Biomedical engineering (BME) or medical engineering is the application of engineering principles and design concepts to medicine and biology for healthcare purposes. BME is also traditionally logical sciences to advance health care treatment, including diagnosis, monitoring, and therapy. Also included under the scope of a biomedical engineer is the management of current medical equipment in hospitals while adhering to relevant industry standards. This involves procurement, routine testing, preventive maintenance, and making equipment recommendations, a role also known as a Biomedical Equipment Technician (BMET) or as clinical engineering.
Freeze drying, also known as lyophilization or cryodesiccation, is a low temperature dehydration process that involves freezing the product and lowering pressure, removing the ice by sublimation. This is in contrast to dehydration by most conventional methods that evaporate water using heat.
Metallic fibers are manufactured fibers composed of metal, metallic alloys, plastic-coated metal, metal-coated plastic, or a core completely covered by metal.
Blow-Fill-Seal, also spelled as Blow/Fill/Seal, in this article abbreviated as BFS, is an automated manufacturing process by which plastic containers, such as bottles or ampoules are, in a continuous operation, blow-formed, filled, and sealed. It takes place in a sterile, enclosed area inside a machine, without human intervention, and thus can be used to aseptically manufacture sterile pharmaceutical or non-pharamceutical liquid/semiliquid unit-dosage forms. BFS is an advanced aseptic processing technology that is typically used for filling and packaging of certain sterile liquid formulations like liquid ophthalmics, inhalational anesthetics, or lavaging agents, but can also be used for injectables, parenteral medicines, and several other liquid or semiliquid medications, with fill volumes ranging from 0.1...1000 cm³. Compared against traditional glass ampoules, BFS ampoules are inexpensive, lightweight, and shatterproof.
Fetal bovine serum (FBS) is derived from the blood drawn from a bovine fetus via a closed system of collection at the slaughterhouse. Fetal bovine serum is the most widely used serum-supplement for the in vitro cell culture of eukaryotic cells. This is due to it having a very low level of antibodies and containing more growth factors, allowing for versatility in many different cell culture applications.
A bioprocess is a specific process that uses complete living cells or their components to obtain desired products.
In chemistry, fine chemicals are complex, single, pure chemical substances, produced in limited quantities in multipurpose plants by multistep batch chemical or biotechnological processes. They are described by exacting specifications, used for further processing within the chemical industry and sold for more than $10/kg. The class of fine chemicals is subdivided either on the basis of the added value, or the type of business transaction, namely standard or exclusive products.
Centennial Campus is a research park and educational campus owned and operated by North Carolina State University in Raleigh, North Carolina, United States. Composed of two locations, the 1,334 acres (5.4 km2) property provides office and lab space for corporate, governmental and not-for-profit entities, in addition to providing space for 75 university research centers, institutes, laboratories and departmental units. Currently, 5,000,000 sq ft (460,000 m2) of constructed space has been built. Upon completion, Centennial Campus is anticipated to have 9,000,000 sq ft (840,000 m2) of constructed space.
Bioprocess engineering, also biochemical engineering, is a specialization of chemical engineering or biological engineering. It deals with the design and development of equipment and processes for the manufacturing of products such as agriculture, food, feed, pharmaceuticals, nutraceuticals, chemicals, and polymers and paper from biological materials & treatment of waste water. Bioprocess engineering is a conglomerate of mathematics, biology and industrial design, and consists of various spectrums like the design and study of bioreactors to the creation of kinetic models. It also deals with studying various biotechnological processes used in industries for large scale production of biological product for optimization of yield in the end product and the quality of end product. Bioprocess engineering may include the work of mechanical, electrical, and industrial engineers to apply principles of their disciplines to processes based on using living cells or sub component of such cells.
A biosand filter (BSF) is a point-of-use water treatment system adapted from traditional slow sand filters. Biosand filters remove pathogens and suspended solids from water using biological and physical processes that take place in a sand column covered with a biofilm. BSFs have been shown to remove heavy metals, turbidity, bacteria, viruses and protozoa. BSFs also reduce discoloration, odor and unpleasant taste. Studies have shown a correlation between use of BSFs and a decrease in the occurrence of diarrhea. Because of their effectiveness, ease of use, and lack of recurring costs, biosand filters are often considered appropriate technology in developing countries. It is estimated that over 200,000 BSFs are in use worldwide.
Merck Millipore was the brand used by Merck Group's global life science business until 2015 when the company re-branded. It was formed when Merck acquired the Millipore Corporation in 2010. Merck is a supplier to the life science industry. The Millipore Corporation was founded in 1954, and listed among the S&P 500 since the early 1990s, as an international biosciences company which makes micrometer pore-size filters and tests. In 2015, Merck acquired Sigma-Aldrich and merged it with Merck Millipore. In the United States and Canada, the life science business is now known as MilliporeSigma.
Sartorius AG is an international pharmaceutical and laboratory equipment supplier, covering the segments of Bioprocess Solutions and Lab Products & Services.
The Golden LEAF Foundation is a nonprofit corporation based in Rocky Mount, North Carolina in the United States, that was created in 1999 to receive half of the funds coming to North Carolina from the master settlement agreement with cigarette manufacturers. The foundation is now devoted to advancing the economic well being of North Carolinians and to transforming its economy. It works in partnership with local governments, educational institutions, economic development organizations and other public agencies, and nonprofits to achieve this goal.
A single-use bioreactor or disposable bioreactor is a bioreactor with a disposable bag instead of a culture vessel. Typically, this refers to a bioreactor in which the lining in contact with the cell culture will be plastic, and this lining is encased within a more permanent structure. Commercial single-use bioreactors have been available since the end of the 1990s and are now made by several well-known producers.
Eurogentec is an international biotechnology supplier, based in Belgium, that specializes in genomics and proteomics kits and reagents as well as cGMP biologics. The company was founded in 1985 as a spin-off from the University of Liège. Eurogentec's contract manufacturing organization facilities are licensed by the Belgian Ministry of Health to produce clinical trial and commercial biopharmaceutical material and also licensed by the US FDA to manufacture a commercial recombinant protein product for the US market. Eurogentec operates two manufacturing facilities in Belgium that provide custom biologics and oligonucleotide-based components for diagnostic and therapeutic/prophylactic applications.
Adsorption is the accumulation and adhesion of molecules, atoms, ions, or larger particles to a surface, but without surface penetration occurring. The adsorption of larger biomolecules such as proteins is of high physiological relevance, and as such they adsorb with different mechanisms than their molecular or atomic analogs. Some of the major driving forces behind protein adsorption include: surface energy, intermolecular forces, hydrophobicity, and ionic or electrostatic interaction. By knowing how these factors affect protein adsorption, they can then be manipulated by machining, alloying, and other engineering techniques to select for the most optimal performance in biomedical or physiological applications.
The Golden LEAF Biomanufacturing Training and Education Center (BTEC) is a multidisciplinary instructional center at North Carolina State University that provides education and training to develop skilled professionals for the biomanufacturing industry. Biomanufacturing refers to the use of living organisms or other biological material to produce commercially viable products. Examples include therapeutic proteins, monoclonal antibodies, and vaccines for medical use; amino acids and enzymes for food manufacturing; and biofuels and biochemicals for industrial applications. BTEC provides hands-on education and training in bioprocessing concepts and biomanufacturing methods that comply with cGMP (current Good Manufacturing Practice), a set regulations published by the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
Bioproduction is the production of biologics-based therapeutic drugs including protein-based therapeutics, vaccines, gene therapies as well as cell therapies; drugs so complex they can only be made in living systems or indeed are a living system. In practice, ‘bioproduction’ has become loosely synonymous with ‘bioprocessing’ as a way to describe the manufacturing process using, cell culture, chromatography, formulation and related analytical testing for large molecule drugs, vaccines and cellular therapies. Many combinations of reactor types and culture modes are now available for use in bioproduction: e.g., pharming, rocking wave-agitated bag batch, stirred-tank or air-lift fed-batch, and hollow-fiber or spin-filter perfusion. No single production format is inherently superior; that determination depends on many manufacturing capabilities, requirements, and goals. New cell lines, concerns about product quality and safety, emerging biosimilars, worldwide demand for vaccines, and cellular medicine drive new innovative solutions in bioproduction.
NCBioImpact is a group of organizations in the U.S. state of North Carolina created to enhance the trained workforce for biotechnology and other life science employers by educating students and retraining incumbent workers. The partnership works to promote economic development in North Carolina while offering comprehensive biomanufacturing training and education programs located at two universities in the University of North Carolina System and the North Carolina Community College System.
Arven Pharmaceuticals is a Turkish pharmaceutical corporation headquartered in Istanbul established as a subsidiary of Toksöz Group in 2013. Arven’s primary focus is development and production of high-technology inhaler and biotechnology products. The company is specialized on difficult to make products. Arven is the first Turkish company developing biosimilars for global markets, including the US and EU.
