ELEC ENG 3BA3:

Structure of Biological Materials

Notes for Lecture #2Monday, September 13, 2010

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1. INTRODUCTION TO BIOENGINEERING

1.1 What is bioengineering?

Oxford English Dictionary —“the application of engineering techniques to biological processes”

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Areas of bioengineering:

– Neural engineering EE/CE

– Neuromuscular engineering EE/ME

– Biomedical instrumentation EE

– Biomedical signal and image processing EE

– (Tele)robotic surgery EE/ME

– Biomedical devices and sensors EE/CE/EP

– Biological modeling EE/ME/CE

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Areas of bioengineering (cont.):

– Tissue and cell engineering CE

– Bioprocessing CE

– Biomaterials CE/MS

– Biocompatibility CE/MS

– Physiological Fluid Mechanics CE

– Drug delivery systems CE/EE

– Artificial organs CE/EE/ME

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Areas of bioengineering (cont.):

– Biomechanics ME

– Prosthetics ME/EE

– Cardiovascular/cardiopulmonary engineering ME/CE/EE

– BioMEMS and nanotechnology EP/ME/EE

– Bioinformatics CS/EE

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1.2 What is biomedical engineering (BME)?“Biomedical engineering is a discipline that advances knowledge in engineering, biology and medicine, and improves human health through cross-disciplinary activities that integrate the engineering sciences with the biomedical sciences and clinical practice. It includes:

1. The acquisition of new knowledge and understanding of living systems through the innovative and substantive application of experimental and analytical techniques based on the engineering sciences.

2. The development of new devices, algorithms, processes and systems that advance biology and medicine and improve medical practice and health care delivery.”

— Whitaker Foundation (http://www.whitaker.org/)

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Another definition of BME:

Any area of bioengineering that applies to medical/health issues.

So what is not BME?

Some areas of:– Bioprocessing CE– Biological modeling EE/ME/CE– Biomaterials CE/MS– Biomimetics

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1.3 A short history of bioengineeringSome research and application milestones:B.C. Eygptian limb prostheses,

endoscopic reeds

1780s Luigi Galvani →

discovers bioelectricity

1790s Alessandro Volta →

inserts metal rods attached to a battery into his ears ⇒

“noise like the boiling of thick soup”

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1816 Rene Laennec → stethoscope

1848 Emil Du Bois-Reymond →

Concerning the Animal Electricity

1856 Hermann von Helmholtz →

Handbook of Physiological Optics & Ophthalmoscope

1863 Hermann von Helmholtz →

On the Sensation of Tone as a Physiological Basis for the Theory of Music

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1895 Wilhelm Röntgen → X-rays1903 Willem Einthoven → ECG

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1925 M.N. Smith-Petersen → artificial hip

1927 Philip Drinker → iron lung

1929 Hans Berger → EEG

1941 Donald Sproule → ultrasound

1950s Paul Zoll → pacemaker & defibrillator

1960s William House → cochlear implant

1970s Raymond Damadian → MRI Michael Ter-Pogossian → PET

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Bioengineering education milestones:1700s Some scientists trained in both&1800s physics and biology/medicine, e.g.,

Galvani, Helmholtz.1921 Oswalt Institute for Physics in

Medicine, Frankfurt, Germany1950s NIH graduate training programs in

BME at The Johns Hopkins University, the University of Pennsylvania, the University of Rochester and Drexel University

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1960s Spread of graduate BME–1980s programs to many other US

universities, and introduction of undergraduate BME programs

1990s Whitaker Foundation funds the creation of many new BME programs and departments in the US and Canada

2002 McMaster introduces undergrad programs in bioengineering

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1.4 Approaches to bioengineeringEngineering → Biology/Medicine:

Take an engineering technique or device and find a biological/biomedical application for it

Pros:– Engineering technique or device is fully

developed– Engineer doesn’t need to know a lot about

biology or medicineCons:

– Need to find an application– Need someone who knows about the application

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Biology/Medicine → Engineering:Start with a biological/biomedical problem and see if there is an engineering technique or device that will solve it

Pros:– Biological/medical problem is well defined– Scientist/physician doesn’t need to know a lot

about engineeringCons:

– Need to find an engineer up-to-date with techniques and devices

– Need to fit the engineering technique/device to the particular problem

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Integrated Bioengineering:Work within a particular area of biology or medicine and develop or adapt engineering techniques or devices to solve problems

Pros:– Biological/medical problems are well defined – Bioengineer has knowledge of biology/medicine

as well as engineering– Bioengineer can be a bridge between other

engineers and biologists/physicians

Cons:– Bioengineer has to keep up to date with both

biology/medicine and engineering

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1.5 Bioengineering at McMasterBefore 2002:– Bioengineering graduate students in

ECE and CE– Research primarily in the areas of:

tissue engineering, biocompatibility, neuromuscular engineering, biomedical instrumentation, and biomedical signal processing

– One BME undergrad elective in EE and one in CE

– No BME graduate courses

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Since 2002:– New professors hired in EE, CE, ME and EP,

expanding research areas– Chemical Engineering and Bioengineering

undergrad program– Electrical and Biomedical Engineering

undergrad/grad program– A range of BME grad courses offered by CE,

EE, EP, ME, & MSBE– Formation of McMaster (Graduate) School of

Biomedical Engineering (MSBE)

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McMaster School of Biomedical Engineering (MSBE):– Joint initiative of the Faculties of Engineering

& Health Sciences– M.A.Sc. and Ph.D. programs in Biomedial

Engineering– Possibly M.D./Ph.D. program– Research labs, lecture halls, admin offices,

etc. in new engineering building– Provide a link between undergrad programs

(http://msbe.mcmaster.ca/)

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Bioengineering at McMaster Society (BEAMS):– For CE & Bioengineering undergrads,

Electrical & Biomedical Engineering undergrads, and any grad students doing bioengineering research

– Educational, social, and career-oriented activities

– Important link between programs(http://www.beamsociety.com/)

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1.6 Careers in Bioengineering (in Canada)Medical imaging, instrumentation & healthcare software:– Philips Medical Systems

(http://www.medical.philips.com/)– GE Medical Systems

(http://www.gehealthcare.com/caen/)– Siemens Medical (http://www.siemens.ca/)– Visual Sonics (http://www.visualsonics.com/)– Merge Healthcare (http://www.merge.com/)– Resonant Medical

(http://www.resonantmedical.com/)

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Hearing aids:– ON Semiconductor (http://www.onsemi.com/;

http://www.sounddesigntechnologies.com/)– Unitron (http://www.unitronhearing.com/)

– VitaSound (http://vitasound.com/)

Medical devices, sensors and diagnostics:– MDS (http://www.mdsintl.com/)

– XLTEK (http://www.xltek.com/)

– MEG International Services Ltd. (http://www.megservice.com/)

– IntelliPharmaCeutics (http://www.intellipharmaceutics.com/)

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Medical devices, sensors and diagnostics (cont.):– Medtronic (http://www.medtronic.com/)– Baylis Medical (http://www.baylismedical.com/)– ON Semiconductor (http://www.onsemi.com/)

Medical robotics:– MD Robotics

(http://sm.mdacorporation.com/what_we_do/medical_industry.html)Clinical biomedical engineering:– Aramark (http://www.aramark.ca/)– Hospitals– Government agencies (standards and

compliance)and medical or academic careers…