UMBC’s Gymama Slaughter will develop a bioreactor to extend the viability of lifesaving human organs as they await transplant through a major new grant from the U.S. Army Medical Research and Material Command. Funding for the project totals nearly $1.5 million for a period of three years. Slaughter, associate professor of computer science and electrical engineering, will collaborate closely with Warren Grayson and Gerald Brandacher, both associate professors at Johns Hopkins.

The team will create a bioreactor integrating in-line sensors, mechanical stimulator, and blood perfusion system to more accurately and continuously monitor organs as they are transported for transplantation. They will also “develop a system that closely mimic the organ’s natural environment,” explains Slaughter.

Currently, organ and tissue donors typically need to be in close proximity to transplant recipients due to limitations in organ transport. Some organs are only viable for about six hours, and they must be kept at very cool temperatures to remain viable, so the transport process can be a race against time. With technological improvements, Slaughter says, the viability of the organs could be increased to about 36 hours, greatly expanding the distance an organ could travel from donor to recipient, and the likelihood of a successful transplant.

Slaughter will focus on developing the metabolic sensors to continuously monitor the organ’s nitric oxide and oxygen levels. Grayson will create a mechanical stimulator to keep the organ moving during the transportation process, so the organ tissue does not become rigid and die. Brandacher will develop technology to continuously supply the organ or tissue with blood, to maintain viability, and will focus on the clinical aspects of the grant.

“This interdisciplinary research will enable us to tackle complex organ transplant viability problems to create the next big breakthrough platform technology for extending and monitoring the viability of organs to improve patient care,” says Slaughter. Together, the researchers hope their work will lead to a new era of successful human organ transplantation, saving the lives of wounded soldiers and others in need of transplants in hard-to-reach locations around the world.

Slaughter’s work was highlighted in the Baltimore Business Journal, The Baltimore Sun, and The Baltimore Times.  

Banner image: Gymama Slaughter. Photo by Marlayna Demond ’11 for UMBC.

UMBC’s Gymama Slaughter will develop a bioreactor to extend the viability of lifesaving human organs as they await transplant through a major new grant from the U.S. Army Medical Research and Material Command. Funding for the project totals nearly $1.5 million for a period of three years. Slaughter, associate professor of computer science and electrical engineering, will collaborate closely with Warren Grayson and Gerald Brandacher, both associate professors at Johns Hopkins.

The team will create a bioreactor integrating in-line sensors, mechanical stimulator, and blood perfusion system to more accurately and continuously monitor organs as they are transported for transplantation. They will also “develop a system that closely mimic the organ’s natural environment,” explains Slaughter.

Currently, organ and tissue donors typically need to be in close proximity to transplant recipients due to limitations in organ transport. Some organs are only viable for about six hours, and they must be kept at very cool temperatures to remain viable, so the transport process can be a race against time. With technological improvements, Slaughter says, the viability of the organs could be increased to about 36 hours, greatly expanding the distance an organ could travel from donor to recipient, and the likelihood of a successful transplant.

Slaughter will focus on developing the metabolic sensors to continuously monitor the organ’s nitric oxide and oxygen levels. Grayson will create a mechanical stimulator to keep the organ moving during the transportation process, so the organ tissue does not become rigid and die. Brandacher will develop technology to continuously supply the organ or tissue with blood, to maintain viability, and will focus on the clinical aspects of the grant.

“This interdisciplinary research will enable us to tackle complex organ transplant viability problems to create the next big breakthrough platform technology for extending and monitoring the viability of organs to improve patient care,” says Slaughter. Together, the researchers hope their work will lead to a new era of successful human organ transplantation, saving the lives of wounded soldiers and others in need of transplants in hard-to-reach locations around the world.

Banner image: Gymama Slaughter. Photo by Marlayna Demond ’11 for UMBC.

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UMBC’s Gymama Slaughter to develop bioreactors that could pause the clock for life-saving organ transplants

UMBC’s Gymama Slaughter will develop a bioreactor to extend the viability of lifesaving human organs as they await transplant through a major new grant from the U.S. Army Medical Research and Material Command. Funding for the project totals nearly $1.5 million for a period of three years. Slaughter, associate professor of computer science and electrical engineering, will collaborate closely with Warren Grayson and Gerald Brandacher, both associate professors at Johns Hopkins.

Gymama Slaughter, right, with Joel Tyson ’17, chemical engineering, and Zahra Ghassemi M.S. ’17, chemical engineering, in her lab.

The team will create a bioreactor integrating in-line sensors, mechanical stimulator, and blood perfusion system to more accurately and continuously monitor organs as they are transported for transplantation. They will also “develop a system that closely mimic the organ’s natural environment,” explains Slaughter.

Currently, organ and tissue donors typically need to be in close proximity to transplant recipients due to limitations in organ transport. Some organs are only viable for about six hours, and they must be kept at very cool temperatures to remain viable, so the transport process can be a race against time. With technological improvements, Slaughter says, the viability of the organs could be increased to about 36 hours, greatly expanding the distance an organ could travel from donor to recipient, and the likelihood of a successful transplant.

“This interdisciplinary research will enable us to tackle complex organ transplant viability problems to create the next big breakthrough platform technology for extending and monitoring the viability of organs to improve patient care,” says Slaughter. Together, the researchers hope their work will lead to a new era of successful human organ transplantation, saving the lives of wounded soldiers and others in need of transplants in hard-to-reach locations around the world.

Adapted from a UMBC News article by Megan Hanks, photos by Marlayna Demond ’11 for UMBC.

The post Prof. Gymama Slaughter to develop bioreactors for life-saving organ transplants appeared first on Department of Computer Science and Electrical Engineering.

Are you a parent of a child entering 1st through 6th grade in September 2017? The Children and Families, Schooling and Development lab at UMBC is looking for parents of elementary-aged children to complete an online survey. We want to know what educational activities your child engages in at home, your views on the role of the home in children’s educational development and the use of educational technology.

This anonymous survey takes 15-20 minutes and can be completed entirely online. Upon completion, if you want, you can enter to win one of five $20 Amazon gift cards.

This story was first published  here and was written by Sarah Hansen.

Lipi Mukherjee, Ph.D. student in atmospheric physics at UMBC, has received the NASA Earth and Space Science Fellowship (NESSF), which will provide funding to support her research for up to three years. Mukherjee is focused on creating a model to more quickly and precisely detect particles dissolved in large bodies of water that can reduce survival of local aquatic life, cause algal blooms, and modulate global climate.

Satellites in space collect data that describe the light reflected by the ocean’s surface. Current analysis methods allow scientists to use the ocean’s reflectance profile to infer what kind of particles the light interacted with in the water, the water’s depth, and the sea floor’s structure. Although valuable, these methods are slow, require a great deal of computer power, and can’t always distinguish between situations that produce similar data output for different reasons.

Mukherjee’s model will significantly speed up the analysis process by streamlining it to a single equation, while at the same time incorporating additional parameters to improve precision. Specifically, the model will detect the presence of colored dissolved organic matter (CDOM, mostly dead plants) and phytoplankton (tiny photosynthetic organisms), which contribute to dangerous algal blooms. Phytoplankton themselves have highly complex impacts, playing a role in global carbon regulation (by absorbing large volumes of carbon dioxide) while also posing direct threats to marine life by producing toxic compounds.

New in Mukherjee’s model will be the ability to detect water’s turbidity, or choppiness, by measuring polarization of the light returning to the satellites’ sensors. Light in calm water is generally polarized, meaning every light wave is heading in the same direction. In choppy water, the light gets bounced around, changing its polarization. Her model will also take advantage of UV light data for the first time, useful because dissolved organic matter and plankton absorb UV light. The structure of her equation will also make it easier to determine which parameter is responsible for changes in reflectance.

The project requires strong computer programming skills, which Mukherjee has picked up since moving to the United States in 2010, after completing undergraduate and master’s degrees in India in physics, with an electronics concentration. She found a welcoming environment in The Graduate School at UMBC and shares that from the beginning “everyone was very helpful and open.” In particular, Todd Pittman, professor of physics, and Michelle Massey, assistant director of International Education Services, provided a great deal of support as Mukherjee transitioned to UMBC.

Earning the NESSF fellowship is especially noteworthy for a non-U.S. citizen, because preference is given to proposals of equal caliber from American scientists, meaning Mukherjee’s proposal had to go above and beyond the high bar set by proposals from American colleagues. Mukherjee almost didn’t apply for that reason, but her advisor, Pengwang Zhai, assistant professor of physics, encouraged her and provided key support throughout the application process.

Mukherjee shares that she is thankful for the “close-knit community” in the physics department, including faculty and fellow graduate students. Even before moving to the U.S., she says, “I always wanted to do a Ph.D. in physics, and I always dreamed of working for NASA.” Now, she is one step closer.