Feeling the finals crunch? Stop by the IBB Nerem Atrium for a study break featuring hot chocolate and coffee bars, and study snacks to help you recharge during finals!

Open to all in the bio-community, while supplies last.

REGISTER HERE for virtual participation link

Presented by: Firas Kobaissy, Morehouse School of Medicine

Blue Sky Groups are unstructured meetings that provide a unique opportunity for attendees to drive the agenda and catalyze future collaborations and research opportunities.

Discussion topics may include, but are not limited to:

• What are the burning research questions in this area?
• What are the known funding opportunities?
• What are the cross-institutional collaborative research opportunities
  in this field?

Share your experience, learn from others, enjoy opportunities for interdisciplinary networking and find potential collaborators!

• Faculty Honor
• Staff Honor
• Entrepreneurship Honor
• Trainee Honor

Submit Your Nomination here by Friday, Nov. 20, 2026 @ 5 p.m. Awards announced at IBB Holiday Party.

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Klemis Kitchen Donation Drive - Join IBB and BBUGS in making sure no Yellow Jacket ever has to skip a meal!

Bring your shelf-stable food items to the Nerem Atrium anytime before the holiday party, or make a donation HERE. No amount is too small! Let's come together and make a difference this holiday season!

Join Justin Burns, PhD, Chief Innovation Officer and Vice President of Innovation and Entrepreneurship, Georgia Research Alliance, from noon to 1:00 PM via Zoom. Drawing on tech transfer, venture investing, and running GRA’s commercialization funding, Burns will walk through how funders size technical, market, and regulatory risk, which milestones change a valuation, and what to stop spending on before your next raise or license.

The Bench2Market Talks series is created to provide commercialization guidance to the university research community. For more details on the series, visit our website.

• Attend in-person at the Petit Biotechnology Building (IBB) - Lunch provided, while supplies last
• REGISTER HERE for virtual participation link

BIO 
Melissa Lambeth Kemp received her B.S. in Nuclear Engineering from MIT and her Ph.D. in Bioengineering from University of Washington. Kemp joined the faculty at Georgia Tech in 2006 after completing postdoctoral training at MIT. Her expertise is in computational modeling of metabolism and signal transduction, as well as developing statistical modeling tools to examine network relationships in high-dimension datasets. One major aspect of her research program linking ROS – the byproducts of aerobic metabolism – to the fundamental way that cells interpret instructions from their environment, their neighbors, and their own genetic blueprint. Specific applications of her diverse work include systems modeling of transient phosphatase oxidation of kinase cascades, patient-specific differences in cytotoxicity to redox-cycled chemotherapeutics and radiation, and the coordination of oxidative metabolism with epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition. Her research program also includes a component of developing high-throughput screening methods for assaying cue-signal-response relationships in cells and analytical tools for single cell gene expression. 

Kemp currently serves as the Research Director of the multi-site NSF Engineering Research Center “Cell Manufacturing Technologies”. In her former role as Associate Director of the NSF Science and Technology Center “Emergent Behavior of Integrated Cellular Systems,” she spearheaded the multi-site center’s computational activities by developing agent-based models of context-dependent cellular decisions to generate new hypotheses of intercellular communication in pluripotent stem cell differentiation and emergent patterning; this work continues currently in quantifying organizational principles and spatial relationships in iPSC-derived tissues from multi-omics data. Kemp’s career honors include a Whitaker Graduate Fellowship, Merck/CSBi postdoctoral fellowship, Georgia Cancer Coalition Distinguished Scholar, NIH New Innovator Award, and the CSB2 Prize for Innovative Measurement Methods from the Council for Systems Biology in Boston.

The Spatial Omics and Data Analytics (SODA) Center meets monthly for networking, information transfer, and active partnership formation. These seminars will feature internal faculty spotlights, external leaders, and dedicated time slots for “Synergy Sessions” where faculty pitch data challenges or analytical solutions, directly seeding joint grant applications and cross-departmental Ph.D. mentorship.

Register HERE to participate virtually

ABSTRACT
Focused ultrasound (FUS) and nanomedicine offer promising opportunities to improve cancer treatment through targeted drug delivery, localized tumor ablation, and modulation of antitumor immunity. However, translating these technologies into clinical practice remains challenging, partly because conventional preclinical models do not fully capture the biological complexity of naturally occurring cancers. Our research integrates focused ultrasound, nanomedicine, and comparative oncology within a One-Medicine framework to accelerate therapeutic development for both human and veterinary patients. We are investigating multiple ultrasound modalities, including hyperthermia, thermal ablation, and histotripsy, and their potential to enhance the therapeutic efficacy of chemotherapy, radiation, and immunomodulatory nanomedicines. These approaches are designed not only to improve local tumor control but also to stimulate systemic antitumor immune responses and address metastatic disease. Building on mechanistic studies in preclinical models, we are translating these technologies into clinical trials involving companion animals with naturally occurring cancers through the Veterinary Research and Oncology Clinic (VROC) at UT Southwestern. This presentation will highlight our progress in developing ultrasound-based combination therapies, the challenges of clinical translation, and the opportunities offered by comparative oncology to accelerate therapeutic innovations across species.

BIO
Ashish Ranjan is an Endowed Professor in the Department of Radiation Oncology. He also serves as Vice Chair for Comparative Oncology and Research Innovation and Director of the Veterinary Research and Oncology Clinic. He earned his B.V.Sc. degree (DVM equivalent) from Madras Veterinary College, in Chennai, India, followed by a Ph.D. in biomedical and veterinary sciences from Virginia Tech. Ranjan was then a visiting fellow at the Center for Interventional Oncology, Department of Radiology and Imaging Sciences at the National Institutes of Health (NIH).

Ranjan's research interests are in the application of device-directed nanoparticles for solid tumor chemo-immunotherapy. His lab is actively engaged in preclinical and bench-to-bedside veterinary clinical trials and has received funding from several federal, state, and private sources. Ranjan has received several distinguished awards, including the NIH Merit Award. He also serves on the Scientific Advisory Board of Focused Ultrasound Foundation, UK's Humanimal Trust, and NIH panels.

Faculty host: Yue Chen

 

This free event is designed for all ages, and offers something for everyone robotics, biology, space, art, nanotechnology, computer science, engineering, artificial intelligence, and more.

Questions? Contact events@gatech.edu.

The Atlanta Science Festival is an annual, public celebration of local science and technology. Curious people of all ages can explore the science and technology in our region and see how science is connected to all parts of our lives. Learn more.

ABOUT THE ACADEMY:
Eight standalone sessions will orient researchers to NIH and its most frequently used award mechanisms – the R01. This program will review the core components of R01 applications, provide suggestions for structuring your proposal, and demystify the review process.

WHO SHOULD PARTICIPATE? 
This academy is best suited for early-career faculty members and others who have not yet secured an R01 or equivalent award. Applicants at any stage of readiness are welcome, and those committed to applying within the next six to 12 months are particularly encouraged to join.

WHEN & WHERE?
Courses will take place via Zoom on Mondays from 12 - 1 p.m., Sept. 28 - Nov. 16.

The Bench2Market Talks series is created to provide commercialization guidance to the university research community. For more details on the series, visit our website.

• Children's Healthcare of Atlanta
• Emory University
• Florida State University
• Georgia Institute of Technology
• Georgia State University
• Medical University of South Carolina
• Mercer University
• Morehouse School of Medicine
• University of Alabama at Birmingham
• University of Florida
• University of Georgia
• University of Miami
  
   

• Do you have a patentable invention and want to protect it?
• Interested in commercializing your research either through licensing to an existing company or a startup?
• Want to learn about the commercialization resources available for entrepreneurs?

Stop by the IP and Commercialization Office Hours in the IBB atrium and meet with experts from the Office of Technology Licensing and Quadrant-i. We are at your service!  

The Experts:

• Cynthia Sundell, Senior Director of Life Sciences and Quadrant-i Principal
• Harold Solomon, Quadrant-i Principal
• Kashmira Kulkarni, Licensing Associate Office of Technology Licensing

• Do you have a patentable invention and want to protect it?
• Interested in commercializing your research either through licensing to an existing company or a startup?
• Want to learn about the commercialization resources available for entrepreneurs?

Stop by the IP and Commercialization Office Hours in the IBB atrium and meet with experts from the Office of Technology Licensing and Quadrant-i. We are at your service!  

The Experts:

• Cynthia Sundell, Senior Director of Life Sciences and Quadrant-i Principal
• Harold Solomon, Quadrant-i Principal
• Kashmira Kulkarni, Licensing Associate Office of Technology Licensing

• Do you have a patentable invention and want to protect it?
• Interested in commercializing your research either through licensing to an existing company or a startup?
• Want to learn about the commercialization resources available for entrepreneurs?

Stop by the IP and Commercialization Office Hours in the IBB atrium and meet with experts from the Office of Technology Licensing and Quadrant-i. We are at your service!  

The Experts:

• Cynthia Sundell, Senior Director of Life Sciences and Quadrant-i Principal
• Harold Solomon, Quadrant-i Principal
• Kashmira Kulkarni, Licensing Associate Office of Technology Licensing

• Do you have a patentable invention and want to protect it?
• Interested in commercializing your research either through licensing to an existing company or a startup?
• Want to learn about the commercialization resources available for entrepreneurs?

Stop by the IP and Commercialization Office Hours in the IBB atrium and meet with experts from the Office of Technology Licensing and Quadrant-i. We are at your service!  

The Experts:

• Cynthia Sundell, Senior Director of Life Sciences and Quadrant-i Principal
• Harold Solomon, Quadrant-i Principal
• Kashmira Kulkarni, Licensing Associate Office of Technology Licensing

• Do you have a patentable invention and want to protect it?
• Interested in commercializing your research either through licensing to an existing company or a startup?
• Want to learn about the commercialization resources available for entrepreneurs?

Stop by the IP and Commercialization Office Hours in the IBB atrium and meet with experts from the Office of Technology Licensing and Quadrant-i. We are at your service!  

The Experts:

• Cynthia Sundell, Senior Director of Life Sciences and Quadrant-i Principal
• Harold Solomon, Quadrant-i Principal
• Kashmira Kulkarni, Licensing Associate Office of Technology Licensing

• Do you have a patentable invention and want to protect it?
• Interested in commercializing your research either through licensing to an existing company or a startup?
• Want to learn about the commercialization resources available for entrepreneurs?

Stop by the IP and Commercialization Office Hours in the IBB atrium and meet with experts from the Office of Technology Licensing and Quadrant-i. We are at your service!  

The Experts:

• Cynthia Sundell, Senior Director of Life Sciences and Quadrant-i Principal
• Harold Solomon, Quadrant-i Principal
• Kashmira Kulkarni, Licensing Associate Office of Technology Licensing

• Do you have a patentable invention and want to protect it?
• Interested in commercializing your research either through licensing to an existing company or a startup?
• Want to learn about the commercialization resources available for entrepreneurs?

Stop by the IP and Commercialization Office Hours in the IBB atrium and meet with experts from the Office of Technology Licensing and Quadrant-i. We are at your service!  

The Experts:

• Cynthia Sundell, Senior Director of Life Sciences and Quadrant-i Principal
• Harold Solomon, Quadrant-i Principal
• Kashmira Kulkarni, Licensing Associate Office of Technology Licensing

Register HERE to participate virtually

Bianxiao Cui is the Job and Gertrud Tamaki Professor of Chemistry and a fellow of the Wu Tsai Stanford Neuroscience Institute at Stanford University. She holds a Ph.D. degree in Chemistry from the University of Chicago and a BS degree from the University of Science and Technology of China. Cui develops new tools to study the nano-bio interface, membrane curvature, electrophysiology, and signal transduction in cells at normal and disease conditions. As a scientist and a teacher, she enjoys working with young scholars to explore the natural world with scientific innovations. Research in her group spans the disciplines of biophysics, cell biology, chemistry, material science, nanotechnology, and neurobiology. Her awards and distinctions include Ono Pharma Breakthrough Science Initiative award, Barany Award from the Biophysical Society, NIH New Innovator Award, NSF CAREER award, NSF Inspire award, Packard Fellowships in Science and Engineering, Hellman Scholar, Searle Scholar Award and Dreyfus New Faculty Award.

Faculty host: Cheng Zhu

 

He is Professor of Bioengineering and Materials Science at UC Berkeley and Faculty Scientist at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory. He is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Chemistry, the American Institute for Medical and Biological Engineering, the Materials Research Society and the American Association for the Advancement of Science. In addition to his research, he mentors and teaches students in the fields of biomaterials design, materials science, polymer science, and nanomedicine.

Faculty host: Felipe Quiroz