Machine Biointerface Lab
Johns Hopkins University
Gene Y. Fridman, Ph.D.
Principal Investigator
gfridma1@jhmi.edu
Dr. Fridman is a Biomedical and Electrical engineer. After receiving his Master of Science in Electrical Engineering from Purdue University in 1995, he worked in the aerospace and then the biomedical industry for five years as a software and systems engineer before deciding to engage in an academic career. He received his Ph.D. in Biomedical Engineering specializing in neural recording and stimulation and micro-electro-mechanical systems (MEMS) from UCLA in 2006. Since 2000 he has held an on-going consulting and collaborative relationship with biomedical engineering companies in research and design of neural stimulation and recording devices. He contributed to research and development of spinal cord, retinal, cortical, cochlear, and vestibular neural implants.
W. Mitchel Thomas, Ph.D.
Postdoctoral Fellow
wthoma33@jhmi.edu
W. Mitchel (Mitch) Thomas is a postdoctoral fellow in the Department of Otolaryngology at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. He graduated from the University of California San Deigo University in 2017, earning a BS in Physiology & Neuroscience and a BS in Cognitive Science: Computation. He received his Ph.D. in Biomedical Engineering specializing in neuroengineering from the University of Utah in 2023.
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Mitch's research interests broadly encompass chronic neural implants. His current research focuses on evaluating the safety of chronic DC stimulation in the vestibular system and examining the effects of ionic direct current stimulation and antagonistic drugs on vestibular reflexes.
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Grace Foxworthy
Ph.D. Student in Biomedical Engineering
Grace Foxworthy received her bachelor's degree in Biomedical Engineering and Electrical Engineering from Case Western Reserve University and her master's degree in Biomedical Engineering from Johns Hopkins University. She is currently a Biomedical Engineering Ph.D. student. Her past work in the lab included hardware and firmware development for the SDCS device. She is currently working on examining the effect of DC stimulation on the sciatic nerve to explore its potential as a treatment for chronic pain.
Celia Fernandez Brillet
Ph.D. Student in Biomedical Engineering
Celia Fernandez Brillet is a Ph.D. Candidate in the Department of Biomedical Engineering at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. In 2020, she completed her BS in Biomedical Engineering at Universidad Carlos III de Madrid (Spain), where she graduated with honors at the top of her class and School of Engineering. Additionally, she spent several months studying at other universities around the world sponsored by academic excellence scholarships, including Stanford University, Imperial College London, University of Maryland, and Vrije Universiteit.
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Celia is passionate about bridging the gap between medicine and engineering. She is especially interested in the design of medical devices to interface with the nervous system. In the lab, she is working on extending the functionality of vestibular implants by testing the safety of chronic DC stimulation and exploring stimulation of the otolith end organs. She is also involved in the human clinical trial.
Evan Vesper
Ph.D. Student in Biomedical Engineering
Evan Vesper received his Bachelor's degree in Electrical Engineering at Case Western Reserve University and is currently a PhD student in Biomedical Engineering at Johns Hopkins University.
He is passionate about improving interfaces with the nervous system and improving rehabilitation technologies. He currently works on exploring how SDCS interacts with the vestibular system. Evan also works on the vestibular implant clinical trial.
Runming (Tony) Wang
Ph.D. Student in Biomedical Engineering
Runming (Tony) Wang is a Ph.D. student in the Department of Biomedical Engineering at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. He graduated with honors from Emory University in 2023, earning a Bachelor of Science degree in Neuroscience and Behavioral Biology. Tony's research interests are deeply rooted in the exploration of neural interfaces and their dynamic interactions with brain activity.
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In his current research, Tony focuses on the precise modulation of rodent cortical activity using invasive ionic direct current (iDC) stimulation. This work aims to expand the existing understanding of how iDC can be strategically utilized to influence cortical network dynamics, potentially paving the way for novel therapeutic strategies for neurological disorders
Yuxin Du
M.S.E Student in Biomedical Engineering
Yuxin Du received her B.S. in nuclear engineering from Fudan University. She is currently pursuing her master’s degree in biomedical engineering at Johns Hopkins. She is working on a percutaneous cuff lead used to interface with sciatic nerve and deliver electrical current to suppress pain.
Pelin Li
M.S.E Student in Biomedical Engineering
Peilin Li received his B.S. in mechanical engineering from the University of Nottingham (Britain) and is currently a robotics student at Johns Hopkins University. He is interested in prosthesis and soft robotics design. In the lab, he is working on modeling and designing the freeform stimulator device and the percutaneous cuff head.
Kai Cheng
M.S.E Student in Biomedical Engineering
Kai Cheng is current a master student in Biomedical Engineering at Johns Hopkins. He received his B.S. from Beijing Institute of Technology and M.S.E. from University of Michigan, Ann Arbor in Electrical Computer Engineering. He is working on implementation and electrical chemistry experimentation of the freeform stimulator.
Mahmoud Radwan
Undergraduate Student in Computer/ Biomedical Engineering
Mahmoud is an undergraduate student student at JHU studying Computer Engineering and Biomedical Engineering with a focus on Imaging and Medical Devices.
He is passionate about human-machine interfaces, and improving how we interact we interact with assistive technology. He currently works on the current exploration of ionic direct-curent stimulation on the vestibular system.
Katherine Mueller
Research Assistant
Katherine Mueller joined the lab in 2022 as a research assistant in the Johns Hopkins Department of Otolaryngology. She received her BS in Neuroscience from Saint Louis University in 2021 with a minor Mathematics.
She is currently exploring the excitatory and inhibitory effects of ionic direct current stimulation on the vestibular system. Katherine is passionate about translational research with an interest in the clinical and scientific use of neural interfaces.
Kelly E. Lane, R.V.T.
Registered Veterinary Technician
Kelly Lane joined the Vestibular NeuroEngineering Lab in 2014 after working with the Behavioral Biology Research Center of Johns Hopkins for 12 years. Here, she serves as both the Laboratory Manager and Veterinary Technician. Kelly is a Registered Veterinary Technician who graduated from the CCBC Veterinary Technology Program passed the Veterinary Technician National Exam as well as the Maryland State Board Exam in 2012.
Lab Alumni
Yangsheng Xu, MS
Paul Adkisson, MS
Alex Wang, MS
Mohamed Rashed, Ph.D.
Chaojun Cheng, Ph.D.
Rounak Baid, MS
Cynthia Steinhardt, Ph.D.
Shuming Xu, MS
Raviraj Thakur, Ph.D.
Felix Aplin, Ph.D.
Dilawer Singh, MS
Ankitha R. Nair, MS
Patrick Ou, MS
Erin (Yu) Zheng, MS