News

Amy Van Hove, Brandon Wilson and Danielle Benoit, Ph.D. have published an article entitled, Microwave-assisted Functionalization of Poly(ethylene glycol) and On-resin Peptides for Use in Chain Polymerizations and Hydrogel Formation, in the Journal of Visualized Experiments (Jove). The paper discussed one of the main benefits to using poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG) macromers in hydrogel formation is synthetic versatility. The ability to draw from a large variety of PEG molecular weights and configurations (arm number, arm length, and branching pattern) affords researchers tight control over resulting hydrogel structures and properties, including Young's modulus and mesh size. To view the video which illustrates a rapid, efficient, solvent-free, microwave-assisted method to methacrylate PEG precursors into poly(ethylene glycol) dimethacrylate (PEGDM) click here.

Jason Inzana and Dr. Hani Awad

A recent article in Hajim School of Engineering' and Applied Sciences' newsletter, The Full Spectrum, features examples of how tissue engineering research at the Biomedical Engineering Department, much of which is conducted in preclinical models to heal traumatic injuries, is bolstered by the work of BME faculty and graduate students in the laboratories of professors Awad, Benoit, and Buckley, capitalizing on close ties with the Center for Musculoskeletal Research.

As part of a consortium of research projects funded by AOTrauma, Dr. Hani Awad and his lab members are using new 3D printing technology to fabricate bone scaffolds made of biocompatible material to replace the original bone tissue lost to infection. As part of the printing process, the scaffolds can be ink-jetted with antibiotics to fight the infection and with growth factors to stimulate replacement bone growth. These therapeutics can be applied to the surface of the graft, or embedded uniformly in it, so they can be released gradually, as the graft dissolves, to ensure the infection is eradicated and to stimulate regeneration of the bone tissue.

Dr. Danielle Benoit

Dr. Mark Buckley

With support from a National Institutes of Health grant, Dr. Danielle Benoit's team is exploring the use of hydrogels - Jell-O-like polymers - that can be seeded with the patient's own stem cells and wrapped around the transplant. Benoit's graduate student Michael Hoffman has demonstrated that as the hydrogel dissolves, the stem cells are gradually released and promote bone healing and integration. Benoit is exploring various ways in which this can all be orchestrated to maximize graft healing and integration.

Dr. Mark Buckley, who joined biomedical engineering as an assistant professor at the start of the year, is studying heat buildup in tendons as they are stretched during various activities and the extent to which this contributes to cell death and eventual deterioration of the tendon. A key part of this research involves characterizing exactly what constitutes healthy tendon structure and function.

Congratulations to Amy Van Hove for a Successful Qualifying Exam! Amy is currently a graduate student in the Benoit Lab, and her current project is Therapeutic Biomaterials for Wound Healing Applications (Supported by an HHMI Med-Into-Grad Fellowship).

Danielle Benoit, Ph.D., assistant professor of Biomedical Engineering, has been awarded a two year grant from New York Stem Cell Science (NYSTEM), for the project, entitled: Promoting MSC-mediated musculoskeletal tissue regeneration using sustained, localized sirna delivery. This research will develop hydrogel-based, sustained and localized delivery systems for small interfering RNA (siRNA) to promote mesenchymal stem cell (MSC)-mediated tissue regeneration. Our initial application for this approach is as a delivery system to enhance fracture healing.

Drs. Catherine Ovitt & Szilvia Arany's article, Nanoparticle-mediated gene silencing confers radioprotection to salivary glands in vivojournal Molecular Therapy, has been featured on NIDCR website. The results of the study suggest that optimization of in vivo siRNA-mediated silencing for clinical application could be an effective means of protecting salivary glands in the radiation treatment of head and neck cancer. They also pointed out that the approach has significant advantages over alternative methods, as it is limited to the salivary glands, does not involve viruses, and the block in Pkcδ protein expression is only temporary.

BME undergraduate Amanda Chen has been awarded a Tau Beta Pi Scholarship for 2013-14, in the amount of $2,000 for a year of full-time academic study, or $1,000 for a semester or two quarters of full-time academic study. Amanda is currently studying therapeutic biomaterials for treating bone remodeling disorders in Dr. Danielle Benoit's lab. Congratulations Amanda!

The Benoit Lab Lemonade Stand at the Rochester Public Market in 2012

On most days, Danielle Benoit can be found in her lab developing better ways to administer medicines for treating diseases, particularly childhood cancer. This weekend, Benoit and the other researchers in her lab will show their support for the foundation that helps fund their research. They'll put down their beakers and syringes in favor of pitchers of lemonade—in the spirit of the little girl who made it all possible.

The 4th Annual Benoit Laboratory Lemonade Stand takes place this weekend at the Rochester and Brighton public markets. Benoit, assistant professor of biomedical engineering, and her fellow researchers will be serving lemonade and explaining their work on childhood cancer therapies. It's part of a national effort organized by Alex's Lemonade Stand Foundation.

The name comes from Alexandra "Alex" Scott of Connecticut, a four-year-old girl who was diagnosed with cancer before her first birthday. She set up lemonade stands every year before her death at age 8 to raise money so that doctors could find a cure for cancer. The idea spread, and children in other parts of the country set up their own lemonade stands to join the cause.

"Cancer affects children differently than it does adults," said Benoit. "The causes are unknown and the treatments are less-than-optimal since they were developed for adults." Cancer is also the leading cause of death for children 15 and younger.

Ian Marozas, a BME undergraduate in Danielle Benoit's lab, was awarded the President's Award for Undergraduate Research in Engineering and Applied Sciences, this afternoon at the Undergraduate Research Expo for his presentation Development of Targeted Drug Delivery Systems for the Treatment of Osteoporosis. Also, Michael David won the Dean's Award for Undergraduate Research in Engineering & Applied Sciences for his talk Effect of High Fat Diet-Induced Obesity and Type 2 Diabetes on Tendon Repair (Mentor: Dr. Robert Mooney) and Ka Lai Tsang won the Professor's Choice Award in Engineering and Applied Sciences for her poster Determination of Effective masses and parametric study of the organ of corti (Mentor: Jong-Hoon Nam).

Biomedical Engineering (BME) Undergraduate, Amanda Chen ('14) has been selected as a 2013 Goldwater Scholar. Each scholarship covers eligible expenses for undergraduate tuition, fees, books, and room and board, up to a maximum of $7,500 annually. The Barry Goldwater Scholarship and Excellence in Education Program was established by Congress in 1986 to honor Senator Barry M. Goldwater, who served his country for 56 years as a soldier and statesman, including 30 years of service in the U.S. Senate.

The purpose of the Foundation is to provide a continuing source of highly qualified scientists, mathematicians, and engineers by awarding scholarships to college students who intend to pursue careers in these fields. Amanda is currently pursuing research in Dr. Danielle Benoit's lab focusing on Therapeutic Biomaterials for Treating Bone Remodeling Disorders. Her future goals include pursuing a Ph.D. in BME as well as continuing research in therapeutics and targeted delivery, while teaching at the university level.

Danielle Benoit, Ph.D., assistant professor of Biomedical Engineering, has been awarded a five year grant from National Institutes of Health, specifically the National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases (NIAMS), for the project, entitled: Tissue engineering strategies to revitalize bone allografts. This project focuses on the revitalization of allografts using tissue-engineering strategies to recapitulate critical healing functions of the periosteum. Our objective is to develop periosteum mimetics composed of synthetic hydrogels (poly(ethylene glycol), PEG) for MSC transplantation to:

1. Promote cell-mediated allograft healing/integration
2. Isolate the critical factors of the periosteum in healing
3. Develop cell-free therapies that result in complete allograft healing and integration.

BME Graduate Student, Michael Hoffman, has had a review he wrote, Engineering the periosteum: revitalizing allografts by mimicking autograft healing published by the Journal of Clinical Orthopaedics and Related Research. Michael is currently a graduate student in the Benoit Lab working on the project, Tissue Engineered Periosteum Approaches to Heal Bone Allograft Transplants, which is supported by an NIH T32 training grant 'Training in Orthopaedics'.

BME Graduate Student, Michael Hoffman, had his first publication, based on his thesis research accepted by the Journal of Tissue Engineering and Regenerative Medicine. Michael is currently a graduate student in the Benoit Lab working on the project, Tissue Engineered Periosteum Approaches to Heal Bone Allograft Transplants, which is supported by an NIH T32 training grant 'Training in Orthopaedics'.

Danielle Benoit, Ph.D. and her husband, Pat, are delighted to announce the birth of their son, Raymond James Benoit greeted the world promptly at 6:26 AM on February 9^th (his due date), weighing 7 lbs 9 oz and measuring 19.25 inches. The entire BME family is excited and wishes to extend their congratulations to Dr. Benoit!

Congratulations to Michael Hoffman for a Successful Qualifying Exam! Michael is currently a graduate student in the Benoit Lab, and his current project, Tissue Engineered Periosteum Approaches to Heal Bone Allograft Transplants, is supported by an NIH T32 training grant 'Training in Orthopaedics'.

Congratulations to Michael Baranello for a Successful Qualifying Exam! Mike is currently a graduate student in the Benoit Lab, and his current project is Use of Polymer Micelles to Enhance Cancer TherapeuticsCongratulations to Michael Baranello for a Successful Qualifying Exam! Mike is currently a graduate student in the <a href="/labs/Benoit-lab/">Benoit Lab</a>, and his current project is <em>Use of Polymer Micelles to Enhance Cancer Therapeutics</em (Supported by an NSF graduate research fellowship).

Salivary gland cells are viable encapsulated within hydrogels: A dissociated cell prep prepared from whole submandibular gland was seeded into PEG hydrogels and incubated in serum-free media.

Biomedical Genetics assistant professor, Catherine Ovitt, Ph.D. and Danielle Benoit, Ph.D., assistant professor of Biomedical Engineering and Chemical Engineering, have been awarded a four year grant from the National Institutes of Health (NIH), for the project, entitled Hydrogel encapsulation of salivary gland cells promotes cell survival, proliferation, and assembly.

This project deals with potential utility of adult stem or progenitor cells for repair of radiation-damaged salivary glands. While the potential is high, it is currently only a theoretical solution for patients suffering from xerostomia. There remain several critical obstacles that must be resolved before cell-based therapy for dysfunctional salivary glands can be moved into the clinical arena. These include the identification of appropriate donor cells, the technology for promoting implantation, and direct functional assays to assess the outcomes.

The goal is to determine if the use of hydrogels can promote in vivo differentiation of transplanted progenitor cells. The successful completion of this project will establish a foundation for subsequent translational research to progress the technology into clinical applications.

For more information please visit the Ovitt Lab and the Benoit Lab.

Danielle Benoit, Assistant Professor of Biomedical Engineering, has been chosen for a 3-year, $420,000 National Science Foundation award in support of her project, Developing materials strategies to control siRNA spatial and temporal delivery to engineer multicomponent tissues.

Congratulations to former student, Dan Reynolds who has been chosen by Boston University to participate in an NIH Graduate Student Training Grant in Biomaterials. The program emphasizes translational research and includes opportunities to participate in clinical research, entrepreneurial classes, and industrial internships.

Learning how to twist long, narrow balloons into animal shapes took almost no time for the crew from Therapeutic Biomaterials Lab at the University of Rochester. They're prepared for the longer haul of figuring out how to kill cancer stem cells with drugs while leaving normal, healthy cells alone.

The dozen or so undergraduates, grad students and post-docs of the lab headed by Danielle Benoit sold lemonade to raise money for Alex's Lemonade Stand Foundation, which funds research to find a cure for childhood cancer. The foundation has awarded Benoit's lab $40,000 for each of four years for work in nanotechnology. This is third time the lab has run the stand during the foundation's National Lemonade Days.

The students raised $360 Saturday at the Rochester Public Market and $370 Sunday at the Brighton Farmers Market at Brighton High School toward its goal of $4,000. They've collected more than $900 online, with a few more weeks to go.

Michael Bux, BME Junior in the laboratory of Danielle Benoit, Ph.D. was recently awarded a SEAS Xerox Undergraduate Fellowship. The SEAS Xerox Fellowship Program is a highly competitive program to provide engineering undergraduates with an opportunity to participate in a research experience in SEAS during the summer preceding their senior year. Additionally, students will receive independent study course credit for the continuation of their work during the fall and spring semesters of their senior year. Selection criteria include research interests, competitive academic performance, and intellectual ability and curiosity.

The Benoit Lab at one of their Alex's Lemonade Stand Fundraisers

Danielle Benoit, Ph.D. and her Therapeutic Biomaterials Lab, will once again give back by hosting their 3^rd annual Alex's Lemonade Stand fundraiser for ALSF at the Rochester Public Market and the Brighton Farmers' Market June 9-10. Last year's fundraiser for cancer was a rousing success as the lab raised over $2000, and Dr. Benoit hopes to raise even more this year. The lab continues to urge friends, family, and colleagues to contribute in person and online to help support ALSF.

Alex's Lemonade Stand Foundation (ALSF) emerged from the front yard lemonade stand of cancer patient Alexandra Alex Scott (1996-2004). In 2000, 4-year-old Alex announced that she wanted to hold a lemonade stand to raise money to help find a cure for all children with cancer. Since Alex held that first stand, the Foundation bearing her name has evolved into a national fundraising movement, complete with thousands of supporters across the country carrying on her legacy of hope. If you would like to contribute to this effort, please visit the Benoit Lab's ALSF Lemonade Stand.

Two current BME and Chemical Engineering students and a BME alumna have received prestigious National Science Foundation Research Fellowships. BME graduate student, Jason Inzana (Awad Lab), Michael Baranello, a Chemical Engineering Ph.D. student in the Benoit Lab, and Molly Boutin, an alumnus of the Benoit lab (undergraduate research assistant), were among those who received the fellowships.

Selection for these awards is based on the students' outstanding abilities and accomplishments, as well as their potential to contribute to strengthening the vitality of the US science and engineering enterprise. The fellowship, which is part of a federally sponsored program, provides three years of graduate study support for students pursing doctoral degrees. The fellowship includes a three-year annual stipend of $30,000, a $10,500 educational allowance to the institution, and international research opportunities.

BME graduate student, Michael Hoffman has been selected by the Education Committee in the CMSR at the University of Rochester to assume one of the highly sought after pre-doctoral training seats on the Ruth L. Kirschstein NIH T32 Training Grant.

Michael will continue to pursue research under Dr. Danielle Benoit and will be provided a $21,600 stipend along with $4,200 towards his benefits rate and $1,000 travel budget. The position provides 3 years of support.

Benoit lab members Kanika Vats took 2^nd place (her talk titled, Exploiting thiol-ene hydrogels to control cell behavior dynamically) and Michael Baranello took 3^rd place (his talk titled, Characterization and Development of Novel Parthenolide Delivery System) at the Syracuse University-University of Rochester sponsored Biomaterials Day: Interactive Biomaterials conference.

The conference was held at the Syracuse Biomaterials Institute (SBI) at Syracuse University and was a success with speakers from Cornell, UR, Renssalaer Polytechnic, and Syracuse. The organizers of the event, who have been awarded a $5000 grant from the Society for Biomaterials, are Rebecca Bader, Ph.D., Assistant Professor of Biomedical and Chemical Engineering, at Syracuse University and Danielle Benoit, Ph.D., Assistant Professor of Biomedical Engineering and Chemical Engineering, at the University of Rochester.

Dr. Danielle Benoit instructing Mrs. Hoffend's students
on the finer points of non-Newtonian fluid.

What happens when Mrs. Hoffend's fourth grade class visits BME? Well, baking soda-vinegar volcanoes erupt, materials change color, texture, and shape, and Freaky Friday takes on a whole new meaning! The Benoit Lab set up a series of four stations around Goergen Hall and provided the fourth graders with a hands-on science learning experience. Mrs. Hoffend wanted to do a project on scientists in our local area, and learn more about the research that they are involved with. Her students spent several weeks researching, reading, and writing about the Benoit Lab in preparation for the visit.

Graduate student, Amy Van Hove worked with Mrs. Hoffend to create a memorable experience for both the fourth graders and the lab personnel. I remember science demos were one of my favorite activities in elementary school. So when Mrs. Hoffend contacted us, I was very excited about her project. Everyone involved did a great job preparing and running the demos, and we all had a great time working with the kids, said Van Hove, who organized the event.

Graduate student, Amy Van Hove, showing Mrs. Hoffend's
students how changing temperature affects how some materials behave.

My students were extremely fortunate to have the opportunity to meet and interact with a variety of scientists on this special day in the biomedical engineering lab at the University of Rochester. The children returned to school talking about all the wonderful things they had seen and done and many were saying they now want to be scientists! I cannot thank Dr. Benoit enough for the use of her labs, Amy for her take charge attitude to make this experience happen for the children, and for all the wonderful members of the labs that helped to make this day possible and rewarding for these young students, said Mrs. Hoffend about the children's experience.

On November 18, 2011, Syracuse University and the University of Rochester will hold the first Biomaterials Day Conference to highlight research in the Upstate New York region focused on the development of Interactive Biomaterials that are biocompatible and elicit desired responses when interfaced with biological tissues. The conference is to be held at the Syracuse Biomaterials Institute (SBI) at Syracuse University with a optional Biomaterials Characterization Workshop on November 17^th.

The organizers of the event, who have been awarded a $5000 grant from the Society for Biomaterials, are Rebecca Bader, Ph.D., Assistant Professor of Biomedical and Chemical Engineering, at Syracuse University and Biomedical Engineering and Chemical Engineering, at the University of Rochester.

Michael Hoffmann

Congratulations to BME graduate student, Michael Hoffman, who won the Sodus Point Sprint Triathlon on August 14^th. The triathlon consisted of a .45 mile swim, 13.1 mile bike, and 5K run. Michael is a current member of the Benoit Lab, working on the tissue engineered periosteum approaches to heal bone allograft transplants project.

Derrick German, undergraduate research student from Union College, won first place in the University of Rochester's Summer Undergraduate Research Program Symposium. His presentation concluded his summer experience and was entitled: Targeting the Wnt/B-catenin pathway: A therapeutic approach to bone remodeling. Congratulations Derrick!

Amy Van Hove, a graduate student in the Benoit lab has been awarded the Howard Hughes Medical Institute Med-into-Grad Fellowship in Cardiovascular Science. This prestigious Howard Hughes Medical Institute fellowship is sponsored by the Aab Cardiovascular Research Institute (CVRI) and augments traditional Ph.D. training with clinical rotations, a clinical co-mentor, weekly CVRI seminar series, journal club, and translational cardiovascular coursework to train the next generation of bench-to-bedside cardiovascular scientists.

Biomedical Engineering assistant professor, Dr. Danielle Benoit has been awarded a $100,000 grant from the Leukemia Research Foundation (LRF). Dr. Benoit's Therapeutic Biomaterials Lab conducts research on developing new treatments for childhood leukemia by using synthetic hydrogels and polymers formed using reversible-addition fragmentation chain transfer polymerization (RAFT). In 1946, the Leukemia Research Foundation was established in Chicago to memorialize 12-year-old Sherwin Pessin. Since that time nearly 65 years ago, LRF has raised more than $48 million.

Recently Danielle Benoit, Ph.D. received the Young Investigator Award from the Alex's Lemonade Stand Foundation (ALSF) for a grant developing new treatments for childhood leukemia. To give back, Benoit and the Therapeutic Biomaterials Lab held their 2^nd annual lemonade stand fundraiser at the Rochester Public Market and the Brighton Farmers' Market over the weekend of June 11. Last year the lab raised $865, and Dr. Benoit had hoped to raise $1,000 this year. But when that goal was meet earlier than expected, Dr. Benoit challenged the lab to higher stakes—raising the goal to $2,000. Urging friends, family, and colleagues to contribute in person and online as well as furnishing over 20 gallons of lemonade at the markets, the lab has raised $2020.53 for ALSF.

The lemonade stands are fantastic. They give us a unique opportunity to educate the Rochester area about our research at the University of Rochester as well as the mission of ALSF. Plus they are a lot of fun!, said Dr. Benoit about her lab's participation in Alex's Lemonade Stand. If you would like to contribute to this effort, please visit the Benoit Lab's ALSF Lemonade Stand.

Congratulations to BME professor, Dr. Danielle Benoit who just received a WHEEL Award. Dr. Benoit is working on a grant entitled, Inhibition of Bone Formation by Lead: Rescue with a Targeted Polymer Therapeutic, and will be mentored by Dr. J. Edward Puzas from the Center for Musculoskeletal Research and Dr. Deborah Cory-Slechta, Professor of Environmental Medicine.

The Women's Health and the Environment over the Entire Lifespan (WHEEL) program is a K-12 training program funded by NICHD and NIEHS through the Building Interdisciplinary Research Careers in Women's Health (BIRCWH) Program. The grant was received by the URMC Obstetrics and Gynecology Department last September. It funds four scholars and is aimed at helping them to launch independent research careers.

Congratulations to the RCBU and BME students whose work was recognized at the prestigious annual University of Rochester Undergraduate Research Exposition 2011. Undergraduate students from RCBU and BME research laboratories participated in the symposium. BME undergrads Benjamin Freedman '11 and Kelli Summers '11 were both invited to speak at the Engineering and Applied Sciences Symposium Talks.

Freedman discussed his work, What is Q-Angle really measuring? A novel alternative to predict patellar maltracking, which received the Dean's Award. Summers spoke about her research with Dr. James McGrath, Mechanisms Underlying Collective Cell Migration in Vitro, which was recognized by President Seligman with the President's Award. Aaron Zakrzewski (ME '11), mentored by Mechanical Engineering Professor Sheryl Gracewski, gave an oral presentation of his research titled Natural frequency of bubbles within rigid and compliant tubes. Aaron also received a Deans' Award for Undergraduate Research in Engineering and Applied Sciences for his presentation. In addition, five of the seven poster exhibitions from the Hajim School of Engineering and Applied Sciences were by BME students:

Molly Boutin (Benoit Lab) BME '11

A Polymeric Delivery System to Induce Differentiation in hMSCs

Jasmine Carvalho (Dalecki Lab) BME '11

Investigations of Ultrasound Parameters to Promote Spatial Organization of Cells in Three-Dimensional Engineered Tissues

Vlabhav Kakkad (McAleavey Lab) BME '12

Experimental Implementation of Shear Wave Induced Phase Encoding Imaging

Angela Ketterer (Carney Lab) BME '12

Design and Implementation of a Behavioral Apparatus for Auditory Research in Birds

Hannah Watkins (Benoit Lab) BME '11

Novel Parthenolide Delivery System for Acute Myeloid Leukemia Treatment

(Received the Professor's Choice Award)

Current Benoit Lab members, Molly Boutin (BME senior) and Hannah Watkins (BME senior) will be presenting their research at the Undergraduate Research Exposition 2011, April 15^th from 12:30 to 4:00 pm. The Exposition will be comprised of two venues for the presentation of undergraduate research: a Symposium for twelve oral presentations and a Poster Presentation Fair. The Symposium will include participants selected by judges, reflecting the most accomplished undergraduate work throughout the College.

Three BME seniors received prestigious National Science Foundation Research Fellowships, and Michael Hoffman, a Ph.D. student in the Benoit Lab, received an NSF Honorable Mention. The fellowship, which is part of a federally sponsored program, provides up to three years of graduate study support for students pursing doctoral or research-based master's degrees.

The fellowship includes a three-year annual stipend of $30,000, a $10,500 educational allowance to the institution, and international research opportunities. Danielle Benoit, assistant professor in biomedical and chemical engineering at Rochester, says that the financial support provides students the flexibility to attend conferences, participate in training programs, and travel to meet with other researchers in their field.

The following graduating BME seniors received fellowships:

Benjamin Freedman (Lerner Lab) '11

University of Pennsylvania

Adam Kozak '11

Duke University

Hannah Watkins (Benoit Lab) '11

Cornell University

2011-12 Fullbright Scholarship and Whitaker International Fellowship to the United Kingdom

Current Benoit Lab members, Molly Boutin (BME senior), Michael Hoffman (2nd year PhD student), and Hannah Watkins (BME senior) were all selected to present their research at the 37^th Northeast Bioengineering Conference this past weekend at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI), in Troy, NY. Molly won first place in the Regenerative Medicine category for her talk entitled, Evaluation of a polymeric siRNA delivery system for mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs).

Dan Reynolds, BME Junior in the laboratory of Danielle Benoit, Ph.D. was recently awarded a SEAS Xerox Undergraduate Fellowship. The SEAS Xerox Fellowship Program is a highly competitive program to provide engineering undergraduates with an opportunity to participate in a research experience in SEAS during the summer preceding their senior year. Additionally, students will receive independent study course credit for the continuation of their work during the fall and spring semesters of their senior year. Selection criteria include research interests, competitive academic performance, and intellectual ability and curiosity.

Dan will continue his work in the Benoit Lab focusing on Cross-linked network architectures for controllable drug delivery. In addition to this honor, Dan has also won a National Tau Beta Pi Scholarship for his senior year at UR.

BME Undergraduate Hannah Watkins (Benoit Lab) has been selected as a Fulbright Scholar in the United Kingdom. This is the most competitive Fulbright to win (geographically)! She will be performing research next year with Dr. Molly Stevens at Imperial College in London developing novel responsive drug delivery liposomes for cancer treatment.

The Benoit Lab has been awarded a grant from the Orthopaedic Research & Educational Foundation/Musculoskeletal Transplant Foundation for the research project: Tissue Engineered Periosteum Approaches to Heal Bone Allograft Transplants.

The Benoit Lab has been awarded a grant from the Rochester/Finger Lakes Eye & Tissue Bank (R/FLETB) for their project entitled, Tissue Engineered Periosteum Approaches to Heal Bone Allograft Transplants.

Dr. Danielle Benoit was featured on WXXI's Healthy Friday on December 17, discussing Polymers and biomedical materials in health related issues Vitamin D Guidelines.

Dr. Danielle Benoit'sALSF grant has received co-funding from the I Care I Cure Foundation. The Benoit lab was one of three chosen from all 2010 ALSF grants. The I Care I Cure Foundation supports the development of, and raises public awareness about, cutting-edge, targeted therapies for childhood cancer, so the treatment of childhood cancer will be gentler and more tolerable.

Dr. Danielle Benoit's (BME) Young Investigator Grant titled: Targeted polymeric parthenolide carriers to treat childhood AML (Acute Myeloid Leukemia), has been selected by ALSF's Scientific Advisory Board for funding. Alex's Lemonade Stand Foundation (ASLF) has raised over $30 million dollars for pediatric cancer research since 2004, and is committed to finding a cure for all types of childhood cancers.

The SEAS Xerox Undergraduate Fellows Program is a highly competitive program to provide engineering undergraduates with an opportunity to participate in a research experience in SEAS during the summer preceding their senior year. Additionally, students will receive independent study course credit for the continuation of their work during the fall and spring semesters of their senior year. Selection criteria include research interests, competitive academic performance, and intellectual ability and curiosity. Hannah will continue her work in the Benoit Lab focusing on Hydrogel Culture Environments for Regenerative Medicine Applications.