2023 Engineering Summer Undergraduate Research Program (SURP) - Fluorescent Microscopy of Vascularized Tumors on a Microfluidic Chip
The College of Engineering Summer Undergraduate Research Program (SURP) is a unique opportunity for college of engineering undergraduate students to engage in hands-on research with a faculty mentor while using critical thinking, collaborative, and entrepreneurial skills. SURP is an 8-week long program (can be non-contiguous), and students are expected to spend at least 20 hours/week working on their research projects and additional time preparing and presenting their poster for the annual SURP symposium; SURP students and their faculty mentor will agree upon a start date and timeline for their research project (with a suggested start date of June 26th, 2023). The goals of SURP are to:
- Help Cal Poly Engineering students develop professionally and enhance their portfolios for future employment.
- Give opportunities for CENG faculty (including lecturers) to advance their research/project agendas over the summer quarter.
- Build lasting student-faculty mentoring relationships
- Provide opportunities for industrial and other external sponsors to work with Cal Poly faculty and students to advance connections, gain access to Cal Poly talent and capabilities, and engage in valuable collaborative activities.
Our Summer 2023 SURP will support over 30 projects (with some projects taking 2 students) for 39 students. You can apply to up to 3 projects on MustangJobs (each project has its own job posting). You need not be in the same department as the faculty advisor to apply to a given project.
Each SURP student participant will receive a CENG Summer Research Grant of $3,500.
Please note that the grant amount is fixed, and additional funding is not available. This grant will be disbursed through the Financial Aid Office toward the end of the summer. Preference will be given to students who have not yet participated in SURP.
This Project
Project Title: Fluorescent Microscopy of Vascularized Tumors on a Microfluidic Chip
Faculty Advisor: Christopher Heylman
Faculty Email: cheylman@calpoly.edu
Faculty Department: BMED
Number of Students for this project: 1
Description of Research Project: Biomedical engineering graduate students are currently working in my lab to create a microfluidic “tumor-on-a-chip” device that will allow for the growth and maintenance of 3D vascularized human colorectal cancer tumors. These tumor tissues will be used for screening the effects of novel drugs on human colorectal cancer before resorting to costly pre-clinic animal models and human clinical trials. These devices are created by injecting a mixture of human fibroblasts, endothelial cells, colorectal cancer cells and extracellular matrix proteins into a central incubation chamber in a microfluidic device. Cell culture medium is then perfused through the tissue using the fluidic channels of the device. Given the appropriate ratio of cell types, nutrients in the medium, and flow rates, a 3D tumor with an integrated network of blood vessels can be grown. This summer research project aims to optimize existing protocols for growing these 3D vascular tumors on a chip and develop new methods for characterizing them using fluorescent microscopy. The skill sets that students will develop in this project include human cell culture, microfluidic device fabrication, fluorescent microscopy, and image analysis using ImageJ software. Successful completion of the aims of this project will open the door for further research and use of these devices to screen drugs for efficacy in treating colorectal cancer. Establishing protocols for imaging and quantitative analysis of these vascularized tumor tissues will increase the validity, reliability, and efficiency of data collection within this line of research.
HOW TO APPLY:
PLEASE SUBMIT THE FOLLOWING TWO DOCUMENTS VIA HANDSHAKE AND SEE RUBRIC BELOW FOR EVALUATION CRITERIA. YOU CAN APPLY TO UP TO THREE SURP PROJECTS, BUT CAN ONLY BE AWARDED ONE.
- Submit your resume
- Submit a cover letter that answers the following three questions:
- Describe why you are interested in this research project.
- Describe how participating in SURP and working on this research project, will help you advance your academic and professional development goals
- Describe how your past experiences have helped prepare you for your participation in SURP. This includes relevant academic, other formal, and informal preparation.
INCOMPLETE APPLICATIONS COULD DISQUALIFY YOU FROM FURTHER CONSIDERATION.
Note that applications are due April 30; selected students will be notified by no later than May 12.