BIOMEDICAL ENGINEERING (BME) COURSE DESCRIPTIONS
6001 Laboratory Rotations
(0-3) 1 hour credit. Prerequisite: Graduate standing.
A minimum of five rotations of three weeks each through different laboratories in the program is required prior to the student identifying his or her supervising professor. Participation in ongoing research projects in each laboratory and a written report for each rotation is required. (Same as ORTO 6002 at UTHSCSA.)
6011 Research Seminar
(1-0) 1 hour credit. Prerequisites: Graduate student standing; consent of instructor and the Graduate Advisor of Record.
The seminar coordinator may require students to present their research. May be repeated for credit. The grade report for the course is either “CR” (satisfactory performance) or “NC” (unsatisfactory performance). (Formerly BME 5011 and BME 6991. Same as ORTO 6090 at UTHSCSA.)
6021-3 Supervised Teaching
1 to 3 hours credit. Prerequisites: Doctoral student standing; consent of the instructor and the Graduate Advisor
of Record.
Supervised teaching of undergraduate or graduate students will be required for at least one semester. Students may be required to lecture at undergraduate courses or graduate courses in the field of their expertise. Students will work with the instructor of the course or with their research supervisor on the number of classes to be taught. (Same as ORTO 6071 at UTHSCSA.)
6033 BME Engineering Analysis
(3-0) 3 hours credit. Prerequisite: Graduate standing in engineering or consent of the instructor.
Advanced methods of applied mathematics, including linear algebra, vector differential calculus, integral theorems, differential equations, and calculus of variations. (Same as EGR 6013. Same as BME 6093 offered in Fall 2007. Credit can be earned for only one of the following: BME 6033, BME 6093 taken Fall 2007, or EGR 6013.)
6043 Critical Thinking & Writing for BME
(3-0) 3 hours credit. Prerequisites: Doctoral students who are either taking their qualifying examinations or have been admitted to candidacy; consent of the instructor and of Graduate Advisor of Record.
This course introduces students to grant applications, manuscript writing, and provides the opportunity to learn through writing and critiquing research proposals, manuscripts, abstracts, and scientific presentations.
6051-3 Independent Study in Biomedical Engineering
1 to 3 hours credit. Prerequisites: Graduate standing; consent of the instructor and of Graduate Advisor of Record.
Independent reading, research, discussion, and/or writing under the direction of a faculty member. For students needing specialized work not normally or not often available as part of regular course offerings. May be repeated for credit on a different topic of study, but no more than 6 credit hours, regardless of discipline, will apply toward the degree.
6093 Topics in Biomedical Engineering
(3-0) 3 hours credit. Prerequisites: Graduate standing; consent of instructor and of Graduate Advisor of Record.
May be repeated for credit on a different topic of study.
6203 Physiology for Engineers
(3-0) 3 hours credit. Prerequisite: Permission of the instructor or completion of ORTO 6004 (UTHSCSA).
Designed to provide students with the essential graduate-level background for applications and practices of biomedical engineering. Integration of the nervous, skeletal, muscle, cardiovascular, and other systems from the sub-cellular to the whole-organism level will be emphasized.
6213 Cellular Engineering
(3-0) 3 hours credit. Prerequisite: Permission of the instructor or completion of ORTO 6004.
Review of cell biology; genetic engineering; protein structure; protein folding and stability; enzyme kinetics; receptor-ligand interactions; cell adhesion and signaling; and stem cell basics.
6223 Transport and Reaction Processes in Biological Systems
(3-0) 3 hours credit. Prerequisite: Permission of the instructor or completion of ORTO 6004.
Fundamentals of mass, momentum and energy transport, and reaction kinetics. Applications of these principles to the analysis of cell membrane transport, signal transduction, and cardiovascular, pulmonary and renal physiology. Design of artificial organs, and drug delivery systems.
6303 Computational Oncology and Cancer Treatment Simulations
(3-0) 3 hours credit. Prerequisites: Graduate standing and permission of the instructor.
Computational techniques for molecular, cellular, and tissue level simulation in cancer biology will be discussed. Oncoprotein modeling, cancer cell interactions and tumor growth modeling will be covered. Modeling and simulation issues of conventional chemotherapy and as well as imaged-guided treatment modalities will be addressed in terms of both diagnosis and prognosis. (Credit cannot be earned for BME 6303 and either BME 6893 or ME 6893 on the same topic.)
6513 Mechanical Behavior of Living Tissues
(3-0) 3 hours credit. Prerequisite: Permission of instructor.
Stress strain relationships, viscoelasticity, mechanical properties, and mechanical modeling of collagenous and mineralized human tissues will be addressed.
6703 Biomedical Image Processing
(3-0) 3 hours credit. Prerequisite: Graduate standing.
This course will examine digital image fundamentals, digital image enhancement in the spatial domain, digital image enhancement in the frequency domain, optimal image filtration in the frequency domain, image restoration and order-statistics filters, morphological image processing, processing of microarray images, segmentation and gene-expression calculation, processing of FISH stacked images, automated analysis of gene copy numbers by fluorescence in situ hybridization, fundamental methods of image reconstruction by projections and their applications in computerized tomography. (Same as EE 5163, EE 5353 Topic 3, and RADI 5015 at UTHSCSA. Credit can be earned for only one of the following: BME 6703, EE 5163, EE 5353 Topic 3, or RADI 5015.)
6713 Biomedical Signal Processing
(3-0) 3 hours credit. Prerequisite: Permission of the instructor.
Theory and classification of biological signals such as EEG, EKG, EMG, etc. Data acquisition and analysis procedures for biological signals, including computer applications.
6723 Bioinstrumentations
(3-0) 3 hours credit. Prerequisite: Permission of the instructor.
This course will cover fundamental principles of bioinstrumentation used in clinical and research measurements. Topics include: principles of transducer operation, amplifiers and signal processing, recording and display. Overview of specific examples in optical sensors, biological sensors, MRI, ultrasound, pacemakers and defibrillators.
6733 Fundamentals of Microfabrication and Application
(3-0) 3 hours credit. Prerequisite: Permission of the instructor.
This course describes the science of miniaturization which is essential for nanotechnology development. Microfabrication techniques for micro-electro-mechanical systems (MEMS), bioMEMS, microfluidics, and nanomaterials and their applications in biomedical research will be covered.
6793 Topics in Image and Signal Processing
(3-0) 3 hours credit. Prerequisite: Permission of the instructor.
May be repeated for credit on a different topic of study.
6803 Biomechanics I
(2-3) 3 hours credit. Prerequisites: BME 6033 and graduate standing.
Fundamental applications of engineering mechanics in studying and modeling fluid flow, tissues, organs, and the whole human body will be discussed. This course includes a laboratory. (Formerly BME 6833. Same as ME 6833. Credit can be earned for only one of the following: BME 6803, BME 6833, ME 5833, or ME 6833.)
6823 Biomechanics II
(3-0) 3 hours credit. Prerequisite: Graduate standing.
This course covers biomechanics of biological tissue deformation and their constitutive equations. Topics may include elasticity, viscoelasticity, deformation, stress analysis, strain measurement, stress and strain in organs. Tissues covered may include heart, blood vessels, cartilage, and bone.
6893 Topics in Biomechanics
(3-0) 3 hours credit. Prerequisite: Permission of the instructor.
May be repeated for credit on a different topic of study. (Same as ME 6893. Credit cannot be earned for both
BME 6893 and ME 6893 when the topic is the same.)
6903 Biomaterials
(3-0) 3 hours credit. Prerequisite: Permission of the instructor.
Fundamentals of biomaterials science and engineering principles and concepts in repairing, replacing, and protecting human tissues and organs will be discussed. (Formerly BME 5903 and BME 6813. Same as ME 6813. Credit can be earned for only one of the following: BME 5903, BME 6903, BME 6813, ME 5813 or ME 6813.)
6913 Biomaterials II
(3-0) 3 hours credit. Prerequisites: BME 5903 or BME 6903, and permission of the instructor.
Application of biomaterials in medicine and dentistry will be emphasized.
6923 Tissue Engineering
(3-0) 3 hours credit. Prerequisite: Graduate standing.
This course is an introduction to the principles and current practice of tissue engineering endeavors. Strategies for choosing and using mammalian cells and scaffold biomaterials as well as select chemical and biophysical stimuli in order to obtain neotissue formation are reviewed in detail. Case studies are discussed to illustrate successful tissue engineering solutions of clinical problems pertinent to tissue regeneration. (Formerly BME 5923 and BME 6853. Credit can be earned for only one of the following: BME 5923, BME 6853, or BME 6923.)
6933 Tissue-Biomaterials Interactions
(3-0) 3 hours credit. Prerequisite: Graduate standing.
This course is an introduction to biocompatibility with special emphasis on the interaction of proteins, cells and tissues with biomaterials. Blood-material interactions are reviewed in detail. Case studies of implants are discussed to illustrate biomaterial selection as a key aspect to successful design of implant materials and prosthetic devices.
6943 Biomaterials & Cell Signaling
(3-0) 3 hours credit. Prerequisite: Graduate standing.
Develop current understanding of topics in cell receptors and signaling mechanisms with application for biomaterial design. Focus will emphasize receptor-ligand communication, methods of identification and quantification, and pathways involved for cell to material stress response.
6953 Biomaterials for Drug-Delivery/Pharmacology
(3-0) 3 hours credit. Prerequisite: Graduate standing.
Provides conceptual understanding of therapeutic agents used to regulate physiological function of cells comprising organ systems with relevance to biomaterials. Interpretation of drug mechanisms at a molecular, cellular and tissue level. Traditional reviews of pharmacodynamics and pharmacokinetics will be addressed with particular application to biomaterial interaction and drug-delivery systems.
6982,3,6 Master’s Thesis Research
2, 3, or 6 hours credit. Prerequisites: Master’s student standing; consent of instructor and of Graduate Advisor of Record.
May be repeated for a maximum of 9 credit hours. (Formerly BME 5953,6.)
6993 Topics in Biomaterials
(3-0) 3 hours credit. Prerequisite: Permission of the instructor.
May be repeated for credit on a different topic of study.
7952,3,6 Doctoral Research
2, 3, or 6 hours credit. Prerequisites: Doctoral student standing; consent of instructor and of Graduate Advisor
of Record.
May be repeated for a maximum of 18 credit hours. (Same as ORTO 6097 at UTHSCSA.)
7992,3,6 Doctoral Dissertation
2, 3, or 6 hours credit. Prerequisites: Admission to Doctoral candidacy; consent of the Graduate Advisor of Record and Dissertation Advisor.
May be repeated for a maximum of 18 credit hours. (Same at ORTO 7099 at UTHSCSA.)
