Grand challenges for biological engineering

A global initiative on addressing bioinformatics' grand challenges

The Bioinformatics Grand Challenges Consortium (BGCC) is a collaborative effort to address the most pressing challenges in bioinformatics. Initially focusing on education and training, the consortium successfully defined seven key grand challenges and is actively developing actionable solutions for these challenges. Building on this foundation, the BGCC plans to broaden its focus to include additional grand challenges in emerging areas.

The Effect of Environmental Values on German Primary School Students’ Knowledge on Water Supply

Permanent access to safe drinking water is guaranteed in most industrialized countries, while climate change is turning it into a serious global issue. Knowing how to use the valuable resource water consciously and sustainably requires well-informed and ecologically aware citizens. Environmental education approaches should help develop long-term environmental knowledge, pro-environmental attitudes, and behavior with the overall goal of promoting environmental citizenship. The present study, thus, examines the influence of environmental values on students’ environmental knowledge in a German primary school sample (9–10-year-old students) by providing an authentic, out-of-school learning experience on the topic of fresh water supply. Our approach goes beyond mere correlation analyses by using structural equation modeling (SEM) to measure effects between the two variables. Environmental values were monitored using the Two Major Environmental Values Model (2-MEV) with its two dimensions, Preservation and Utilization of nature. Following a quasi-experimental design, we assessed the learners’ knowledge before (T0), directly after (T1), and six weeks after (T2) module participation. Confirmatory factor analysis verified the two-factor-structure of the 2-MEV. Preservation turned out as a direct positive predictor of pre-knowledge (T0) but did not show any significant effect on post-knowledge (T1) and knowledge retention (T2). Utilization displayed a larger albeit negative direct effect on knowledge across all testing times, especially for pre- and post-knowledge. Our findings shed light on the significant impact of anthropocentric attitudes on knowledge acquisition within primary school samples and provided valuable insights into feasible environmental learning approaches.

Development of a Chewing Robot With Built-in Humanoid Jaws to Simulate Mastication to Quantify Robotic Agents Release From Chewing Gums Compared to Human Participants

Medicated chewing gum has been recognised as a new advanced drug delivery method, with a promising future. Its potential has not yet been fully exploited because currently there is no gold standard for testing the release of agents from chewing gum in vitro. This study presents a novel humanoid chewing robot capable of closely replicating the human chewing motion in a closed environment, incorporating artificial saliva and allowing measurement of xylitol release from the gum. The release of xylitol from commercially available chewing gum was quantified following both in vitro and in vivo mastication. The chewing robot demonstrated a similar release rate of xylitol as human participants. The greatest release of xylitol occurred during the first 5 minutes of chewing and after 20 minutes of chewing only a low amount of xylitol remained in the gum bolus, irrespective of the chewing method used. Saliva and artificial saliva solutions respectively were collected after 5, 10, 15 and 20 minutes of continuous chewing and the amount of xylitol released from the chewing gum determined. Bioengineering has been implemented as the key engineering strategy to create an artificial oral environment that closely mimics that found in vivo. These results demonstrate the chewing robot with built-in humanoid jaws could provide opportunities for pharmaceutical companies to investigate and refine drug release from gum, with reduced patient exposure and reduced costs using this novel methodology.

Thematic series on emerging leaders in biological engineering: convergence and new directions

Over the past two decades, the biological engineering research community has increased its efforts to promote 'Convergence'. Many research endeavors have thus involved the synergy of multiple perspectives and approaches from originally distinct fields towards driving creative innovative solutions to address many grand challenges that face our society. Here, we introduce the JBE thematic series on emerging leaders in biological engineering. The aim of the series is to disseminate the latest developments in research that integrate the principles of biology and engineering methodologies to address grand challenges in human health and the health of the planet. This thematic series highlights exciting new areas and emerging leaders who are addressing many of these challenges.

Towards the 10-year milestone of Journal of Biological Engineering

October 10^th, 2016 marked the 9^th anniversary for the Journal of Biological Engineering (JBE), the official journal of Institute of Biological Engineering (IBE), published by BioMed Central. We are entering into the 10^th year of its exciting and productive history. In this editorial, a brief history of JBE is summarized, along with a series of analyses on average number of citations, breakdown of topical subjects, geographical representations and so forth for all published articles in JBE. Future prospects and new directions of JBE are also described in this editorial.

Biological approaches for addressing the grand challenge of providing access to clean drinking water

The U.S. National Academy of Engineering (NAE) recently published a document presenting "Grand Challenges for Engineering". This list was proposed by leading engineers and scientists from around the world at the request of the U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF). Fourteen topics were selected for these grand challenges, and at least seven can be addressed using the tools and methods of biological engineering. Here we describe how biological engineers can address the challenge of providing access to clean drinking water. This issue must be addressed in part by removing or inactivating microbial and chemical contaminants in order to properly deliver water safe for human consumption. Despite many advances in technologies this challenge is expanding due to increased pressure on fresh water supplies and to new opportunities for growth of potentially pathogenic organisms.