Biology senior does bio-engineering summer internship

Kate Blankenship, a biology senior in the Dept. of Sciences and Mathematics, did a paid summer internship this past June and July in the Dept. of Mechanical Engineering at Mississippi State University.

Kate did her internship in the Computational Mechanics and Materials Lab (CMML) of Dr. Matthew W. Priddy at MSU. She was part of a team that has developed a desktop device for testing new spinal implant equipment. The machine serves as a substitute for the human cadavers that are otherwise required for such testing.

Kate worked over the summer on determining the appropriate spinal stiffness setting in their desktop device that will allow the testing of Interbody Fusion Devices (IFDs) used in spinal surgery.

An X-ray of a spine with an interbody fusion device (IFD) inserted. Kate was working with a device that allows researchers to test IFDs without having to put them into human spines first. Picture licensed under Creative Commons, CC BY 4.0. (From Leute et al. 2015. J Med Case Reports 9, 22. https://doi.org/10.1186/1752-1947-9-22 )

The Priddy team, with Kate’s contribution this summer, are working to further refine the bench top device to be more physiologically accurate in simulating the human spine’s stiffness and compressive load. This work will allow future research on the interbody fusion devices’ response during the insertion procedure, contributing to better surgical outcomes and improved patient care.

Kate’s paid internship was part of the MS-INBRE Summer Research Scholars program. It paid $6500 and included a one-week training program at the University of Southern Mississippi. This program is offered again in summer 2025.

The Dept. of Sciences and Mathematics encourages all of its students to apply for paid summer research internships. There is a vast number of such programs available each year, and departmental faculty advisors will gladly help students find a summer program suited to their needs and interests.