Meet the 2023 Collegiate Inventors Competition Finalists

2023 Undergraduate Finalists

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Haichuan Yang
Yuwei (Amy) Guo
Haichuan Yang, Yuwei (Amy) Guo
University of Pennsylvania
Advisers: Ocek Eke, Henry Daniell
AviSafe

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Easily transmitted and resistant to vaccines, avian influenza is a global concern. Five major outbreaks have occurred in the U.S. over the past decade, with the most recent causing over $3 billion in losses to poultry growers. AviSafe’s FluShield antiviral poultry feed additive is a robust, low-cost, low-maintenance method for introducing immunity into large poultry operations. It can prevent infections, keep the virus from spreading to neighboring farms or wild birds, and reduce the chance of a new viral strain transitioning from poultry to humans.

Sneha Batheja
Ria Jha
Charlie Almoney
Arijit Nukala
Undergraduate Runner-Up
Sneha Batheja, Ria Jha, Charlie Almoney, Arijit Nukala
Johns Hopkins University
Adviser: Brijen Joshi
Bronchosleeve

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One-lung ventilation (OLV), a procedure that provides surgeons with access to organs obstructed by an inflated lung, is required in 98% of pulmonary and cardiothoracic surgeries. However, current OLV devices have a 40% failure rate and a high probability of causing postoperative complications. The Bronchosleeve is a flexible yet sturdy device presenting many advantages over existing OLV devices. It is easy to insert, won’t dislodge during surgery and aids visualization with a bronchoscope. In addition to addressing disparities and reducing patient injuries, it could decrease surgical time by 40% and save hospitals over $45,000 per procedure.

Netra Gandhi
Rhea Prem
Ethan Damiani
Girish Hari
Undergraduate Winner
Netra Gandhi, Rhea Prem, Ethan Damiani, Girish Hari
Georgia Institute of Technology
Adviser: Wendy Cocke
FADpad

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One of the most common diagnostic tools in women’s health, the Papanicolaou test, or Pap smear, is often uncomfortable and regarded as an invasion of privacy, and it is even stigmatized in some cultures. FADpad is an at-home menstrual blood screening tool that allows users to collect their personal health information safely, comfortably and privately. Targeted to users with limited access to the healthcare system, it could help address health disparities and prevent early deaths from cervical cancer among people who menstruate.

Daniel Collins
Arrow Electronics People’s Choice Award
Daniel Collins
Duke University
Adviser: Peter Nguyen
NucleoTide

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Over the past several decades, a combination of natural and human-caused factors has led to an increase in the frequency, duration, size and impact of harmful algal blooms (HABs), with a global economic impact estimated at more than $8 billion annually. NucleoTide is a molecular diagnostic platform that uses CRISPR-based biosensors to rapidly identify marine pathogens and HABs. With a low-cost, hand-held device that filters and processes water samples, it enables lab-free, on-site ocean health monitoring and provides results in less than an hour, offering both economic and environmental benefits.

Andrew Diep-Tran
Aravind Krishnan
Udit Garg
Aarush Sahni
Andrew Diep-Tran, Aravind Krishnan, Udit Garg, Aarush Sahni
University of Pennsylvania
Adviser: Ping He
ToxiSense

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Many pathogenic bacteria produce lipopolysaccharide compounds called endotoxins. These are toxic to humans, causing sicknesses including septic shock — the leading cause of death in hospitals — which results in 11 million deaths annually, or one in five deaths worldwide. An alternative to current expensive and unsustainable testing methods, which use horseshoe crab blood, ToxiSense is an engineered plant cell-based biosensor that detects bacterial endotoxin contamination in medical products and water. It can be applied in the biopharmaceutical industry and for waterborne disease testing. Each test kit offers substantial advantages in accuracy, sustainability and ease of use.

2023 Graduate Finalists

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Chonghe Wang
Chonghe Wang
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Adviser: Xuanhe Zhao
Bioadhesive Ultrasound

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In a landscape dominated by episodic medical scans, the Bioadhesive Ultrasound (BAUS) patch is a leap forward. This innovative, wearable device adheres to the skin, offering continuous, medical-grade imaging of key internal organs over extended periods. Promising superior patient care, as well as cost and time efficiency, it reveals disease progression in real time and long term, ensuring timely interventions and optimal outcomes. The BAUS patch could make a revolutionary impact by merging the convenience of wearables with medical-grade imaging for a new era of patient-friendly, sustainable healthcare, in which medical imaging is continuous, profound and wearable.

Adi Mittal
Graduate Winner
Adi Mittal
University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine
Advisers: Robert M. Friedlander, Kamil Nowicki
Cerebral Aneurysm Test (CAT-7)

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Affecting an estimated 6.7 million people in the U.S., a cerebral aneurysm (CA) can cause neurological problems and can rupture, leading to life-altering or fatal brain bleeds. Diagnosis can be a long process, current tools are invasive, expensive and potentially toxic, and ruptures often occur before diagnosis or treatment. Cerebral Aneurysm Test (CAT-7) is the first simple, whole blood-based diagnostic test to detect the formation of a CA. It is noninvasive, less expensive, more accurate, safer and able to be used earlier in the care process.

Amir Nasajpour
Graduate Runner-Up
Amir Nasajpour
University of California, Los Angeles
Adviser: Paul S. Weiss
Entropic Biosciences Inc.

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Establishing tools for recreating functional human tissues and organs has been a grand challenge in biomedical engineering and healthcare. Entropic Biosciences Inc. has developed a bio-inspired rapid sample preparation kit enabling high-throughput culturing of multiple cell types and rapid self-assembly of these cells into 3D self-standing tissue. This technology can be employed to develop an array of tissue types from numerous cell sources. It enables the development of functional tissue and cancer models at faster rates than current technologies, accelerating life science research and drug screening in addition to working toward individualized treatments for cancer patients.

James McRae
James McRae
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Adviser: Giovanni Traverso
FLASH

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Annually, hundreds of millions of people suffer from digestive, metabolic, autoimmune and neurological disorders associated with dysfunction of the gut-brain axis. Existing hormonal therapies for metabolic conditions are delivered directly through painful intravenous or subcutaneous needle injections and put patients at risk for severe side effects. FLASH (fluid-wicking capsule for active stimulation and hormone regulation) is a bio-inspired, ingestible electroceutical device that uses electrical stimulation to modulate hunger-regulating hormones. Unlike traditional hormone therapies, FLASH is noninvasive and painless, which encourages patient adherence and enables broader uptake.

Junhu Zhou
Ziqian Wu
Congran (Billy) Jin
Junhu Zhou, Ziqian Wu, Congran (Billy) Jin
Dartmouth College
Adviser: John X.J. Zhang
Nanopure Aqua

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Over half of the world's population grapples with water scarcity and contamination issues. Conventional water quality monitoring methods involve slow processes and are often inaccurate. Nanopure Aqua presents a game-changing solution — an affordable, user-friendly system that can quickly and automatically detect multiple organic pollutants in a single water droplet with superb accuracy. This innovative, AI-powered, eco-friendly nanotechnology has the potential to transform global water treatment and analysis.