Wei Gao (engineer)

Wei Gao is a Chinese-American biomedical engineer who currently serves as an assistant professor of medical engineering at the California Institute of Technology (Caltech).[1][2] Gao has been a professor at Caltech since 2017 and is an associate editor of the journals Science Advances, npj Flexible Electronics (Nature), Journal on Flexible Electronics (IEEE), and Sensors & Diagnosis (Royal Society of Chemistry).[3][4][5][6]

Wei Gao
Born
Xuzhou, China
Alma materHuazhong University of Science and Technology (BS)
Tsinghua University (MS)
University of California, San Diego (PhD)
Scientific career
FieldsMedical engineering
Nanotechnology
InstitutionsCalifornia Institute of Technology
University of California, Berkeley
ThesisSynthetic Micro/Nanomachines and Their Applications: Towards "Fantastic Voyage" (2014)
Doctoral advisorJoseph Wang
Other academic advisorsAli Javey (postdoctoral advisor)
Websitewww.gao.caltech.edu

Gao's research in wearable biosensors and human-machine interfaces for robotic sensing has earned numerous awards, such as the NSF CAREER Award, IAMBE Early Career Award, and the Sloan Research Fellowship.[7][8]

Early life and education

Gao was born in a small village in Xuzhou, China where he was motivated to design wearable health monitors after witnessing many locals die from various diseases.[9] Gao credits the 1966 science fiction film, Fantastic Voyage, as his inspiration to use nanotechnology to develop noninvasive medical treatments and wearable devices for monitoring health conditions.[10] Gao attended Huazhong University of Science and Technology where he earned a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering in 2007.[11] Gao went on to earn a M.S. from Tsinghua University, and a Ph.D. from the University of California, San Diego where he studied under Dr. Joseph Wang, a leader in nanoengineering. Following graduation, Gao worked with Ali Javey at the University of California, Berkeley as a postdoctoral scholar where he studied human perspiration sampling for integrated wearable sensor arrays.[12]

Research and career

Gao joined Caltech as an Assistant Professor of medical engineering in 2017.[13] His research focuses on the development of bioelectronic devices and sensors for personalized health monitoring applications. To this end, he and his lab have developed sensors powered by human sweat that transmit information to a user's cell phone through Bluetooth communication.[14] These sensors have been shown to indicate stress levels and metabolic conditions such as gout, and detect COVID infection status and immunity.[15][16][17]

Gao's research also involves the biomimetic integration of artificial skin (e-skin) with robotics to provide robots with the ability to sense temperature and pressure. The sensors, fully printed on an electronic interface, allow for ultra-sensitive robotic perception.[18] In addition to external sensors, Gao's lab has developed micro-robotic motors for deep tissue imaging and drug delivery applications.[19] The micromotors, enveloped in microcapsules, were guided in trials by a photoacoustic computed tomography (PACT) process which allowed for in vivo investigation of the motors as they travelled through mouse intestines. Near-infrared light irradiation was then used to disintegrate the microcapsules to release the micromotors, which then migrated toward targeted regions.[19]

Awards and recognition

References
  1. "Wei Gao Biography". American Institute of Chemical Engineers. 23 July 2020. Retrieved 2022-07-19.
  2. "Seminar by Prof Wei Gao of Caltech on Skin-Interfaced Wearable Biosensors for Personalized Healthcare – Medical Mechatronics". Retrieved 2022-07-19.
  3. "About the Editors | npj Flexible Electronics". www.nature.com. Retrieved 2022-07-19.
  4. "Professor Wei Gao joins the Associate Editor team – Sensors & Diagnostics Blog". Retrieved 2022-07-19.
  5. "Editorial Board". www.science.org. Retrieved 2022-07-19.
  6. "Editorial Board - IEEE Journal on Flexible Electronics". ieee-jflex.org. Retrieved 2022-07-19.
  7. "Professor Gao Receives IAMBE Early Career Award". Division of Geological and Planetary Sciences. 2022-03-08. Retrieved 2022-07-19.
  8. "Caltech Professors Receive Sloan Research Fellowships". California Institute of Technology. 2021-02-16. Retrieved 2022-07-19.
  9. "The Science of Sweat: An Interview with Wei Gao". California Institute of Technology. 2017-09-29. Retrieved 2022-07-19.
  10. "Interview: Wei Gao, Research Scientist at University of California, Berkeley and LBNL | TechieTonics". Retrieved 2022-07-19.
  11. "IEEE Xplore - Wei Gao". ieeexplore.ieee.org. Retrieved 2022-07-19.
  12. Gao, Wei; Emaminejad, Sam; Nyein, Hnin Yin Yin; Challa, Samyuktha; Chen, Kevin; Peck, Austin; Fahad, Hossain M.; Ota, Hiroki; Shiraki, Hiroshi; Kiriya, Daisuke; Lien, Der-Hsien (January 2016). "Fully integrated wearable sensor arrays for multiplexed in situ perspiration analysis". Nature. 529 (7587): 509–514. Bibcode:2016Natur.529..509G. doi:10.1038/nature16521. ISSN 1476-4687. PMC 4996079. PMID 26819044.
  13. "Caltech Division of Engineering and Applied Science | Wei Gao". Caltech Division of Engineering and Applied Science. Retrieved 2022-07-19.
  14. "Electronic Skin Fully Powered by Sweat Can Monitor Health, Serve as Human-Machine Interface". California Institute of Technology. 2020-04-22. Retrieved 2022-07-19.
  15. Torrente-Rodríguez, Rebeca M.; Tu, Jiaobing; Yang, Yiran; Min, Jihong; Wang, Minqiang; Song, Yu; Yu, You; Xu, Changhao; Ye, Cui; IsHak, Waguih William; Gao, Wei (2020-04-01). "Investigation of Cortisol Dynamics in Human Sweat Using a Graphene-Based Wireless mHealth System". Matter. 2 (4): 921–937. doi:10.1016/j.matt.2020.01.021. ISSN 2590-2385. PMC 7138219. PMID 32266329.
  16. Yang, Yiran; Song, Yu; Bo, Xiangjie; Min, Jihong; Pak, On Shun; Zhu, Lailai; Wang, Minqiang; Tu, Jiaobing; Kogan, Adam; Zhang, Haixia; Hsiai, Tzung K. (2019-11-25). "A laser-engraved wearable sensor for sensitive detection of uric acid and tyrosine in sweat". Nature Biotechnology. 38 (2): 217–224. doi:10.1038/s41587-019-0321-x. ISSN 1546-1696. PMID 31768044. S2CID 208279563.
  17. Torrente-Rodríguez, Rebeca M.; Lukas, Heather; Tu, Jiaobing; Min, Jihong; Yang, Yiran; Xu, Changhao; Rossiter, Harry B.; Gao, Wei (2020-12-02). "SARS-CoV-2 RapidPlex: A Graphene-Based Multiplexed Telemedicine Platform for Rapid and Low-Cost COVID-19 Diagnosis and Monitoring". Matter. 3 (6): 1981–1998. doi:10.1016/j.matt.2020.09.027. ISSN 2590-2393. PMC 7535803. PMID 33043291.
  18. "Artificial Skin Gives Robots Sense of Touch and Beyond". California Institute of Technology. 2022-06-01. Retrieved 2022-07-19.
  19. Wu, Zhiguang; Li, Lei; Yang, Yiran; Hu, Peng; Li, Yang; Yang, So-Yoon; Wang, Lihong V.; Gao, Wei (2019-07-17). "A microrobotic system guided by photoacoustic computed tomography for targeted navigation in intestines in vivo". Science Robotics. 4 (32): eaax0613. doi:10.1126/scirobotics.aax0613. ISSN 2470-9476. PMC 7337196. PMID 32632399.
  20. "Caltech Division of Engineering and Applied Science | News". Caltech Division of Engineering and Applied Science. Retrieved 2022-07-19.
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