MASc Students
Chao Jin
Joined EiS program in 2012
Research Supervisor: Dr. Hong Ma
Research Topic and Description: Microfabrication and Characterization of microfluidic devices used in sorting cells by their mechanical properties.
Research Interests: Microfluidic, BioMEMS
Previous Universities : Zhejiang University(BE in Mechatronic Engineering), China
Current Lab: Multi-Scale Design Laboratory
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Florin Gheorghe
Joined EiS program in 2011
Research Supervisor: Dr. Mike Van der Loos
Research Topic and Description: Florin is studying the process of innovation for medical technology in the developing world. Partnered with UBC’s Uganda Sustinable Trauma Orthopaedic Program, he will engage in design workshops with surgeons at Mulago Hospital in Kampala, Uganda to re-imagine the ways in which technology can support and transform surgery in low-resource settings.
Research Interests: Medical device innovation, creative thinking strategies, disruptive technology, international orthopaedic surgery, and social entrepreneurship
Previous Universities : The University of British Columbia (BASc in Mechanical Engineering)
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Jacqueline Soicher
Joined EiS program in 2012
Research Supervisor: Dr. Peter Cripton
Research Topic and Description: Jacqueline’s research topic is studying the effects of vibration and shock during transportation on spinal cord injury patients. In particular, fiducial markers will be used to measure the deflection of the spinal cord during vibration.
Research Interests: Injury Biomechanics and Injury Prevention
Previous Universities : Carleton University (BEng in Biomedical Mechanical Engineering)
Current Lab: Orthopaedic and Injury Biomechanics Group, Blusson Spinal Cord Centre
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Jeremy Kooyman
Joined EiS program in 2011
Research Supervisor: Dr. Antony Hodgson
Research Topic and Description: Jeremy’s research will examine a novel orthopaedic surgical approach known as bracing that provides opportunities for reducing the invasive impact and set-up time associated with procedures like uni-compartmental knee arthroplasty and femoral acetabular impingement.
Research Interests: Computer-assisted surgery, medical robotics, medical device entrepreneurship
Previous Universities : University of Calgary’s Schulich School of Engineering
Current Lab: UBC Neuromotor Control Lab
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Marianne Black
Joined EiS program in 2012
Research Supervisor: Dr. David Wilson
Research Topic and Description: The effect of wedge and slope angle in high tibial osteotomy. People with varus malalignment often develop osteoarthritis in the medial compartment of the tibiofemoral joint. High tibial osteotomy is a procedure intended to unload the medial compartment of the joint, however it is not well understood how the wedge and slope angle of the osteotomy affect the kinematics and dynamics of the knee. This study will examine how various wedge and slope combinations affect the kinematics and contact pressure of the tibiofemoral joint.
Research Interests: Orthopaedics, MRI use in musculoskeletal imaging
Previous Universities :The University of British Columbia (BASc in Engineering Physics)
Current Lab: Centre for Hip Health and Mobility
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Marie-Eve Myrand-Lapierre
Joined EiS program in 2011
Research Supervisor: Dr. Hong Ma
Research Topic and Description: Microfluidic Biomechanical Assay for Red Blood Cells Parasitized by Plasmodium falciparum.
Malaria, a disease transmitted by mosquito bite, is caused by parasites that spend part of their life in red blood cells (RBCs). The most common and deadly form of this parasite is Plasmodium falciparum. Once this parasite invades a RBC, the cell becomes stiffer. Marie-Eve’s research involves developing a microfluidic device to measure RBC stiffness using microscale funnel-shaped constrictions.
Research Interests: Cell biology, Cell biomechanics, Microfluidic, Point-of-care testing, BioMEMS
Previous Universities : Laval University (BASc in Engineering Physics), Quebec City
Current Lab: Multi-Scale Design Laboratory
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Mark Semple
Joined EiS program in 2012
Research Supervisor: Dr. Tony Hodgson
Research Topic and Description: Advanced tools in computer-assisted orthopaedic surgery (TBD).
Research Interests: Bones, surgery, robots, injuries
Previous Universities :Queen’s University (B.A.Sc. in Mechanical Engineering)
Current Lab: Centre for Hip Health and Mobility
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Xi Qin
Joined EiS program in 2012
Research Supervisor: Dr. Hong Ma
Research Topic and Description: CTCs (circulating tumor cells) are often bigger and stiffer than normal white blood cells. Their differences in mechanical properties enable us to utilize microfluidics and microfabrication technologies to separate these cells fast and efficiently.
Research Interests: Bio-MEMS; MEMES; Microfluidic
Previous Universities : Zhejiang University(Bachelor of Engineering), China
Current Lab: Multi-Scale Design Laboratory
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PhD Students
Bulmaro Valdes
Joined EiS program in 2012
Research Supervisor: Dr. Mike Van der Loos
Research Topic and Description: Developing technology for stroke and cerebral palsy rehabilitation
Research Interests: Medical devices, automation, gaming applied to rehabilitation.
Previous Universities: The University of Sydney, Australia. (Master in Professional Engineering (Biomedical)), Instituto Tecnologico y de Estudios Superiores de Monterrey (ITESM), Mexico (Bachelor in Mechatronics Engineering)
Current Lab: CARIS (Collaborative Advanced Robotics and Intelligent Systems Laboratory ) LAB
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Felipe Eltit
Joined EiS program in 2011
Research Supervisor: Dr. Rizhi Wang
Research Topic and Description: Biomaterial related causes for hip implant failure. The objective is to analyze the specific mechanisms that explain adverse reaction to hip implants to develop better and more bio-compatible materials for human orthopedic implants
Research Interests: Implant-tissue interface, Mineralized tissues structure and mechanical behaviour
Previous Universities: Licence of Dentistry (University of Chile), Mater in Cell Biology (University of Chile)
Current Lab: Biomaterial Lab, at Advanced Materials and Process Engineering Laboratories, UBC
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Navid Shirzad
Joined EiS program in 2012
Research Supervisor: Dr. Mike Van der Loos
Research Topic and Description: Navid is studying the process of motor recovery after stroke, with a focus on finding ways of increasing the recovery speed and stroke survivors’ compliance with therapy regimens. His approach is to combine the three fields of robotics, positive psychology, and physical therapy to design a fun, cheap robotic device that can be used for home-based therapy sessions. He will be working with two of the local therapy clinics to understand needs/concerns of both therapists and patients, and to test his developed prototypes. His ultimate goal is to change stroke survivors’ perception of therapy from “a hard and boring work” to “a game-like activity”.
Research Interests: Rehabilitation Robotics, Haptics, Interface Design
Previous Universities: University of Tehran (BSc in Mechanical Engineering), The University of British Columbia (MASc in Mechanical Engineering)
Current Lab: Collaborative Advanced Robotics and Intelligent Systems (CARIS) Lab, UBC
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Qiong Wang
Joined EiS program in 2012
Research Supervisor: Dr. Rizhi Wang
Research Topic and Description: Hip fracture and fracture mechanics of bone
Research Interests: Biomaterials, Bimineralization
Previous Universities: Tsinghua University
Current Lab: Biomaterials Lab, Department of Materials Engineering
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Stephen Mattucci
Joined EiS program in 2011
Research Supervisor: Dr. Tom Oxland
Research Topic and Description: Biomechanics of spinal cord injury, focusing on the effect of injury mechanism and timing of residual compression on short term pathological outcomes.
Research Interests: Spine and spinal cord biomechanics, joint replacements and implants, fracture fixation devices
Previous Universities: University of Waterloo (MASc in Biomechanical Engineering), The University of British Columbia (BASc in Mechanical Engineering)
Current Lab: Orthopaedic and Injury Biomechanics Group, Blusson Spinal Cord Centre
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Sunyoung (Emily) Park
Joined EiS program in 2011
Research Supervisor: Dr. Hong Ma
Research Topic and Description: White blood cells, the primary contaminant cell type, are typically smaller and softer than cancer cells. This property enables to isolate cancer cells based on size and deformability without fixation or chemical modification. Sunyoung’s research involves separating rare circulating tumor cells from the blood cells by employing a microfluidic structural ratchet mechanism and using oscillatory flow through an array of funnel-shaped structures.
Research Interests: Bio-MEMS: On-chip bio-engineering lab, Microfabricated protein/DNA analysis system, Drug delivery system, Fabrication of nanoparticles, Fabrication and packing of MEMS; Cell Mechanics: Cell response regarding nano-materials, Cell sorting/separation using microfluidics, Bio-mimetic design
Previous Universities : Seoul National University, Seoul, Korea (Master in Interdisciplinary Program of Bioengineering), The University of British Columbia (BASC in Mechanical Engineering)
Current Lab: Multi-Scale Design Laboratory
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Xun Chen
Joined EiS program in 2011
Research Supervisor: Dr. Z. Jane Wang
Research Topic and Description: Statistical signal processing in biomedical applications. Xun aims to develop novel recognition, fusion and clustering algorithms for biomedical usage, especially for Parkinson’s disease.
Research Interests: EEG/EMG/fMRI data fusion, sign language recognition, bio-signal clustering
Previous Universities: University of Science and Technology of China
Current Lab: Statistical Signal Processing Lab in Electrical & Computer Engineering Dept. in UBC
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Post Doctoral Fellows
Xiu Mei (Lucy) Kang
Joined EiS program in 2012
Research Supervisor: Dr. Antony Hodgson
Research Topic and Description: Diagnosis and treatment of Femoroacetabular Impingement. Focusing on in vivo hip kinematics and geometrical analysis of hip joints to predict which portion of the bone should be resected to restore proper function.
Research Interests: Computer-assisted surgery, hip kinematics, virtual manufacturing, geometrical modeling and simulation, fixture planning
Previous Universities: Tsinghua University (B.Eng in Mechanical Engineering), Beijing Institute of Machinery (M.Eng in Mechanical Engineering), University of Manitoba (PhD in Mechanical Engineering)
Current lab: Neuromotor Control Laboratory
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