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Grabow engineering dynamic solutions for carbon fiber marketJuly 16, 2021Lars Grabow's Research to Bring Chemical Production and Manufacturing Together Could Revolutionize Numerous Chemical Processes You may know little to nothing about the carbon fiber market, but products produced with carbon fibers are pervasive in your everyday life ... from bicycles and computer hardware to… Acrylonitrile is the feedstock used to make carbon fiber, which is used in the manufacturing of an array of products, from vehicles and performance sports equipment to wind turbine blades and electronics.

Lars Grabow's Research to Bring Chemical Production and Manufacturing Together Could Revolutionize Numerous Chemical Processes

You may know little to nothing about the carbon fiber market, but products produced with carbon fibers are pervasive in your everyday life ... from bicycles and computer hardware to automobiles, apparel and medications.
Using the Ancient Art of Kirigami to Make an Eyeball-like CameraJune 28, 2021Cunjiang Yu, Ph.D., Bill D. Cook Associate Professor of Mechanical Engineering at the University of Houston, is reporting the development of a camera with a curvy, adaptable imaging sensor that could improve image quality in endoscopes, night-vision goggles, artificial compound eyes and fish-eye cameras.    Schematic of a biaxially stretched kirigami sheet.

Cunjiang Yu, Ph.D., Bill D. Cook Associate Professor of Mechanical Engineering at the University of Houston, is reporting the development of a camera with a curvy, adaptable imaging sensor that could improve image quality in endoscopes, night-vision goggles, artificial compound eyes and fish-eye cameras.   
The Powerhouse Future Is FlexoelectricJune 2, 2021“Giant Flexoelectricity” Breakthrough in Soft Elastomers Paves Way for Improved Robots and Self-Powered Pacemakers Kosar Mozaffari, a graduate student at the Cullen College of Engineering, is lead author for a new paper on flexoelectricity, along with Pradeep Sharma of Mechanical Engineering and Matthew Grasinger of the Air Force Research Lab.

“Giant Flexoelectricity” Breakthrough in Soft Elastomers Paves Way for Improved Robots and Self-Powered Pacemakers
New research method from Faghih, Amin allows more reliable brain information inference using electrodermal activity May 13, 2021A new paper from Rose Faghih, Ph.D., Assistant Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering and the Director of the Computational Medicine Laboratory, and her doctoral student Rafiul Amin describes how they have developed a novel inference engine to obtain brain information from raw electrodermal activity (… A new paper from Rose Faghih, Ph.D., Assistant Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering and the Director of the Computational Medicine Laboratory, and her doctoral student Rafiul Amin describes how they have developed a novel inference engine to obtain brain information from raw electrodermal activity (EDA) recordings, eradicating previous challenges from earlier methods.

A new paper from Rose Faghih, Ph.D., Assistant Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering and the Director of the Computational Medicine Laboratory, and her doctoral student Rafiul Amin describes how they have developed a novel inference engine to obtain brain information from raw electrodermal activity (EDA) recordings, eradicating previous challenges from earlier methods.   
Examining the One-Two Punch of Malaria DrugsMay 5, 2021When a mosquito begins to nibble on you, it is not merely feeding on your blood, it is also injecting its saliva into your skin. If that saliva happens to be full of parasites carrying malaria or other diseases from its last victim, then most likely you will become infected, too.  Peter Vekilov, Moores Professor of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering at the University of Houston, is examining why the two drugs that most often cure malaria can also fail because they tend to fight each other.

When a mosquito begins to nibble on you, it is not merely feeding on your blood, it is also injecting its saliva into your skin. If that saliva happens to be full of parasites carrying malaria or other diseases from its last victim, then most likely you will become infected, too. 
Improved Catalyst May Translate to Petrochemical Production GainsApril 27, 2021Aromatics are major building blocks of polymers, or plastics, that turn up as everything from PET bottles for water to breathable, wrinkle-resistant polyester clothing. These petrochemicals comprise a specialized, value-added sector of the energy industry. The process for refining crude oil into useful aromatic… Jeffrey Rimer is the Abraham E. Dukler Professor at the University of Houston Cullen College of Engineering.

Aromatics are major building blocks of polymers, or plastics, that turn up as everything from PET bottles for water to breathable, wrinkle-resistant polyester clothing. These petrochemicals comprise a specialized, value-added sector of the energy industry. The process for refining crude oil into useful aromatic streams for derivative use often involves the usage of a catalyst to facilitate chemical reactions.
Cancer ‘guardian’ breaks bad with one switch, UH, Rice researchers show March 4, 2021A mutation that replaces a single amino acid in a potent tumor-suppressing protein turns it from saint to sinister. A new study by a coalition of Texas institutions shows why that is more damaging than previously known.  A model produced by scientists at Rice University shows the conformational changes caused by a mutation in the cancer-fighting p53 protein. At top left, the red box highlights the aggregation-prone sequence protected by the N-terminus tail in wild-type p53 but exposed by the mutation of a single amino acid. The strongest deviation happens in the domain at the green asterisk. The other three models show “open” conformations at the C-terminus caused by the mutation. (Credit: Kolomeisky Research Group/Rice.)

A mutation that replaces a single amino acid in a potent tumor-suppressing protein turns it from saint to sinister. A new study by a coalition of Texas institutions shows why that is more damaging than previously known. 
With Lithium in High Demand, UH Researcher Examines New SourcesFebruary 25, 2021As the energy transition motors on to reduce the use of fossil fuels, the need for lithium has grown exponentially over the past decade because lithium-ion energy storage (i.e., lithium-ion batteries) powers both electric vehicles and renewable solar and wind electricity generation.   Kyung Jae Lee, assistant professor of petroleum engineering, has received a Faculty Early Career Development (CAREER) Award from the National Science Foundation for $508,722 to contribute to the enhancement and diversification of the domestic supply of lithium.

As the energy transition motors on to reduce the use of fossil fuels, the need for lithium has grown exponentially over the past decade because lithium-ion energy storage (i.e., lithium-ion batteries) powers both electric vehicles and renewable solar and wind electricity generation.  
UH Researcher Develops, Tests Nano-Carrier as Potential Treatment for Brain TumorsFebruary 23, 2021With a survival rate of only five years, the most common and aggressive form of primary brain tumor, glioblastoma multiforme, is notoriously hard to treat using current regimens that rely on surgery, radiation, chemotherapy and their combinations.   In this artistic illustration, prepared by Majd's former student You Jung Kang, IL13 ligands (represented by butterflies) carry the Dp44mT-loaded nanoparticles (represented by honey) from the vein (represented by red pipe) to the tumors (represented by the purple and red bugs), feeding and destroying the tumors.

With a survival rate of only five years, the most common and aggressive form of primary brain tumor, glioblastoma multiforme, is notoriously hard to treat using current regimens that rely on surgery, radiation, chemotherapy and their combinations.  
UH graduate’s work identifies new clues behind vision loss due to impaired metabolismFebruary 4, 2021A graduate of the biomedical engineering doctorate program at the University of Houston's Cullen College of Engineering has published new research about how vitamin and protein deficiencies can lead to metabolic abnormalities in the eye. Dr. Tirthankar Sinha, a graduate of the biomedical engineering doctorate program at the University of Houston's Cullen College of Engineering and now a postdoctoral research fellow in Dr. Claudio Soto's Lab at the McGovern Medical School at the University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, has published new research about how vitamin and protein deficiencies can lead to metabolic abnormalities in the eye.

A graduate of the biomedical engineering doctorate program at the University of Houston's Cullen College of Engineering has published new research about how vitamin and protein deficiencies can lead to metabolic abnormalities in the eye.
New Clues Help Explain Why PFAS Chemicals Resist RemediationJanuary 20, 2021Work Suggests New Avenues for Cleaning Up These ‘Forever Chemicals’   The synthetic chemicals known as PFAS, short for perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances, are found in soil and groundwater where they have accumulated, posing risks to human health ranging from respiratory problems to cancer. Research led by Konstantinos Kostarelos of UH Energy suggests why PFAS, known as “forever chemicals” because they can persist in the environment for decades, are so difficult to permanently remove and offers new avenues for better remediation practices.

Work Suggests New Avenues for Cleaning Up These ‘Forever Chemicals’

 

The synthetic chemicals known as PFAS, short for perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances, are found in soil and groundwater where they have accumulated, posing risks to human health ranging from respiratory problems to cancer.
Tapping the Brain to Boost Stroke RehabilitationJanuary 12, 2021Clinical Trial Suggests Brain-Machine Interface Coupled with Robot Offers Increased Benefits for Stroke Survivors Stroke survivors who had ceased to benefit from conventional rehabilitation gained clinically significant arm movement and control by using an external robotic device powered by the patients’ own… A clinical trial found that stroke survivors gained clinically significant arm movement and control by using an external robotic device powered by the patients’ own brains.
Clinical Trial Suggests Brain-Machine Interface Coupled with Robot Offers Increased Benefits for Stroke Survivors

Stroke survivors who had ceased to benefit from conventional rehabilitation gained clinically significant arm movement and control by using an external robotic device powered by the patients’ own brains.
New Drug Discovery Institute Launches at University of HoustonNovember 17, 2020The University of Houston has launched the Drug Discovery Institute (DDI) aimed at integrating new technologies, such as artificial intelligence, to streamline and modernize the drug-discovery process. The ultimate goal of the Drug Discovery Institute research program is to bring scientific discoveries and technological advances to the marketplace. [Photo from Getty Images.]

The University of Houston has launched the Drug Discovery Institute (DDI) aimed at integrating new technologies, such as artificial intelligence, to streamline and modernize the drug-discovery process.
Papers from Cullen College of Engineering professors make the grade, analysis findsNovember 12, 2020Several professors and researchers at the University of Houston are among the most cited in the world, according to an October 2020 update by researchers from Stanford about paper citations. UH

Several professors and researchers at the University of Houston are among the most cited in the world, according to an October 2020 update by researchers from Stanford about paper citations.
How Do Snakes ‘See’ in the Dark? Researchers Have an AnswerOctober 22, 2020Certain species of snake – think pit vipers, boa constrictors and pythons, among others – are able to find and capture prey with uncanny accuracy, even in total darkness. Now scientists have discovered how these creatures are able to convert the heat from organisms that are warmer than their ambient surroundings… Research led by Pradeep Sharma, chairman of the Department of Mechanical Engineering at the University of Houston, offers an explanation for how some species of snake convert the heat from organisms that are warmer than their ambient surroundings into electrical signals, allowing them to “see” in the dark.

Certain species of snake – think pit vipers, boa constrictors and pythons, among others – are able to find and capture prey with uncanny accuracy, even in total darkness. Now scientists have discovered how these creatures are able to convert the heat from organisms that are warmer than their ambient surroundings into electrical signals, allowing them to “see” in the dark.
New Technology Could Improve LASIK Surgery, Eye Disease DetectionOctober 20, 2020UH Professor to Create Ultrafast 3D Clinical Imaging System LASIK eye surgery – a laser reshaping of the cornea to improve vision – is one of the most popular elective surgeries in the United States, and a University of Houston professor of biomedical engineering intends to improve upon it by giving surgeons more… Dr. Kirill Larin, University of Houston professor of biomedical engineering, is creating new technology to measure the elasticity of the cornea.

UH Professor to Create Ultrafast 3D Clinical Imaging System

LASIK eye surgery – a laser reshaping of the cornea to improve vision – is one of the most popular elective surgeries in the United States, and a University of Houston professor of biomedical engineering intends to improve upon it by giving surgeons more information about the cornea before they begin.  
University of Houston Partners with AuraVax Therapeutics on COVID-19 VaccineOctober 12, 2020The University of Houston has entered into an exclusive license option agreement with AuraVax Therapeutics Inc., a Houston, TX based biotech company developing novel vaccines to help patients defeat debilitating respiratory diseases such as COVID-19. Under terms of the agreement, AuraVax has the option to… Navin Varadarajan, M.D. Anderson Professor of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, has created a nasal vaccine for COVID-19 and a company to market it in partnership with the University of Houston.

The University of Houston has entered into an exclusive license option agreement with AuraVax Therapeutics Inc., a Houston, TX based biotech company developing novel vaccines to help patients defeat debilitating respiratory diseases such as COVID-19. Under terms of the agreement, AuraVax has the option to exclusively license a new intranasal COVID-19 vaccine technology developed by Dr. Navin Varadarajan, M.D. Anderson Professor of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering.
UH, Houston Methodist using AI to identify breast cancerOctober 9, 2020Dr. Hien Van Nguyen, an Assistant Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering at the University of Houston's Cullen College of Engineering, received an R01 sub-award of $319,285 for his grant, “Convergent AI for Precise Breast Cancer Risk Assessment,” from the National Cancer Institute, National Institutes… Dr. Hien Van Nguyen, an Assistant Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering at the University of Houston's Cullen College of Engineering, has received a grant to use AI with breast cancer diagnoses.

Dr. Hien Van Nguyen, an Assistant Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering at the University of Houston's Cullen College of Engineering, received an R01 sub-award of $319,285 for his grant, “Convergent AI for Precise Breast Cancer Risk Assessment,” from the National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health.
UH’s newest flow loop testing helps Shell achieve industry-first in Deepwater Gulf of MexicoOctober 7, 2020Thanks to laboratory testing contributed by a team led by Dr. George K. Wong of Petroleum Engineering at the University of Houston's Cullen College of Engineering, a controlled mud level horizontal gravel pack – an industry first – was executed by Shell at the Perdido field in the Gulf of Mexico. The Petroleum Engineering labs at the University of Houston's Technology Bridge.

Thanks to laboratory testing contributed by a team led by Dr. George K. Wong of Petroleum Engineering at the University of Houston's Cullen College of Engineering, a controlled mud level horizontal gravel pack – an industry first – was executed by Shell at the Perdido field in the Gulf of Mexico.
Nearing a Treatment for FarsightednessOctober 6, 2020UH Professor Developing New Technology to Detect Lens Elasticity A biomedical researcher at the University of Houston's Cullen College of Engineering is developing new technology that will measure the stiffness of the lens in the eye, which is likely associated with presbyopia, or farsightedness, the inevitable… Kirill Larin, professor of biomedical engineering, has received $3 million from the National Eye Institute to create a new technology capable of precise noninvasive and depth-resolved quantitative measurements of the lens mechanical properties in a clinical setting.

UH Professor Developing New Technology to Detect Lens Elasticity

A biomedical researcher at the University of Houston's Cullen College of Engineering is developing new technology that will measure the stiffness of the lens in the eye, which is likely associated with presbyopia, or farsightedness, the inevitable and age-related loss of the ability to focus on nearby objects.