BME Chair Named LOC Editor-in-Chief

Dec. 14, 2016 - Biomedical engineering professor and department chair Abraham Lee has been appointed editor-in-chief for Lab on a Chip journal. Published by the Royal Society of Chemistry, Lab on a Chip is one of the world’s leading journals for miniaturization – at the micro- and nanoscale – and especially in Lee’s field of microfluidics. His appointment is for four years, from January 2017 through December 2020.

The director of the Center for Advanced Design and Manufacturing of Integrated Microfluidics, a National Science Foundation Industry/University Cooperative Research Center, Lee develops integrated micro- and nanofluidic chip processors that can be used to extract specific ingredients from biological fluids in sample preparation.

Lee, the William J. Link Professor of Biomedical Engineering, says the journal, published 24 times a year, will modify its scope next year to better position itself at “the interface of novel micro-and nanoscales devices and applications in biology, chemistry, medicine, energy, environment and beyond.” Priority will be given to articles exploring innovations that encompass technological advancement and high-impact applications.

“This is an exciting field, where some technologies are maturing into high value-added industries, yet there are many more fundamental breakthroughs being made that are up-and-coming, which may enhance existing platforms or create whole new disruptive technologies,” says Lee, whose job is to work with the editorial board to identify trends and encourage articles at the crux of the field.  

“My appointment is also a reflection of the overall strength of lab-on-a-chip technologies at UCI, thanks to the campus investments over the years,” he says.

-- Anna Lynn Spitzer