Biomedical engineer joins Libin Cardiovascular Institute

Dr. Maryam Badv, PhD, could be described as a citizen of the world, but now the biomedical engineer has settled locally to begin her research career at the University of Calgary.

Born in Iran, Badv, an assistant professor in the new Department of Biomedical Engineering at the Schulich School of Engineering, spent her childhood in the Netherlands and Ontario, Canada before returning to her home country where she completed high school. 

Badv completed her undergraduate degree in Chemical Engineering at the University of Tehran. It was during her last semester that she became very interested in bioengineering.

“As a biomedical engineer you get to work at the interface of science, medicine, engineering and biology, and following this career path felt right,” says Badv. “It is very exciting to apply engineering to solving problems within the body.”

Following her newfound passion, Badv returned to Canada where she completed both her MASc and PhD in Biomedical Engineering at McMaster University.

Her newfound passion was a good fit. In 2019, Badv was selected as valedictorian for her graduating class. She also received the Mary Keyes Award for Outstanding Leadership and Service to McMaster for her student advocacy work as president of the Engineering Graduate Society.

Badv completed her postdoctoral fellowship at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) where she worked with an interdisciplinary team of nano-scientists, engineers, clinicians and industry partners on a project with the goal of developing tissue-engineered scaffolds for periodontal disease.

Now in Calgary, Badv’s main research focus is on developing biomaterials and other functional interfaces to help the body better integrate implanted medical devices. She is especially interested in implants related to cardiovascular disease, such as vascular grafts and stents. 

“In my lab, we will be working to make these devices more biocompatible to mitigate some of the issues that can be a result of using synthetic biointerfaces,” says Badv, adding possible concerns include things like blood clotting, infection and poor tissue integration. “We will also look into designing new implants and tissue engineering models with enhanced properties.”

Badv is excited about the collaborative environment at the Libin Institute and is looking forward to working with other researchers as well as hematologists, cardiac and vascular surgeons.

“I have learned that if you want to develop innovative and practical solutions and for the successful implementation of translational research, you have to work with an interdisciplinary team that includes scientists, engineers and clinicians,” she says. “I am looking forward to future opportunities for collaboration and am excited about being exposed to new projects and ideas.”

Dr. Maryam Badv is an assistant professor in the Department of Biomedical Engineering at the Schulich School of Engineering, University of Calgary. She is a member of the Libin Cardiovascular Institute.

If you are interested in collaborating with Dr. Badv, she can be reached at maryam.badv@ucalgary.ca