested in supporting bioengineering, innovation and research at the University of Missouri, please contact Bill Sheehan, associate vice chancellor for Development, by email at sheehanw@missouri.edu or by phone at 573-884-6689.
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