Biomedical engineering event showcases innovation and student entrepreneurship

NDSU welcomed researchers, industry professionals, and student innovators to campus for the 8th Annual North Dakota Biomedical Engineering Symposium. Held in the Memorial Union Ballroom, the event brought together participants from NDSU, the University of North Dakota, regional institutions, hospitals, startups and medical device manufacturers representing the full pipeline of biomedical technology development from discovery to end use.

Designed to strengthen partnerships and expand professional networks, the symposium serves as a cornerstone event for advancing biomedical engineering research across the state. By convening faculty from NDSU and UND with leaders in the biomedical industry, the gathering highlights each university’s shared commitment to fostering interdisciplinary collaboration and elevating the visibility of their graduate programs.

“This event plays a critical role in strengthening the Biomedical Engineering program and supporting NDSU’s broader research mission,” said Long Jiang, professor, interim chair of Mechanical Engineering, and coordinator of NDSU’s Biomedical Engineering program. “It helps attract and retain top students and faculty while showcasing the breadth and impact of ongoing research.”

This year’s symposium placed a special emphasis on student entrepreneurship, an increasingly important component of biomedical education and workforce development. A highlight of the day came during the lunchtime keynote session, where two student entrepreneurs, one from NDSU and one from UND, presented their emerging technologies and shared their startup journeys. Their stories of innovation, iteration, and impact energized the audience and underscored the growing potential for student-led ventures in the region.

“Students learn best when they can see a pathway from the lab to a real-world solution,” Jiang said. “Hearing from their peers who are actively building companies was both inspiring and instructive.”

The event also strengthened the long-standing partnership between NDSU and UND in biomedical engineering. Faculty from both universities regularly collaborate on research proposals, shared projects, and graduate student mentoring. The symposium provided valuable face-to-face time for discussing ongoing work, exploring new areas of joint research, and reviewing student thesis progress. Industry participation added another important dimension, opening the door for future multi-party collaborations that can drive impactful innovations.

Student Poster Competition Results

First Place: Pooyan Vahidi Pashaki, NDSU. "In vitro models of bone metastatic prostate cancer indicate caspase-9-mediated intrinsic apoptotic cascades using Rhodiola crenulata treatment"

Second place: Dhanushka Wijesinghe, NDSU. “Memory-Augmented Neural Network for Real-Time Sleep Staging from Single-Channel Frontal EEG”

Third place: Quyen Hoang, NDSU. “Tissue-engineered biomimetic reinforced nanocomposite scaffold for ACL regeneration”