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Biological/Biomedical Engineering

BBiomedSc/BE-with Biomedical Science, 5 years, Clayton campus

What is biological engineering?

The last decade has witnessed a major revolution in biology - a revolution that presents significant opportunities for engineering. As biology transforms itself from a descriptive to a quantitative science, engineering expertise can transform this knowledge into products and processes for the benefit of humanity. In the next 25 years the world of Engineering will change dramatically as it leverages and fuses with the exciting new developments in the biological sciences.

Biological engineering is the application of engineering methods and knowledge in medicine and the biological sciences. It is an emerging interdisciplinary field, constantly evolving, challenging and totally absorbing! It is a convergence of biological sciences, biomedical sciences and engineering - underpinned by physics, chemistry, mathematics and computational sciences.

For example, biological phenomena are being understood increasingly in terms of the underlying physical and mathematical principles, yet many biomedical workers and researchers continue to neglect these studies. Similarly, advances in medicine are being driven by technology, too complex to include in medical education. The result is that many technologies fail to make an impact in medicine, either because the engineers do not understand the underlying biology and the constraints imposed by the medical industry, or because medical practitioners do not understand what technology can do for them. Engineers with a background in the biomedical sciences have the skills to bridge these boundaries, bringing valuable insights to our understanding of biology, producing technology that is relevant to both biomedical science and medicine, and designing the user interface that will make it acceptable.

  
Course overview

In addition to the traditional areas of instrumentation and imaging, recent areas of biomedical advances with substantial technology input include genetic, molecular and tissue engineering – that is, the development of techniques and equipment to design and construct new body parts and molecules to combat disease.

What do biological engineers do?

The role of biological engineers is best described by utilising the basic complementary engineering principles of analysis and synthesis. Biological engineers bring engineering insights to the understanding of biological phenomena through:

  • Conducting analysis - to measure and understand intricate biological phenomena, systems and processes at the basic molecular, cellular and physiological levels; and
  • Undertaking synthesis - to design devices/processes and/or develop technologies/applications to model, manipulate or apply to biological systems in areas such as applied medicine, environmental science and agricultural science.

The synergies with medicine are currently the ones best understood in the market place but at Monash we prefer the term biological engineering because it includes both these applications and the host of exciting developments in other areas such as biofuels, renewable materials, improved bio-processing outcomes, environmentally sustainable development and biosensitive infrastructure. The table on the right explores some of these applications and how they relate to the various engineering disciplines.

Careers in biological engineering

Victoria is Australia’s pre-eminent state for biotechnology, with strong government support for it to become one of the top five biotechnology locations in the world by 2010. Victoria is home to 39% of Australia’s core and diversified biotechnology firms and more biotechnology employees than all the other states combined.

Advances in medicine and increased awareness in the community of health issues are leading to increased investments in biomedical and environmental engineering education and research.

A vast and interesting array of career opportunities lies ahead for biological engineers, both within Australia and overseas. Career opportunities are varied and numerous and include:

  • Pharmaceutical and biotechnology engineering (the biopharmaceuticals market in 2005 accounted for 12% of a US$602b pharmaceuticals market, estimated to become 50% by 2010)
  • Medical diagnostics and development
  • Medical device development
  • Medical image processing and management
  • Medical IT and telecommunications
  • Genetic and proteomic engineering in disease understanding and prevention
  • Biomaterials research
  • Bioprocessing and production of eg. food and medicines
  • Human biomechanics and prosthetic engineering
  • Forensic engineering and accident investigation
  • Public health engineering as in water supply and reuse, solid and waste disposal systems
Engineering discipline Biomedical engineering applications*
Chemical engineering Pharmaceutical design and manufacture; drug delivery systems; harnessing biological systems to improve bio-processing outcomes: for example, in the manufacturing of medicines, vaccines, food, beer, fuels and plastics from renewable raw materials.
Civil engineering Quality of water supply and health implications; forensic engineering and injury biomechanics; crashworthiness and dynamics of human interaction within vehicles and road environments; bio-sensitive infrastructure such as ‘healthy’ buildings.
Electrical and computer systems engineering Diagnostic instrumentation and monitoring equipment in hospitals, clinics and laboratories; recording of electrical activity in the body and analysis of these signals ; devices that stimulate nerves such as the bionic ear and pacemaker; applying communications and computer systems to medical problems.
Materials engineering Development of materials for implants eg. titanium hip joints, artificial lenses; improvement of bonding materials used with implants; scaffolding: using artificial materials to induce tissue growth in the shape required for transplanting to the required area.
Mechanical engineering Design and improvement of prosthetics, artificial valves or hearts as well as other implants and replacement organs; biomechanics from blood flow to gait.

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