10.2021-Sense.nano-Rebecca-Zubajlo

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REBECCA ZUBAJLO: Hi, I'm Rebecca Zubajlo, a PhD candidate in mechanical engineering at MIT. I work with Brian Anthony in the Device Realization Group and also collaborate with Peter So in the Laser Biomedical Research Center. My research focuses on medical devices, specifically building a platform to measure mechanical properties of tissues themselves.

The main property we are interested in is the modulus of the tissue, which measures how easy it is to perform. This measurement gives us important information about the health of the cell and its environment. For example, changes in mechanical properties could give an indication of a disease or if a new type of drug is working or not.

To do this, we use sound to give a small disturbance to the cell and measure the resulting movement with an optical microscope that can measure picometer deflections. We then use movement of the cell at different disturbances to see and understand the underlying mechanical properties.

There are other ways to measure mechanical properties that our method doesn't disturb or destroy the sample so the cells can continue to grow in their natural environment, and we can observe these changes in parameters over time. With this platform, I want to be able to answer questions and gain insight on disease progression and the prevention in a way that wasn't possible before, focusing particularly on types of cancer and women's health issues. I'm particularly excited about this platform being useful in helping to determine what medications are best to treat different types of cancer or similar diseases to ultimately improve patient outcomes.