Carnegie Mellon University Robotics Institute, Graduate Research Assistant, Pittsburgh PA • Working towards implementation of an active end effector in an intelligent, tremor-mitigating microsurgical tool to improve the safety and success rates of retinal membrane peeling and retinal vein cannulation procedures• Created and validated a cardiac phantom through 3D modeling/printing and CFD simulations respectively; collaborated with a lab member to develop a machine learning… Show more Carnegie Mellon University Robotics Institute, Graduate Research Assistant, Pittsburgh PA • Working towards implementation of an active end effector in an intelligent, tremor-mitigating microsurgical tool to improve the safety and success rates of retinal membrane peeling and retinal vein cannulation procedures• Created and validated a cardiac phantom through 3D modeling/printing and CFD simulations respectively; collaborated with a lab member to develop a machine learning algorithm to accurately map coronary vasculature utilizing Doppler ultrasound and a miniature robot walker with success rates as high as 96% • Designed a soft, resistive sensor for cardiac catheter ablation; characterized resistance vs. force relationships via FEA and Python coding for various loading methods, validated through analytical modeling, to mimic abnormal angles of ablation in surgical practice Show less

Engineering Molecular Cell Biology - Fall 2019Tissue Engineering - Spring 2020

Biomechanics• Designed a 3D-printable device paired with an ankle-foot orthotic to lower ankle power during walking in patients with Peripheral Artery Disease; pilot testing is ongoing with initial results showing a 6.5% decrease in ankle torque in healthy subjects• Generated finite element simulations in Fusion 360 to determine stress levels placed on ankle-foot orthotic over time, leading to design changes intended to improve the comfort and strength of the device•Adapted Arduino… Show more Biomechanics• Designed a 3D-printable device paired with an ankle-foot orthotic to lower ankle power during walking in patients with Peripheral Artery Disease; pilot testing is ongoing with initial results showing a 6.5% decrease in ankle torque in healthy subjects• Generated finite element simulations in Fusion 360 to determine stress levels placed on ankle-foot orthotic over time, leading to design changes intended to improve the comfort and strength of the device•Adapted Arduino code to calibrate and record data via an attachable load cell to facilitate the recording of force data during pilot testing Show less

Microfluidics, Electrochemistry • Utilized Comsol to predict velocity and pressure needed to establish a consistent flow of media through microfluidic devices to examine the migration of breast cancer cells using various chemoattractants• Constructed a Matlab code to quantitate intensity and sharpness of various concentration gradients, providing a way to quantitatively compare pump settings• Developed a Comsol simulation depicting an electrochemical reaction powered by… Show more Microfluidics, Electrochemistry • Utilized Comsol to predict velocity and pressure needed to establish a consistent flow of media through microfluidic devices to examine the migration of breast cancer cells using various chemoattractants• Constructed a Matlab code to quantitate intensity and sharpness of various concentration gradients, providing a way to quantitatively compare pump settings• Developed a Comsol simulation depicting an electrochemical reaction powered by bipolar electrodes in a microfluidic device to support experimental results of a faradaic reaction produced by a lab member• Quantified effects of upstream diffusion layers on downstream electrode reactions, strengthening the predictive model; published results in the Journal of Analysis and Testing, in collaboration with advisor and graduate students Show less

Biochemical Engineering, Microbiology•Developed and optimized an in-house, chemically defined media for NSO cell culture and recombinant protein production using “Design of Experiments” tactics; increased maximum cell density by 110%• Created a Matlab code to optimize media components based on a quadratic model, significance of each variable tested, and prior results to improve small scale longevity of cell culture by 33%

Microbiology• Collaborated with a post-doc to conduct protein expression experiments focused on the effects of cell signaling inhibitors on renal cancer cell proliferation• Captured high-resolution photos of cells cultured in inhibitors of interest via cell staining, observed a 93% increase in differentiation and upregulation of ciliogenesis in affected renal cells• Delivered an academic poster presentation consisting of significant outcomes at an undergraduate symposium