News

Alan W. Eberhardt, Ph.D., professor and associate chair of education in the Department of Biomedical Engineering, has retired after 35 years of dedicated service.

Jianyi “Jay” Zhang, M.D., Ph.D., professor and T. Michael and Gillian Goodrich Endowed Chair of Engineering Leadership, has been appointed to the rank of Distinguished Professor of Biomedical Engineering in the UAB Heersink School of Medicine.

Celebrating its tenth anniversary, the Cardiovascular Bioengineering (CVBE) Symposium 2026 took place in Göttingen, Germany.

The statistics are startling: more than 7 million Americans age 65 and older are living with Alzheimer’s disease, a figure that is projected to double by 2060. In Alabama, over 103,000 people age 65 and older—nearly 12% of seniors—have been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s.

This spring, the University of Alabama System Board of Trustees awarded the rank of Distinguished Professor to nine faculty members and the rank of University Professor to five faculty members.

Carlos J. Orihuela, Ph.D., professor in the Department of Microbiology, was part of a spaceflight research project that examined why many individuals who survived pneumonia later experienced serious heart complications.

When she walks across UAB’s commencement stage on May 2, an academic-filled chapter will close for Ann Varghese.

Juhi Samal, Ph.D., Jianli Zhao, M.D., and Yang Zhou, Ph.D., assistant professors in the Department of Biomedical Engineering, have each been awarded grants from the American Heart Association (AHA) for their individual studies.

Findings from this investigation could contribute to improved clinical interventions for patients recovering from pneumonia and help reduce the risk of long‑term heart damage.

A rise in research funding within UAB’s Department of Family and Community Medicine highlights its expanding research impact.

UAB researchers are developing a new at-home cervical cancer screening device aimed at increasing access to screening and improving early detection.

Ho-Wook Jun, Ph.D., has been awarded one of the University of Alabama System’s most prestigious honors, the McMahon-Pleiad Prize, for his contributions, which align with the system’s missions, values and core principals.

Meet undergraduates working on a heart surgery trainer, 3D-printed pumps, a Braille teleprompter and more in the tech-packed Design x Prototyping Lab at Gorrie Hall.

Seven trainee abstracts from the lab of Jianyi “Jay” Zhang, M.D., Ph.D., professor and T. Michael and Gillian Goodrich Endowed Chair of Engineering Leadership, were selected for the 2025 American Heart Association’s (AHA) Scientific Sessions conference.

UAB researchers will develop three-dimensional models of the human brain that will be launched to the International Space Station, where they will remain for 30 days.

The Blazer Bridge Fund encourages discovery among the UAB community by providing financial support to innovative ideas and inventions.

Lei Ye, M.D., Ph.D., associate professor in the Department of Biomedical Engineering, and his lab team have published groundbreaking research that proves specially designed nanovesicles—tiny particles made from human stem cells—can help restore blood flow and repair blood vessels in animal models with blocked circulation in their limbs.

Jianyi “Jay” Zhang, M.D., Ph.D., professor and T. Michael and Gillian Goodrich Endowed Chair of Engineering Leadership, spoke at the UAB Department of Biomedical Engineering seminar series last Friday, addressing students, postdoctoral researchers, faculty, and staff on the future of cardiac repair and the vital role of engineering in medicine.

Earlier this year, M.K. Sewell-Loftin, Ph.D., was honored with the esteemed American Cancer Society Research Scholar Grant for her groundbreaking research on triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC).

What if a virtual reality headset could help detect rare forms of autism? That question led six biomedical engineering seniors at UAB to design a groundbreaking diagnostic tool and win first place among more than 60 teams at the university’s Senior Design Expo.

Jianli Zhao, M.D., assistant professor in the UAB Department of Biomedical Engineering, has been awarded $30,000 in pilot funding to further develop a research project focused on heart failure with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF) in patients with obesity.

Stacy Moak, Mary Kathryn Sewell-Loftin, Sarah Culver and Samiksha Raut demonstrated extraordinary commitment to engaging undergraduate students in service learning, undergraduate research, education abroad and core teaching.

Academic medical centers (AMCs) are among the United States’ most active hives of biomedical innovation thanks to their often robust research enterprises. Increasingly, AMCs like the Heersink School of Medicine play a central role in another realm of innovation: the biomedical/biotech start-up space.

The understanding of how macrophages regulate their response to toxic particles via two independent pathways could uncover therapeutic opportunities to quell inflammation.

The Cardiovascular National Innovation Center (CNIC) recently hosted its 9th Annual Cardiovascular Bioengineering Symposium, an immersive, three-day event that united world-leading scientists, engineers, and clinicians on the front lines of heart failure treatment and cardiovascular regeneration.

The UAB Medicine Leadership Development Office recently recognized eight individuals in its sixth cohort of Sharing Authentically to Inspire and Lead (SAIL). The spring 2025 graduates were honored at a ceremony on April 8.

The Center for Neuroengineering and Brain-Computer Interfaces (CNBCI) under the University of Alabama at Birmingham Marnix E. Heersink School of Medicine hosted its third annual NeuroGateways Symposium on April 10-11 at the UAB Alumni House.

UAB’s new Lunaphore COMET multiplex immunofluorescent platform can hyperplex up to 40 antibodies on a single pathology tissue sample.

Snekha Rajasekaran plans to leverage her passion for medicine and social welfare to become a service-oriented physician-scientist, improving lives in Alabama and beyond.

Juhi Samal, Ph.D., assistant professor in the Department of Biomedical Engineering, is a recent recipient of the COMET™ from the Heersink School of Medicine Immunology Institute for her proposed study, “Immune Cell Sialoglycan Signatures in Ischemic Stroke.”