2015 Otto Schmitt Lecture (Nerem) | Institute for Engineering in Medicine Archives

“Engineering and Life Sciences: Celebrating the Past, Envisioning the Future”

11:30 AM - 12:30 PM
Tuesday, October 20, 2015

ABSTRACT

Over the past half century engineers have made enormous contributions to both an increased understanding of biology and biological mechanisms and to improvements in clinical treatments. For these many contributions, there is much to celebrate. From the study of blood flow, to the role of hemodynamics in atherosclerosis, to the development of new medical devices, to regenerative medicine and stem cell technology, the contributions of the bioengineering community have had a major impact. This includes everything from advances in pacemakers, to continuing efforts to understand “the rules of life” that determine cell function, to translating basic benchtop molecular and cell biology research into cell-based therapies. As one further envisions the future, although the application of engineering to the medical area will continue to be important, such new areas as energy, the environment, and food will be an expanded part of the intersection of engineering and the life sciences. Already we are seeing an industrialization of biology with the biomanufacturing of chemicals today becoming a significant element of the economy of the U.S., and there are even efforts focused on creating biological machines, ones that might not even exist in nature. Furthermore, there are a variety of societal problems that need to be addressed; however, this will take an integration of the different disciplines that can contribute, a true interdisciplinary approach that will lead to a deeper scientific understanding and ultimately to solutions. Thus, even though it is difficult to predict the future, with the expanded opportunities the future of engineering and the life sciences working together must be viewed as extremely bright.