IEEE Orange County Computer Society (OCCS)
and
IEEE OC Engineering in Medicine and Biology Society (EMBS)
Present
Leveraging Semiconductor Micro-fabrication in Cell Biology

ABSTRACT

Over the past few decades, the information technology industry has powered spectacular advances in microtechnology in order to satisfy ever increasing computing requirements. Conveniently, the length scale of integrated circuits corresponds with the realm of biological cells and tissues. In recent years, researchers have begun to adapt microfabrication to pattern not only microprocessors, but also cells and tissue at the resolution of individual cells. This capability has opened the door to new types of experiments in cell biology and provided the tantalizing possibility of fabricating tissues and organs.
In this talk, I will start with an overview of the use of microfabrication in cell biology and tissue engineering. I will then detail a recently developed device from our laboratory that combines moving silicon parts with cell culture to create a dynamically controlled tissue environment and explain how this system can be used to further our understanding of the biology of cell-cell interactions.

BIOGRAPHY

Dr Elliot E. Hui received bachelor degrees in Physics and Electrical Engineering & Computer Science from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and a Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering from the University of California, Berkeley. He pursued his postdoctoral training at the Harvard-MIT Division of Health Sciences and Technology before joining the Department of Biomedical Engineering faculty at the University of California, Irvine. His research focuses on the application of microtechnology to study the biology of cells and tissues, and to improve global health diagnostics. Dr. Hui received the Ruth L. Kirschstein National Research Service Award from the National Institutes of Health for his postdoctoral fellowship.