New bioengineering lab benefits UMass Dartmouth students

DARTMOUTH, Mass. (AP) - The future is now at UMass Dartmouths bioengineering lab, where students and staff are working on things that were once the stuff of science fiction.

And theyre doing it in a lab that allows them the space and equipment to do cutting-edge research in a field thats the fastest-growing major at UMass Dartmouth.

I think its changed dramatically, said Nick Macedo, 21, a senior working on cell cultures in the lab that was inaugurated last September on the second floor of the former textile building.

Previously, a group of bioengineering students would huddle around a teacher in a small space. Now they have individualized teaching because everyone gets their own spot and instruments, Macedo said. Its the only place on campus where Macedo said he can work on cell and tissue cultures, a major skill in todays world that will make him more attractive in the job market or when he applies for graduate school.

The old lab was shared with other majors and did not have the space and equipment the new one has, said Ph.D. scholar Abdulrahman Kehail, 27, whose research is focused on producing bioplastics from bacteria. It has a lot of windows and that really affects my mood, he said. Researchers typically spend long hours in the lab and the old one was windowless. I feel this new space will attract many bioengineering grad students to do their research at UMass Dartmouth.

Six faculty members, four Ph.D. students and about 129 undergraduates currently use the teaching and research spaces created, said Tracie Ferreira, associate professor of bioengineering, a 4-year-old major at the university.

Its much easier for students to get an idea of the work they can do during campus visits and for students to work on their research projects, she said. One of the biggest growing fields is tissue engineering and stem cells. No other space in the university allows students to do that kind of work.

Bioengineering is a versatile, multidisciplinary field, said assistant professor Christopher Brigham in an email. We want to have a multipartite approach to education and research, including but not limited to electronic medical devices, tissue engineering, and biomanufacturing/fermentation.

Brigham said he studies bacteria that come from the soil or other natural environments that produce compounds. His group works on microbial production of a type of polymers that can be used as raw material for medical implants and sutures, as well as alcohol and lipid-based biofuels.

His work captured the attention of U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren during a brief tour of the lab last week.

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New bioengineering lab benefits UMass Dartmouth students