Fast fix: Bioactive coatings promote cell growth

 

For people who suffer excruciating back pain due to injury or disc degeneration, relief often comes in the form of spinal fusion and disc replacement. Metallic implants are the current standard, and while these devices mechanically fix tissue or replace vertebrae, they don’t heal the problem. Responding to patients’ need for faster, more effective healing is one of the reasons Biomedical Engineering, Materials Science and Engineering, and Pharmacology Associate Professor Bill Murphy and colleagues from the University of Michigan founded Tissue Regeneration Systems. More »

 

Breathing room: Technology idea will treat lung ailments

 

Teaching his first course in spring 2008 on biomedical engineering entrepreneurship, Matt Ogle quickly learned the downside of scheduling a class for three hours on a Friday afternoon. Competing against an early weekend, Ogle’s class began with six students and eventually settled into the semester with a die-hard roster of four. But what the course lacked in numbers it more than made up for in chemistry: A class this small — and this motivated — proved capable of doing something truly extraordinary. All four of those UW-Madison students — plus their instructor — are now business partners. The team formed RespiCure, a company based on a potentially transformational technology in the treatment of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), which affects more than 12 million people annually. More »