A follow-on “reduction to practice,” or implementation, challenge will ask participants to submit publication-quality data showing they can build functional human retina tissue. 

Winning Team

• Erin Lavik, ScD, University of Maryland, Baltimore County
• Steven Bernstein, MD, PhD, University of Maryland Medical School
• Adam Day, University of Maryland, Baltimore County
• Bryan Ibarra, University of Miami

The team’s idea is to build a retina by screen printing adult neural progenitor-derived retinal neurons in layers that mimic the structure of the human retina. The system is scalable and efficient which should enable the high reproducibility and increased throughput necessary for drug testing.

NEI NIH website: https://www.nei.nih.gov/about/goals-and-accomplishments/nei-research-initiatives/3-d-retina-organoid-challenge-3-d-roc/2017-ideation-challenge/2017-ideation-winner-and-honorable-mention

Cardboard Incubator Gives Preemies Better Chance of Survival

“The statistics, especially in lower source environments, are pretty grim: About every 10 seconds a baby dies, and usually it’s due to problems of hypothermia or sepsis,” says Govind Rao, Ph.D., professor and director at the Center for Advanced Sensor Technology at the University of Maryland Baltimore County (UMBC). “Low birth weight has become increasingly common as women defer childbirth. If you had an inexpensive way to intervene and keep baby warm, it would have a dramatic impact.” Rao added that premature babies born in these environments are also at risk of infection, because the incubators are not always effectively cleaned and sanitized. This means that as one sick baby leaves the incubator, the next baby coming in is highly susceptible to accepting the infection. “That becomes a highly problematic issue leading to high mortality,” says Rao.

Know Your User

Govind Rao and his team of students at UMBC have been committed to improving the odds for preemies and low-birth rate babies in low-resource environments. What started as a class project evolved into the development of a low-cost and disposable cardboard incubator designed to prevent neonatal mortality as a result of preterm birth and/or infection. Rao assigned the students in his sensors class a research project to develop a design for a low-cost incubator that would maintain the baby’s temperature and use as many locally available resources as possible. After the student teams came up with their designs, they took a field trip to India, visiting rural healthcare centers to find out what happens on the front lines.

Read the full article in MedTech Intelligence.

This award is given annually to recognize an environmental engineering or science professor who is making outstanding contributions to the teaching of environmental engineering, both at the individual's home institution and beyond. A cash award of $500 is presented to the recipient. Previous winners are ineligible for this award.

This award recognizes excellence in classroom performance and related activities. Specifically, nomination packages should demonstrate that the nominee:

• Possesses and is able to communicate interest in and breadth and depth in subject area knowledge;
• Designs classroom, laboratory, field-based or other learning activities that challenge and motivate students and demand thinking and learning; and/or
• Is committed to professional mentoring and academic advising of students.

Although open to nomination at any rank, the award is intended primarily to recognize a demonstrated commitment to teaching early in a person's career. Therefore, preference is usually given to nominees who are at the assistant or associate level and have demonstrated excellence in teaching undergraduate courses.