February 18, 2022

Professor Ankur Singh is one of four Georgia Tech researchers who are joining the distinguished College of Fellows of the American Institute for Medical and Biological Engineering this year. The others are Shella Keilholz (BME),Wilbur Lam (BME), and Omer Inan (ECE).

Election to fellow means the researchers are considered among the most accomplished professionals in the field: Fellows represent just the top 2% of medical and biological engineers in the nation, according to the organization more commonly known as AIMBE.

Singh called his election as an AIMBE fellow “pivotal to my academic career. It will now allow me to work with a cohort of dedicated scientists toward developing and implementing innovative approaches to bioengineering education, research, and advocacy for research funding.”

Singh is an associate professor in Georgia Tech’s George W. Woodruff School of Mechanical Engineering and the Wallace H. Coulter Department of Biomedical Engineering at Emory University and Georgia Tech. His research lab creates biomaterials-based immune tissues to mimic the structure and function of lymph nodes so they can study interactions between cells and cell decision-making. These models are tiny 3D tissue cultures grown from patient cells called organoids, or “on-chip” systems that draw inspiration from circuits on a microchip to create tiny channels and chambers on silicon wafers that recreate the flow and forces of tissues in the body.

Becoming a fellow of AIMBE is increasingly difficult, and it comes with expectations, according to the organization: Fellows must give back, advance excellence, and advocate for medical and biological engineering.

Singh said the competitiveness of the selection process for new fellows is not lost on him, and he is grateful for the opportunity to contribute.

“Election to AIMBE underscores the importance of thinking outside the box and championing transformative interdisciplinary research,” he said. “I am fortunate that the outstanding environment at Georgia Tech and my collaborations with Emory Medicine, among others, continue to provide a fertile ground for pushing cutting-edge research.”

Singh is the third Woodruff school professor to be elevated to the level of AIMBE Fellow, joining colleagues Nazanin Bassiri-Gharb and Brandon Dixon. 

Singh, Keliholz, Lam, and Inan will be inducted officially at the organization’s annual meeting in March.