Biosensors and Bioinstrumentation
Research in the fields of biosensors and bioinstrumentation utilizes recent advances in biochemistry, electronics, omics (genomics, epigenetics, proteomics), and physiology to develop novel diagnostic, therapeutic, and prosthetic devices.
Duke biosensor researchers engineer macro- and nano-scale devices that utilize biological components, such as antibodies or enzymes, to detect and quantify minute amounts of chemicals or investigate biological process in diverse systems and environments.
Duke bioinstrumentation researchers create and disseminate diverse health care technologies and know-how around the world, especially focusing on the developing world. The biosensors and bioinstrumentation research communities at Duke are supported and enhanced by the Fitzpatrick Institute for Photonics and the Duke Global Health Institute.
Primary Faculty
Ashutosh Chilkoti
Alan L. Kaganov Distinguished Professor of Biomedical Engineering
Research Interests: Focused on biomolecular materials and biointerface science and emphasizes the development of applications that span the range from bioseparations, biosensors, biomaterials, and targeted drug delivery.
Yiyang Gong
Assistant Professor in the Department of Biomedical Engineering
Research Interests: Recording and understanding brain activity by developing novel combinations of optical microscopy and genetically encoded sensors. Using these technologies, we wish to dissect neural circuit function and investigate how neural activity drives complex behaviors.
Joseph A. Izatt
Michael J. Fitzpatrick Distinguished Professor of Engineering in the Edmund T. Pratt, Jr. School of Engineering
Research Interests: Biomedical optics and spectroscopy, coherence-based imaging and microscopy, novel instrumentation for minimally invasive medical diagnostics, and real-time image-guided robotic microsurgery.
Mark L. Palmeri
Professor of the Practice in the Department of Biomedical Engineering
Research Interests: Ultrasonic imaging, specifically using acoustic radiation force to characterize the mechanical properties of tissue, and finite element analysis of soft tissue response to impulsive radiation force excitation. Other research interests include ultrasonic bioeffects and mechanical...
Jonathan Viventi
Assistant Professor in the Department of Biomedical Engineering
Research Interests: Using flexible electronics to create new technology for interfacing with the brain at high resolution over large areas. These new tools can help diagnose and treat neurological disorders such as epilepsy, and help improve the performance of brain machine interfaces.
Tuan Vo-Dinh
R. Eugene and Susie E. Goodson Distinguished Professor of Biomedical Engineering
Research Interests: Biophotonics, laser-excited luminescence spectroscopy, room temperature phosphorimetry, synchronous luminescence spectroscopy, surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy, field environmental instrumentation, fiberoptics sensors, nanosensors, biosensors and biochips for the protection...
Adam P. Wax
Professor of Biomedical Engineering
Research Interests: Optical spectroscopy for early cancer detection, novel microscopy and interferometry techniques.
Patrick D. Wolf
Associate Professor of Biomedical Engineering
Research Interests: Advanced instrumentation for diagnosis and treatment of electrophysiological problems. This research covers two primary organ systems: the heart and the brain. In the heart, Dr. Wolf is developing an image guided ablation system for treatment of arrhythmias. In the brain, he is...
Junjie Yao
Assistant Professor of Biomedical Engineering
Research Interests: Photoacoustic tomography (PAT) technologies, and translating PAT advances into diagnostic and therapeutic applications, especially in functional brain imaging and early cancer theranostics.
Secondary Faculty
Tony Jun Huang
William Bevan Distinguished Professor of Mechanical Engineering and Materials Science
Research Interests: Acoustofluidics, microfluidics, lab-on-a-chip, biomedical micro-electro-mechanical systems (BioMEMS), optofluidics, plasmofluidics.
Anthony Nanlin Kuo
Associate Professor of Ophthalmology
Research Faculty
Cameron R. Bass
Associate Research Professor of Biomedical Engineering
Research Interests: Dr. Bass's research interests include the biomechanics of blast, blunt and ballistic trauma and pediatric trauma. His research focuses on injury risk from microscale to macroscale for the head, neck, thorax and extremities.
Bruce Klitzman
Associate Research Professor of Biomedical Engineering
Research Interests: The primary basic science research interests of our laboratory are in the area of physiological mechanisms of maintaining substrate transport from blood to tissue. This broad topic covers studies on whole animals, such as rats and mice, as well as studies on whole organ,...