An Indian-origin scientist at MIT, who has developed artificial human microlivers for drug testing, has won a prestigious $2,50,000 Heinz award for her work in tissue engineering and disease detection.
Sangeeta Bhatia at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology has been named the recipient of the 2015 Heinz Award for Technology, the Economy, and Employment. The award includes an unrestricted prize of $ 2,50,000.
The Heinz Awards annually recognise individuals for their extraordinary contributions to arts and humanities; environment; human condition; public policy; and technology, the economy, and employment.
“This type of recognition helps to bring science into the public eye so that everyone can appreciate the dedication and innovation that is happening in laboratories all over the country,” said Bhatia, the John J and Dorothy Wilson Professor of Health Sciences and Technology and Electrical Engineering and Computer Science.
Ms. Bhatia’s team has pioneered the fabrication of artificial human microlivers, which are being used by many biopharmaceutical companies to test the toxicity of drug candidates.
She is also using microlivers in the lab to model malaria infection and test drugs that can eradicate malaria parasites completely. She hopes to eventually develop implantable liver tissue as a complement or substitute for whole-organ transplant.
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