Researchers at the Indiana University Luddy School of Informatics, Computing and Engineering are advancing biomedical research by applying artificial intelligence and machine learning to an innovative lab-on-a-chip technology known as acoustofluidics, or the manipulation of cells in liquid using sound waves.<\/p>\n
Adding AI to this technology could help scientists identify new treatments faster and more effectively. Led by Feng Guo<\/a>, an IU associate professor of intelligent systems engineering, this research was recently awarded $1.5 million from the National Institutes of Health<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u201cThe goal of our lab is to leverage artificial intelligence and organoid computing \u2014 what we call biological intelligence \u2014 to further advance or innovate biomedical systems to address the challenges for medicine, healthcare and the pharmaceutical industry,\u201d said Guo, who is also director of the Intelligent Biomedical Systems Lab at the IU Luddy School.<\/p>\n Acoustofluidics uses the principles of fluid dynamics to manipulate biological materials, such as chemical compounds or cells, in solution with sound. The process \u2014 also referred to as \u201cacoustic tweezers\u201d \u2014 offers significant advantages to other methods of manipulating these materials in the lab, said Guo, who studied under a pioneer in the field<\/a> before joining IU.<\/p>\n Unlike traditional liquid-handling methods, such as pipetting, acoustofluidics is completely contactless, reducing the risks of cross-contamination that can easily ruin experiments involving biological materials.<\/p>\n The method is harmless to living cells and does not require the use of chemical tags, such as fluorescent dyes or radioactive labels, Guo said.<\/p>\n \u201cAcoustofluidics is completely contactless, label-free and highly biocompatible,\u201d he said, adding that the technology has the potential to improve a wide range of medical research areas, such as infectious disease, cancer research and regenerative medicine.<\/p>\n The power of acoustofluidics can be seen in action under a microscope. Guo\u2019s research has produced video showing the chaotic swirl of cells in solution transforming into precisely controlled actions<\/a> using only sound waves, as microscopic particles spin and march in rigid formation.<\/p>\n The introduction of AI into this system raises the possibility of real-time monitoring and adaptive control of complex biomedical experiments, Guo said. AI can react much faster than human scientists, who need to pause their experiments after each change in the system under analysis to determine how to proceed.<\/p>\n By contrast, AI can react almost instantaneously. For example, Guo said that applying AI to acoustofluidics could allow faster protein analysis or screening of potential drug compounds \u2014 both of which are needed in personalized medicine, where drugs and dosages are tailored to a patient\u2019s specific biology.<\/p>\n \u201cAI can help you generate the best protocol,\u201d Guo said. \u201cIt can provide dynamic feedback and dynamic monitoring to control fast, quick chemical reactions.\u201d<\/p>\n Applications of the technology that Guo has disclosed to the IU Innovation and Commercialization Office<\/a> include a method of rapidly analyzing the effect of drug compounds on immune cell interactions in tumors; the use of acoustic fields to stimulate tissues or organs, such as neurons or muscles; and even using acoustic therapeutic patches to deliver precise drug dosages through the skin. He also holds a broader U.S. patent on the technology<\/a>.<\/p>\n Under the new NIH grant, Guo expects to recruit a new postdoctoral researcher and several undergraduate students to the Intelligent Biomedical Systems Lab<\/a>, in addition to the nine graduate, undergraduate and postdoctoral students who currently comprise the group. Guo is also a co-lead on a $16.5 million Alzheimer\u2019s research grant<\/a> with the IU School of Medicine as well as a $2 million NSF award supporting pioneering research on brain organoid computing technology<\/a>. Both projects also use intelligent acoustofluidics and organ chip<\/a> systems.<\/p>\n Guo\u2019s research has already attracted the interest of several healthcare startups, including one interested in potentially licensing some of the technology.<\/p>\n \u201cWe really want to push for that translational impact \u2014 to find the practical challenge for industry or clinical translation medicine and leverage our efforts into the workforce,\u201d he said, adding that his lab\u2019s goal isn\u2019t simply to advance acoustofluidics but also to pursue applications of the technology with the greatest potential impact in the real world.<\/p>\n \u201cI do work to promote medicine, biology and chemistry, but I\u2019m trained in physics and engineering,\u201d he said. \u201cWhat I aways say is scientists want to understand the world, but engineers want to change it.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Researchers at the Indiana University Luddy School of Informatics, Computing and Engineering are advancing biomedical research by applying…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":187715,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[49,48,73076,6808,66],"class_list":["post-187714","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-science","tag-ca","tag-canada","tag-indiana-university","tag-newswise","tag-science"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/187714","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=187714"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/187714\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/187715"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=187714"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=187714"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=187714"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}