Past seminars
Learning control and its applications to rehabilitation robotics | 29 November 2023
Prof Ying Tan – Practice makes perfect. Human beings can learn to perform a task perfectly by repeating this task sufficient times, which is the simple idea for rehabilitation robotics. For example, in poststroke rehabilitation, the widely adopted concept of neurocognitive rehabilitation is an original application of motor re-learning theories imitating human learning; a highly intense and repetitive task routine delivered via robot-assisted therapy is shown to achieve improved motor function for poststroke patients at different settings. This concept motivates the developments of various rehabilitation robots. In this regard, the well-known learning control (LC) strategy, which is specifically developed to achieve high tracking performance of repetitive tasks in industry since 1978, becomes a natural choice for controller designs to accommodate rehabilitation robots. It is noted that, different from many control algorithms using either output feedback or state feedback, the LC algorithms also use the information from previous trials or iterations to improve the performance in the current iteration. This talk summarizes the state-of-the-art in LC designs and provides examples how different LC algorithms can be applied to solve the challenging problems in rehabilitation robotics. Opportunities for integration of learning control into the rehabilitation robotics will be discussed and open research questions for control-theoretic advancements will also be presented.
Artificial supernumerary limbs to augment human ability | 29 November 2023
Dr Jonathan Eden – Science fiction has long imagined individuals able to manipulate and operate additional body parts as intuitively and naturally as their own, however, recent technological developments in signal processing and wearable robotics have begun to make this vision possible. In this talk, the human capability for robotic augmentation is explored through virtual reality studies involving the use of foot-controlled third limbs. Based on the findings, possible future applications including the use of supernumerary limbs for restoration and training will be discussed.
Intracellular Temporal, Spatial and Thermal Dynamics Revealed by Biophysical Nanotools and Advanced Imaging | 22 August 2023
Dr Peter Su – Intracellular membrane nanotube formation and its dynamics play important roles for cargo transportation and organelle biogenesis, which are mainly driven by motor proteins. The formation and dynamics of nanotubes are increasingly recognized to play important roles in a multitude of biological progresses. We demonstrated the role of nanotube dynamics for autophagy and mitochondrial network remodelling with single-molecule in vitro reconstitution assay and super-resolution fluorescent microscopy. The intracellular metabolism of lysosomes and mitochondria is also highly coordinated spatiotemporally and functionally. The activities of lysosomal enzymes significantly rely on the cytoplasmic temperature, and heat is constantly released by mitochondria as the byproduct of adenosine triphosphate (ATP) generation during active metabolism. We developed temperature-sensitive LysoDots and MitoDots to monitor the in situ thermal dynamics of lysosomes and mitochondria. The design is based on upconversion nanoparticles (UCNPs) with high-density surface modifications to achieve the exceptionally high sensitivity of 2.7% K21 and low uncertainty of 0.8 K for nanothermometry to be used in living cells. We show the measurement is independent of the ion concentrations and pH values. With Ca2+ ion shock, the temperatures of both lysosomes and mitochondria increased by ∼2 to 4 °C. Intriguingly, with chloro- quine (CQ) treatment, the lysosomal temperature was observed to decrease by up to ∼3 °C, while mitochondria remained relatively stable. Lastly, with oxidative phosphorylation inhibitor treatment, we observed an ∼3 to 7 °C temperature increase and a thermal transition from mitochondria to lysosomes. These observations indicate different metabolic pathways and thermal transitions between lysosomes and mitochondria inside HeLa cells. The nanothermometry probes provide a powerful tool for multi-modality functional imaging of subcellular organelles and interactions with high spatial, temporal, and thermal dynamics resolutions.
Smart implants for improved bone fracture healing | 13 March 2023
Professor Bergita Ganse – In trauma surgery, current implants are almost always passive without sensing or actuation capabilities. However, sensing of changes in mechanical properties and active mechanical stimulation of the fracture gap could improve rehabilitation and facilitate healing. It is undoubtedly a challenge to build active implants contained inside the body that apply the needed stimuli. Technological advances in material science and systems engineering open up new opportunities. Shape memory alloys (SMA), such as Nitinol have the ability to shorten if warmed up, and changes in their electrical resistance correlate with changes in length. SMA wires embedded in a fracture plate or nail allow the implant to stimulate the fracture gap by shortening and lengthening, but also changes in stiffness or even orientation could be implemented. In this talk, first concepts, patents and demonstrators from the research project ‚ Smart Implants will be presented and discussed.
Fungicidal effect of biomimetic nanostructured surfaces | 14 February 2023
Professor Elena Ivanova – Extensive studies of insect wings have shown that they are covered with nano-pillared arrays lethal to most species of pathogenic bacteria. Rather than relying on a combination of physical and chemical properties to combat biofilm formation, the mechanism of the antibacterial activity of nanostructured surfaces has been described in terms of purely physical, “mechano-bactericidal” effects. So far, several synthetic bactericidal surfaces, e.g., “black silicon,” “black titanium” were fabricated as synthetic analogues of an insect wing’s protective surface and was reported to induce a biocidal effect, physically “bursting” the bacterial cells; however, the fungicidal properties of these and other nano-and micro-architectures remain poorly understood. In this talk we will consider remarkable multi-functionality of nanostructured surfaces.”
Ultrafast High Frequency Ultrasound Imaging and its Biomedical Applications | 15 February 2023
Professor Chih-Chung Huang – The frame rate (the number of images displayed in one second) of current ultrasound imaging machines is about 30-100 fps, which is sufficient for most clinical applications, even echocardiography. However, high frame rate ultrasound imaging, so-called ultrafast ultrasound imaging, has recently been achieved with improvements of ultrasound hardware. One major advantage of ultrafast ultrasound imaging is that it converts the ultrasound image into a “high speed camera”, in which any movement of an object in the view of ultrasound exhibits “slow motion”. Currently, use of plane wave imaging is the standard for ultrafast ultrasound imaging, which the frame rate of ultrafast imaging can be up to >10 kHz. With the emergence of ultrafast ultrasound imaging, several new applications of ultrasound imaging have been proposed such as shear wave elastography, super resolution blood flow imaging, and ultrasound contrast imaging.
In this talk, ultrafast HFUS imaging combining a high frequency array transducer (~40 MHz) with a programmable ultrasound imaging has been proposed. Due to the high imaging resolution ability of HFUS, this ultrafast HFUS imaging is suitable for superficial tissue imaging of human and small animal for gene research and cancer studies. Therefore, high-resolution ultrasound elastography and super resolution blood flow imaging without micro-bubble are currently available for biomedical applications, such as high resolution elastography for human cornea, skin, hand tendon, and mouse brain as well as super resolution blood flow imaging for small animal applications in nerve, brain, heart, and kidney.
Dr Jeff Bischoff, Research Director (Biomechanics), Zimmer Biomet| 30 November 2022
Dr. Jeffrey Bischoff is Research Director (Biomechanics) at Zimmer Biomet, where he has been since 2006. Previously, he received his Ph.D. from the University of Michigan in 2001 with a specialization in soft tissue biomechanics, held a post-doctoral position at the Bioengineering Institute at the University of Auckland, and served as Assistant Professor at the University of South Carolina in Mechanical Engineering. In his current role at Zimmer Biomet, he and his research team provide biomechanical support for a wide variety of development and research projects connected with musculoskeletal health. This work has contributed to the launch and clinical success of arthroplasty systems for multiple major joints. Jeff is currently Chair of the ASME VVUQ40 Subcommittee (Verification, Validation, and Uncertainty Quantification in Computational Modeling of Medical Devices), and Chair of the Implants Section of the Orthopaedic Research Society (ORS). He was named Fellow of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers in 2022. Jeff is a tireless advocate for the responsible expansion of the footprint of computational modeling throughout the total product life cycle of medical devices.
Tissue engineering approaches to tackle cardiac ischemia |22 November 2022
Anna Marsano – Coronary artery disease, mostly caused by atherosclerosis of coronary arteries, is one of the leading causes of myocardial infarction (MI) and heart failure worldwide. Following partial or total obstruction of a coronary artery the macro- circulation and the micro- circulation (capillary network) becomes dysfunctional. Macro- circulation is canonically restored with coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG), thanks to the use of autologous mammary or radial arteries or saphenous veins. However, one third of the patients with vascular disease lack of suitable autologous grafts due to multivessel diseases. My group developed a small-diameter (< 6mm) blood vessel substitute based on a tissue engineering approach using Bacterial Cellulose (BC), a polysaccharide produced extracellularly by different gram–negative bacteria (e.g., Gluconacetobacter Acetobacter). Mechanical and biological characterization of BC-vascular grafts according to the ISO standards, as validation of the grafts for the market and for the large-scale animal pre-clinical model is currently ongoing.
My group has also developed 3D cardiac scar-like tissue and ischemic as well as healthy cardiac models to further investigate the anti-fibrosis, repair and cardiac survival/maturation potential of the engineered patch secretome. Initial findings suggest that the SVF-patches are capable to induce an in vivo intrinsic (within the patch itself) and extrinsic (in the surrounding myocardium) angiogenesis as well as recover the function of cardiomyocytes exposed to severe hypoxia condition.
Future Directions of Biomedical Materials For millennia | 19 and 20 September 2022
Prof Seeram Ramakrishna Thousands of biomedical materials have been sourced, developed and used for improved healthcare outcomes of humans. Eminent scholars grouped them into distinct types | classes to facilitate easy understanding. For example, natural biomedical materials and synthetic biomedical materials; polymers, composites, metals and ceramic biomedical materials; bioinert, bioactive and biomimetic biomedical materials; non-biodegradable and biodegradable biomedical materials. Thus, providing an overview of historical developments of diverse biomedical materials and clear knowledge of enabling scientific principles and advances. The accumulated knowledge coupled with recent rapid advancements in other fields of scientific research sets the stage for imagining future directions of biomedical materials. Smart/intelligent biomedical materials and sustainable biomedical materials are two front runner directions.
According to a study published in Lancet, by 2100, babies born today will be 78 plus and will live in a world in which older people outnumber the younger. Future demography is more akin to a skyscraper instead of a pyramid. And growing demand for improved healthcare by people of all ages can be foreseen. Mental health to be on par with the physical health in importance. This lecture seeks to describe smart (responsive) | intelligent (autonomous) biomedical materials, devices, and systems in the service of stressful human living, aging population, unmet clinical needs, and future pandemics.
Climate change is one of the greatest global public health crises, yet healthcare remains among the most carbon-intensive sectors in the world, accounting for approximately 4% of greenhouse gas emissions. Greater than the aviation and shipping industries, healthcare’s carbon footprint has only been further exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic and looks set to continue to increase significantly in the coming decades. In addition, the generation of medical waste and associated pollution and social costs are on the rise. Net -zero healthcare systems by 2050 are pledged | envisaged. This lecture seeks to explain sustainable biomedical materials via the lens of net-zero emissions and resources | materials circular economy. Specific case studies and examples will be illustrated and discussed.
What you need to know about Clinical Research – Ethics and Governance – The ‘Nuts and Bolts’ | 25 August 2022
As researchers embarking upon clinically focussed research projects, we all know that Research Ethics and Research Governance will be key parts of our framework for developing an ethical, responsible and safe research project. But exactly what is involved in these processes sometimes seems like a black box!
This seminar will lift the lid off that box… through presentations from four speakers who are at the coal-face of Research Ethics and Governance – both from QUT and from our partner Health Services. Listen to learn about the ‘Nuts and Bolts’ of how to get your research projects approved and up and running.
Novel materials through surface engineering using PVD systems | 24 August 2022
Dr Tuquabo Tesfamichael – Physical vapor deposition (PVD) is a thin film deposition process in high vacuum condition through transition of a material from a solid state to a vapor phase and condense to a thin film on a suitable substrate. This industrially viable method allows the development of high-quality films for opto-electronics, biomedicals, corrosion-resistant coatings, sensors, etc. Focus of this presentation is on surface engineering of materials for desired application using available PVD facilities (magnetron sputtering and e-beam evaporation) in our laboratory. I will show the current and past research advances in our lab. This includes the deposition of films and control parameters for surface engineering with emphases on novel thin film metal oxides to enhance the performance and stability of perovskite solar cells and thin film metallic glass biomaterials with bactericidal characteristic for implantable devices in biomedical application.
Light activated biomaterials for 3D bioprinting |8 July 2022
A/Prof Khoon Lim leads the Light Activated Biomateirals Group at the University of Otago Christchurch. His research involves photo-polymerizable hydrogels for 3D-bioprinting of functional tissues, and delivery of bioactive molecules to promote tissue regeneration. He has published >60 high impact journal publications and has successfully raised a total of >NZD$5Million research grant funding, including the prestigious Emerging Researcher First Grant, Sir Charles Hercus Health Research Fellowship, Major Project Grant, from the Health Research Council of New Zealand, and MARSDEN Fast Start Grant and Rutherford Discovery Fellowship from the Royal Society of New Zealand. His research has also generated intellectual property leading to commercialization of hydrogel-based bioinks licensed to a US-based company, as well as establishment of multiple commercial contracts. He is currently the President of Australasian Society for Biomaterials and Tissue Engineering (ASBTE), council member of the New Zealand Association of Scientists and Executive Board Member of Te Titoki Mataora (MedTech Translator Programme). He has previously won a number of awards such as the ASBTE Emerging Investigator Award, European Society for Biomaterials Jean Leray Award, University of Otago Early Career Award for Distinction in Research, as well as the International Society for Biofabrication Young Investigator Award.
Nanoengineered materials and surfaces for medical devices | 6 July 2022
Prof Krasimir Vasilev – Professor Vasilev is currently a Matthew Flinders Professor and a Professor of Biomedical Nanotechnology in the College of Medicine and Public Health at Flinders University. He will give an overview of recent progress from his lab on development of advanced nanoengineered surfaces and materials capable of controlling infection and inflammation, and are the heart of diagnostic technologies. Over the years, we have created the means to control the entire spectrum of biomaterial surface properties including chemical, physical, mechanical and topographical. By controlling surface properties, we are able to address medical challenges that are often encountered with implantable devices such as infection and inflammation.
Clinical Translation – But how do I engage? | 26 May 2022
Welcome to the first in a series of seminars designed to assist CB researchers develop relationships with clinicians. In this seminar we will hear from 3 research leaders from CBT, who all have significant, impactful and well established collaborations with clinical partners, from varying fields of clinical practise. In listening to their journey and experiences in developing strong clinical partnerships, we hope you will learn how to go about engaging with clinicians, and how to enhance your research translation into clinical application.
Extracellular vesicles for therapeutic and diagnostic application | 25 May 2022
A/Prof Joy Wolfram – Joy leads a nanomedicine research laboratory with the goal of developing innovative approaches that bring the next generation of treatments and diagnostics directly to the clinic. She has joint appointments in the School of Chemical Engineering and the Australian Institute for Bioengineering and Nanotechnology at the University of Queensland. Over the past few years, she has authored over 60 publications on nanoscale strategies for cancer and inflammatory conditions and received more than 30 awards. She is actively involved in community outreach and scientific education, and as a TED speaker she strives to bring science to a wider audience
CBT Industry Engagement Q&A Series – Session 3| 3 May 2022
Commercialisation and industry engagement are becoming an increasingly more necessary skill in scientists’ careers. It is now vital to be aware of the opportunities but also of the challenges and risks associated. This workshop, part of the Q&A sessions cycle with the QUT Industry Engagement Office, provided clear concrete, and practical answers to the real needs of the researchers.
Realistic performance prediction of advanced AM structures | 27 April 2022
Advanced lattices and gyroids manufactured by additive manufacturing processes are inherently suitable for applications in the MedTech sector, but have complex mechanical characteristics due to many fine-featured structural elements. Finite element analysis approaches of the as-designed (perfect) structure generally over-predict the determined experimental properties (stiffness, yield) due to inherent defects within the printed structure. X-ray tomography with defect mapping can bridge this gap and aid in our understanding and avoidance of defect-sensitive designs. In addition, stochastic information about defect distributions can be derived from X-ray tomography and can be utilised to determine the scatter in performance, hence increasing our confidence in the predicted mechanical performance.
Next-Generation Therapeutic Strategies for Osteoarthritis (OA) | 23 February 2022
3D Printing of Biomaterials for Replacement and Regeneration for Orthopedic Applications
Associate Professor Chatterjee is an Associate Editor for RSC Advances and an editorial board member for Biomacromolecules, ACS Applied Biomaterials, In Vitro Models, and Frontiers in Medical Technology journals. In this seminar, he discusses 3D printing and additive manufacturing technologies which have emerged in recent years to offer unique opportunities for the processing of materials for biomedical applications.
The seminar will describe the work on selective laser melting (SLM) of titanium alloys where unique heat treatment of the parts prepared by SLM was developed to improve the biomechanical performance of the as-manufactured parts and was further adopted for preparing patient-specific implants as part of an ongoing clinical trial. Fused filament fabrication (FFF) offers an affordable and simple route to prepare 3D tissue scaffolds from biodegradable polymers and coating the 3D printed scaffolds with bioactive ceramics was found to be critical to improving the cellular response toward bone tissue regeneration. Digital light projection (DLP)-based 3D bioprinting can be used to prepare cell-laden hydrogels. Photopolymerizable bioinks were used to prepare scaffolds that can faithfully mimic the architecture of bone tissues seen in vivo. Taken together, this talk will highlight how biomaterials processed by 3D printing can be developed for clinical use in orthopedics.
Next-Generation Therapeutic Strategies for Osteoarthritis (OA) | 23 February 2022
Dr Indira Prasadam is a Senior Lecturer in Biomedical Engineering at Queensland University of Technology and an National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) Emerging Leadership Fellow. Her main research contribution has been in the development of novel disease-modifying and regenerative treatments, as well as pain management technology, to improve the quality of life of the millions of individuals who suffer from OA. Her work has been widely published, and she has received awards from a number of international and Australian professional organisations. Young Investigator Award from OARSI, Young Tall Poppy Award, Women in Technology (WiT) Rising Star (Finalist), and Metro-north Discovery and Innovation Award are among the notable accolades earned. Her current study is funded by the NMHRC, the Australian Research Council (ARC), the Australian Orthopedic Foundation, Queensland University of Technology, and the Prince Charles Hospital Foundation.
Bioinspiration, architecture, and 3D-4D printing for the next-generation materials | 23 March 2022
Mohammad Mirkhalaf is a Lecturer and ARC DECRA fellow at the Queensland University of Technology (QUT). His research is on tailoring material’s internal architecture to improve its mechanical properties and tissue regeneration capacity. He has published 26 original research articles and one invited review article in high-profile journals, two book chapters, a full US patent, and two patents at the corporation treaty stage. Of the journal articles, he is the first author on 17; these include publications in leading multidisciplinary journals such as Nature Communications, PNAS, Acta Biomaterialia, and Appl Mater Today and in leading disciplinary journals in mechanics (e.g., Extreme Mechanics Letters & Int J Solids Struct). He has been the first-named investigator on four successful external grant applications (worth > A$1M) and attracted several prestigious postdoctoral/graduate awards (total > A$500K). His experience working at universities, government labs, and industries in Iran, Singapore, Canada, and recently Australia has enabled him to build solid national and international research partnerships. He has developed and taught two new coursesat the University of Sydney, and taught graduate and undergraduate courses McGill University, and Nanyang Technological University.
ARC DECRA and Future Fellowship seminar – Maximise your chance for success | 16 September 2021
Professor Axel Bruns has successfully secured over $68 million in research funding. He is a previous ARC Future Fellow and was a named Chief Investigator on the Centre of Excellence for Creative Industries and Innovation. Further he has led or was a named Chief Investigator on five successful Linkage Projects as well as three successful Discovery Projects.
Axel is an Australian Research Council Laureate Fellow and Professor in the Digital Media Research Centre at Queensland University of Technology in Brisbane, Australia, and a Chief Investigator in the ARC Centre of Excellence for Automated Decision-Making and Society..
Journey from lab to clinical guideline: Digital Pathology + AI in liver disease diagnosis and treatment | 24 August 2021
Dr Dean Tai, Co-founder and Chief Scientific Officer (CSO) of HistoIndex, will talk about the translation of an innovative microscopy imaging system into new clinical trial guidelines for new drugs targeting liver diseases. Several aspects of this translation path will be discussed. Technically, what does it take to take a AI based imaging system from laboratory to industrial manufacturing? How to identify and enter the market? And how do you gain endorsements from key option leaders and business leaders in a specific disease domain?
Dr Tai will also be sharing his experiences over the commercialisation path and his personal journey transiting from being a physicist and post-doctoral researcher to a businessman involved in managing companies in Australia, Singapore, China and USA.
Machine Learning Explainer | 28th June 2021
CBT and School of MMPE brings together QUT staff and students to learn and discuss the opportunities of applying Machine Learning (ML) in their research disciplines. The aim is to encourage an informal and inclusive atmosphere to encourage questions and participation, as well as being highly informative on available resources for learning and upskilling of ML.
A/Prof Yi-Chin Toh, Academic Lead (Research) at School of MMPE, will facilitate a panel of ML experts in a discussion about what you should know when seeking resources and aligning your research to ML.
A novel 3D printing approach for structured microenvironments and defined cell behaviour | 24 May 2021
Hala Zreiqat AM, is a professor of biomedical engineering at the University of Sydney and both a National Health and Medical Research Council Senior Research Fellow (2006-2020); Director ARC Training Centre for Innovative Bio-Engineering. She is an Associate of the John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences, Harvard University, Honorary Professor Shanghai Jiao Tong University.
Her research is on the development of novel engineered materials and 3D-printed and nanotechnology platforms, in orthopaedic, dental, and maxillofacial applications. Her group is also developing effective biological approaches through biochemical and cellular modification for the repair and regenerating of large bone defects and non-union bone fractures.
Development of a high resolution 3D printing technology for advanced biomaterials | 14 April 2021
Paul Dalton is an Associate Professor at the Phil and Penny Knight Campus at the University of Oregon, USA, and has over 25 years’ of interdisciplinary experience with biomedical materials, including polymer processing, experimental surgery, nanotechnology and hydrogels. This interdisciplinary background has been achieved at numerous institutions, including Lions Eye Institute (Australia), University of Toronto (Canada), RWTH Aachen (Germany), University of Southampton (UK), Shanghai Jiao Tong University (China) and University of Würzburg (Germany).
He commenced work on melt electrospinning in 2003, and developed this into a direct-writing technology at QUT from 2009, with particularly utility for the manufacture of biomedical materials
Research translation and commercialisation in the post COVID world | 8th April 2021
Associate Professor Tam Nguyen has over 20 years of working in the healthcare, health and medical research and research management sector including tertiary teaching hospitals, medical research institutes and universities across Australia.
As the deputy director of research at St Vincent’s Hospital Melbourne, Tam is responsible for research strategy, research development and innovation. He leads a dynamic team dedicated to providing strategic and innovative solutions to facilitate health and medical research. Tam serves as non-executive director on various NFP, healthcare and aged care boards providing his broad range expertise including strategy, governance, and sector specific in health and medical research.
He also advises numerous medtech and health tech start-ups on their overall strategies, clinical trials strategies, project management and execution.