Howell to deliver talk at National Academy of Engineering symposium

UMaine Alert

Posted: April 19, 2024 - 1:32 PM

At approximately 9:24 a.m. on Friday, April 19, a University of Maine graduate student was struck by a university vehicle on Long Road at the University of Maine campus in Orono. The student reports that they are at a local hospital with minor injuries.

Emergency services, including the Orono Fire Department, University Volunteer Ambulance Corps, University of Maine Police Department, Orono Police Department and Penobscot County Sheriff’s Office responded to the scene.

The university vehicle involved in the incident was a Chevrolet Express van. It was being operated by a university employee.

Counseling services and support are available for students, faculty or staff who may have been affected. The Counseling Center can be reached at 207-581-1392 and the Dean of Students Office can be reached at 207-581-1406.

The scene has been cleared and Long Road is now accessible. An investigation is being conducted by the University of Maine Police Department with assistance from the Penobscot County Sheriff’s Office Crash Reconstruction Unit. Any witnesses to the incident are encouraged to contact Lt. Noel Santiago at noel.santiago@maine.edu.

July 11, 2022 Graduate School of Biomedical Science and Engineering, Signature and Emerging Areas

University of Maine associate professor of biomedical engineering Caitlin Howell will deliver a talk during the National Academy of Engineering’s The Grainger Foundation Frontiers of Engineering 2022 U.S.-based symposium Sept. 21–23 in Seattle.

Howell is one of 84 highly accomplished, early-career engineers from academia, industry and government invited to participate in the two-and-a-half day event hosted by Amazon, as well as one of its 16 speakers. Learn more on the symposium’s website.

For her talk, “Materials-based Approaches to Prevent Biofilm-associated Infections,” Howell will discuss the growing problem of antibiotic resistance and how materials-based mechanisms that are inspired by nature can combat it. She also will describe her efforts in developing a novel liquid surface coating for human catheters, inspired by the membrane of a pitcher plant used to trap insects, to help reduce protein deposition that leads to urinary tract and bloodstream infections. She is working on the project with Ana Lidia Flores-Mireles, Hawk Assistant Professor of the Department of Biological Sciences at Notre Dame.

Howell leads the Howell Biointerface and Biomimetics Lab at UMaine, which works broadly to understand and ultimately control biological systems through surface interactions and other environmental factors. She also is a member of the University of Maine System Science Advisory Board, which has helped the state’s public universities navigate the COVID-19 pandemic by providing leaders with the latest scientific research and medical developments involving the disease, vaccines and other pertinent topics.

Contact: Marcus Wolf, 207.581.3721; marcus.wolf@maine.edu