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Virginia Tech researcher teams with FDA to advance device safety through numerical modeling, Oct 2021.

"Rafael Davalos, the L. Preston Wade Professor in biomedical engineering and mechanics, is working with scientists at the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to develop a numerical heart model as a regulatory science tool with applications in assessing cardiac ablation devices."

Rafael Davalos receives Van C. Mow Medal, June 2021.

"Rafael Davalos, the L. Preston Wade Professor in biomedical engineering and mechanics in the College of Engineering, has been named the 2021 recipient of the Van C. Mow Medal by the American Society of Mechanical Engineers. The medal is bestowed upon an individual who has demonstrated meritorious contributions to the field of bioengineering through research, education, professional development, leadership in the development of the profession, mentorship to young bioengineers, and service to the bioengineering community. The award was established by the society’s bioengineering division in 2004."

Research with Dr. Swami selected as a feature article in the TBME June Issue, 2020.

"On-Chip Impedance for Quantifying Parasitic Voltages During AC Electrokinetic Trapping" selected as a feature article in the IEEE TBME June Issue, 2020.

Post-Doc Anand Vadlamani and biomedical engineering students adapt lab spaces and resources to 3D print PPE parts

In response on the COVID-19 outbreak, Anand Vadlamani converted lab space to a 3D printing area - printing over 1000 masks/face sheilds for the benefit of local health workers.

Philip Graybill featured in BIOTRANS interdisciplinary graduate program overview video.

Nastaran Alinezhadbalalami and Philip Graybill are both BIOTRANS fellows. Check out this promotional video of the program!

Research with Dr. Coy Allen featured in Augusta Free Press

The Augusta Free Press published an article entitled "Cancer treatment progress from engineering, veterinary medicine," highlighting a recent article with Dr. Irving Coy Allen published in EBioMedicine that investigates the immunogenic effects of HFIRE.

Virginia Tech researchers examine role of fluid flow in ovarian cancer progression

Alex Hyler's recent publication on ovarian cancer progression has also been featured on Medical XpressAugusta Free PressTechnology NetworksScicastsALN Magazine, and Drug Discovery and Development Magazine Online.

State Awards $1.1 Million To Virginia Tech to Help Develop Device To Treat Brain Tumors

A $1.1 million dollar grant from the Virginia Research Investment Committee will support the developement of an electroporation device to prepare for clinical trials.

Davalos to be co-Guest Editor in special issue of TCRT

Dr. Davalos will be a co-guest editor for a special issue of Technology in Cancer Research and Treatment covering electroporation based therapies.

Grant puts research team on track to treat brain cancer

Dr. Davalos is one of several researchers from Virginia Tech and Wake Forest University to receive a $9.2 million grant for developing treatments for brain cancer.

Cancer Researchers at Wake Forest Baptist Receive $9 Million Grant to Study Aggressive Brain Cancer

A five-year, $9.2 million grant from the National Cancer Institute was awared to scientists at Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center to improve glioblastoma treatment.

Rafael Davalos wins dean's award for research

The award was conveyed at the academic year-end awards, Spring 2016.

Rafael Davalos selected as American Society of Mechanical Engineers Fellow

The American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) has named Rafael Davalos, professor of biomedical engineering in Virginia Tech’s College of Engineering, an ASME Fellow.

Alumni in the News

Lab Alumnus develops phone device to tests male fertility with 98% accuracy

Hadi Shafiee, now currently an Assistant Professor at the Harvard Medical School, has developed a phone device to tests male fertility with 98% accuracy.

Startup by Lab alumnus Paulo Garcia wins funding from The Engine

Kytopen, a tech startup lead by Paulo Garcia is developing a microfluidic device that shocks cells continuously and is able to modifie microorganisms 10,000 times faster than current state-of-the-art methods.

News Archive

AIP / Biomicrofluidics Editors' Picks: Enhanced contactless dielectrophoresis enrichment and isolation platform via cell-scale microstructures

Davalos Lab research chosen as an editors' pick by the #1 original research journal in the fluid and plasma physics category.

Scott Verbridge and Rafael Davalos describe novel tumor treatment in Scientific Reports

In the first published results from a $386,000 National Cancer Institute grant awarded earlier this year, a paper by Scott Verbridge and Rafael Davalos in Scientific Reports has been published.

Cancer Under Attack: Virginia Tech community forms a strong front against cancer
Rafael Davalos, professor at the Virginia Tech-Wake Forest University School of Biomedical Engineering and Sciences, develops biomedical devices to diagnose and treat cancer. One project involves isolating tumor-inducing cells circulating in the blood stream so that they can be identified before the cancer is otherwise detectable. Another has resulted in technology that uses applied electric fields to specifically target tumor cells while leaving healthy tissue unharmed.

Virginia Tech is among top 100 worldwide universities granted U.S. patents in 2014
Rafael Davalos, a professor of biomedical engineering in the Virginia Tech – Wake Forest University School of Biomedical Engineering and Sciences and an affiliate of the Fralin Life Science Institute and the Institute for Critical Technology and Applied Science, received patents for a minimally invasive surgical procedure that selectively treats cancer cells by using electric fields coupled with cancer targeting nanoparticles developed by his team.

16th annual RBTC TechNite awards ceremony winners announced
Dr. Davalos won the Innovator Award.

A dog lives on; now the stage is being set for treating humans
Collaboration with Dr. Scott Verbridge has yeilded some exciting future possibilities.

New tool Vascular Enabled Nanosecond pulse reversibly open the blood-brain-barrier
A new technology that may assist in the treatment of brain cancer and other neurological diseases is the subject of an article in a recent issue of the journal Technology, published by World Scientific Publishing Company. According to the authors, the current medical use of chemotherapy to treat brain cancer can be inefficient because of the blood-brain-barrier that impedes the delivery of drugs out of blood vessels and into the tumor.

Treating Brain Tumors - New Procedure: [Pulse of the Planet] (with audio)

Cancer is just when the cells start to go astray and tend to rapidly divide and start behaving abnormally. What we are working on are several different types of cancer: brain cancer pancreatic cancer and skin cancer.

Treating Brain Tumors - How It Works: [Pulse of the Planet] (with audio)

Essentially the most painful aspect of the surgery is delivering the anesthesia through a syringe. That's Rafael Davalos, an associate professor of biomedical engineer at Virginia Tech..

Treating Brain Tumors - Translatable Process: [Pulse of the Planet]  (with audio)

Rafael Davalos says the procedure has thus far been successfully tested on horses and dogs with melanoma, skin cancer and tumors. Davalos: The technology could be used to treat almost any tumor..

National Science Foundation graduate research fellow joins Doctoral Scholars Program
Elisa Wasson, a 2013 National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellow, has been accepted into the Institute for Critical Technology and Applied Science Doctoral Scholars Program. 

Professor Rafael V Davalos selected to serve as Program Chair for AES 
2013 Annual Meeting

Investigating dielectric properties of different stages of syngeneic murine ovarian cancer cells.
http://biomedfrontiers.org/cancer-20139-15/

Nanoparticles Help to Zap Tumors
http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P2-34900568.html

2 regional firms, Virginia Tech win technology grants
http://www.roanoke.com/news/business/1974382-12/2-regional-firms-virginia-tech-win-technology-grants.html

HOT article! Contactless dielectrophoresis to assess drug efficacy
http://blogs.rsc.org/ib/2013/05/10/hot-article-contactless-dielectrophoresis-to-assess-drug-efficacy/

Robert Neal and Catherine Larochelle receive 2012 Outstanding Dissertation Awards from Graduate School
http://www.vtnews.vt.edu/articles/2012/05/051012-gradschool-neallarochelle.html

Fralin researchers design potential blood thinner that also unmasks cancer cells
http://www.vtnews.vt.edu/articles/2012/12/120612-fralin-bloodthinner.html

Lab-on-a-chip features advances in cancer detection research by Virginia Tech engineer
http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/177600.php

NASA Tech Briefs- 2007: The Year in Technology 
Electric pulses destroy cancer cells

http://www.techbriefs.com/content/view/2472/36/1/2/

Advances in cancer detection featured in microfluidics journal
http://www.newswise.com/articles/view/560735/?sc=dwhp

Irreversible electroporation kills cancer cells
http://www.whatsnextnetwork.com/technology/index.php/2007/07/06/
irreversible_electroporation_kills_cance

Biomedical engineers use electric pulses to destroy cancer cells
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/07/070705100311.htm

Electroporation: a shock for cancer cells
http://medicalphysicsweb.org/cws/article/research/30914

Faculty Spotlight: Rafael Davalos- Biomedical engineers use electric pulses to destroy cancer cells (page 9)
http://www.ictas.vt.edu/pdf/conn2.pdf

Putting bacteria to work as tiny weavers of nanoscale biomaterials
http://www.azonano.com/news.asp?newsID=8590

It’s a Wire! It’s a Tube! It’s . . . Super-Foam!http://hokietech.wordpress.com/2010/01/19/it%E2%80%99s-a-wire-it%E2%80%99s-a-tube-it%E2%80%99s-super-foam/

Invention controls weavers of nanoscale biomaterials
http://www.vtnews.vt.edu/articles/2008/11/2008-693.html

Biomedical engineers use electric pulses to destroy cancer cells
http://www.vtnews.vt.edu/story.php?relyear=2007&itemno=379

Technology developed for national security advances cancer detection
http://www.research.vt.edu/resmag/2010winter/cancer.html

Cancer detection by electrical signature
http://rsc.org/Publishing/Journals/cb/Volume/2010/02/
cancer_detection.asp