Funding made possible through generous donor support will strengthen Duke BME's teaching labs and expand the hands-on experiences that prepare students for an ever-evolving field. Learn more about how this investment will help our students. 

Dear Colleagues,

As we settle into a new academic year, I’m thrilled to share some of the recent successes and achievements from across Duke BME. At the heart of this issue is a $500,000 investment in our teaching laboratories, providing new support for the hands-on, practical experiences that are a hallmark of a Duke BME education. This funding will give us the flexibility to address immediate needs while also making strategic investments in the spaces, equipment and educational resources that prepare our students for an ever-evolving field.

I'm also thrilled to celebrate the accomplishments of our faculty, students and alumni, from recognition for innovative teaching approaches and leadership opportunities, to new research spanning AI, antibiotic resistance, and precision healthcare.

I invite you to read through these stories and learn more about the people, ideas and support shaping the future of Duke BME.

Sharon Gerecht, PhD
Chair of Biomedical Engineering, Paul M. Gross Distinguished Professor

The team will use AI to develop antibiotics that target infections while sparing the healthy gut microbiome. Learn how their approach could help combat the growing threat of antibiotic resistance.

Tatiana Segura and Nenad Bursac are helping lead GENIE, a new NSF-funded, multi-institutional research center exploring how the 3D organization of DNA shapes cell identity, memory and function. Read how they'll harness this hidden information to improve human health. 

Sonia Bansal has earned two honors recognizing her innovative approach to biomedical engineering education, including the ASEE Biomedical Engineering Teaching Award and a 2026 Engineering Unleashed Fellowship. See how her teaching is reshaping the way students learn.

Ophelia Venturelli and her team are using AI and robotics to identify more predictable combinations of probiotics and dietary fibers that could improve gut health. Read how this approach could reshape microbiome therapies.

In work that appeared in The Scientist, Amanda Randles and her team are using patient scans, physics-based simulations and wearable data to model blood flow in real time. Learn how this technology could help predict heart problems earlier and guide more personalized care.

Jessilyn Dunn and BME alum Brinnae Bent explore the challenges of building trustworthy AI for health care, from bias in clinical tools to the human behaviors that shape how we interact with AI. See what they say about the risks—and responsibilities—of putting AI to work in health care.

“Our students don’t just learn concepts in the classroom—they have the opportunity to experience how those concepts are used in practical ways in the laboratory. That connection is something we want to emphasize, and this funding helps make that possible.”

—GEORGE TRUSKEY,

on the new investment in BME teaching labs

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