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Dr. Berns received a Gold Medal from the International Society of Optics and Photonic in 2022

Michael W. Berns, PhD, has been inducted into Marquis Who’s Who. As in all Marquis Who’s Who biographical volumes, individuals profiled are selected on the basis of current reference value. Factors such as position, noteworthy accomplishments, visibility, and prominence in a field are all taken into account during the selection process.

After more than four decades of experience in the classroom and research lab, Dr. Berns retired as a distinguished endowed chair professor at the University of California (UCI) Irvine. Originally joining the faculty in 1972, he served as an associate professor and department chair in the department of developmental cell biology and was subsequently named as the Arnold and Mabel Beckman professor in 1988. During his tenure, Dr. Berns also founded, chaired and served as chief executive officer of The Beckman Laser Institute, a nonprofit institution devoted to biomedical research on cancer and nervous system diseases. Among other achievements on campus, he served as the founding director of the UCI Center for Biomedical Engineering and founded the UCI Photonics Incubator.

Prior to joining UCI, Dr. Berns was an assistant professor of zoology from 1970 to 1972 at University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, and in 1972 he joined the faculty as associate professor in the department of developmental and cell biology at the University of California, Irvine. He also served as an adjunct professor in the department of bioengineering at UC San Diego from 2000 to 2021. Additionally, Dr. Berns lectured extensively in his area of expertise in various European countries, the Middle East, Russia, Japan and China.

From 1973 to 2022, Dr. Berns functioned as the principal investigator for laser microbeam studies on chromosomes in mitosis and other cellular organelles. He also served on the ad hoc committee for lasers in biomedical research for the National Academy of Sciences in 1977 and as the chairperson for the Gordon Conference on Lasers in Medicine and Biology in 1978.

Dr. Berns’ research interests have included cellular and embryonic development, the mitosis of cells, the nucleoli and mitochondria of tissue culture cells, as well as laser instrumentation for biomedical research, and laser microbeam studies on chromosomes. The methods that he has developed to study cells have since become widely adopted by many scientists throughout the world. Dr. Berns notably holds 12 U.S. patents in his field.

Dr. Berns has disseminated his findings by contributing over 500 scholarly articles in leading peer-reviewed journals. He has also authored six technical books. Much of his written work has been published in over a dozen different languages. Aside from his written contributions in the field, Dr. Berns published his first novel in 2021. Titled “The Tinderbox Plot,” the book’s plot centers on a team of ex-KGB agents that smuggle a nuclear device into the U.S.

A leader in his community, Dr. Berns served as a member of his local planning commission for five years. He also established three scholarships at he and his wife’s alma mater, Cornell University, for undergraduate research. In addition, he established a scholarship at the University California Irvine, also for undergraduate research and to honor his late wife Roberta M. Berns who also taught at UCI and authored a bestselling text book Child, School, Family and Community (Cengage 10th edition).

Dr. Berns graduated from Cornell University with a Bachelor of Science in 1964, a Master of Science in 1966 and a Doctor of Philosophy in biology in 1968. He subsequently held a postdoctoral position at the Pasadena Foundation for Medical Research in Pasadena, California, from 1968 to 1970.

To remain aware of developments in his field, Dr. Berns has been a member of the American Society of Cell Biology, the American Society of Photobiology, the Tissue Culture Association, the Society for Developmental Biology. and the American Society of Lasers in Medicine and Surgery of which he was president in the 1990’s. He is also an elected fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, the American Institute for Biomedical Engineering, and the International Society of Optics and Photonics from which he received the Lifetime Achievement Award. Furthermore, Dr. Berns is a foreign member of the Royal Norwegian Society of Sciences and Letters and is a fellow of the Royal Society of Biology (UK).

Dr. Berns received several grants from the National Institutes of Health, the National Science Foundation, the US Office of Naval Research, the US Air Force office of Research and other organizations for his research between 1970 and 2022. He also received an International Cancer Research Technology Transfer Fellowship from the International Union Against Cancer between 1977 and 1980.

In recognition of his contributions, Dr. Berns was honored with a Gold Medal from the International Society of Optics and Photonics in 2022. He previously received the William B. Mark Award from the American Society for Lasers in Medicine and Surgery in 1990. Dr. Berns’ achievements have also been featured in National Geographic and Scientific American magazines on several occasions.

About Marquis Who’s Who®
Since 1899, when A. N. Marquis printed the First Edition of Who’s Who in America®, Marquis Who’s Who® has chronicled the lives of the most accomplished individuals and innovators from every significant field of endeavor, including politics, business, medicine, law, education, art, religion and entertainment. Today, Who’s Who in America® remains an essential biographical source for thousands of researchers, journalists, librarians and executive search firms around the world. Marquis® now publishes many Who’s Who titles, including Who’s Who in America®, Who’s Who in the World®, Who’s Who in American Law®, Who’s Who in Medicine and Healthcare®, Who’s Who in Science and Engineering®, and Who’s Who in Asia®. Marquis® publications may be visited at the official Marquis Who’s Who® website at www.marquiswhoswho.com.

Read full press release.

Photo: Frontiers Science News

UCI Beckman Laser Institute & Medical Clinic Founding Director Michael Berns and Assistant Professor Daryl Preece were selected as associate editors on the editorial board of Optics and Photonics, led by Lorenzo Pavesi of University of Trento.  As associate editors, Berns and Preece will play a role in the strategic development of their specialty, while editing manuscripts.

The selection was in recognition of a special issue of three Frontiers journals about Optical Trapping (Laser Tweezers) and Nanosurgery (Laser Scissors), which was one of the top-performing collections in the specialty section Optics and Photonics in 2021.  The research topic attracted 59,807 views and 13,225 downloads.

Co-editors Halina Rubensztein-Dunlop from the University of Queensland in Australia and Monika Ritsch-Marte from the Medical University, Innsbruck in Austria were also selected as associate editors.

 “The success of our special issue is a testament to the high level of interest in the burgeoning field of optics and photonics, and particularly in the sub-specialty area of cellular biophotonics,” stated Berns.

Click here for more information about Frontiers.

By Lori Brandt, UCI Samueli School of Engineering

Four UC Irvine biomedical engineering faculty – Elliot Botvinick, Michelle Digman, Chang Liu and Wendy Liu –  are among 152 medical and biological engineers who were inducted into the American Institute for Medical and Biological Engineering’s College of Fellows Class of 2022.

Each was selected for their outstanding contributions in their field. A prestigious professional distinction, the College of Fellows represents the top 2% of medical and biological engineers in the country.

“Induction into AIMBE is a well-deserved honor for these faculty, two of whom are also members of the Edwards Lifesciences Foundation Cardiovascular Innovation and Research Center (CIRC),” said Naomi Chesler, director of the CIRC and an Inclusive Excellence Professor of biomedical engineering, who nominated all four. “It is both a recognition of their research accomplishments and impact to date and an opportunity to contribute to biomedical science policy and public understanding of biomedical science and engineering on a larger stage.”

Professor Botvinick was recognized for work in biophotonics and its use in medical devices and the study of biophysics in cell-tissue interactions. In his research, Botvinick studies the relationship between mechanical stresses on cells and molecular signaling or mechanotransduction.

“I am honored to become an AIMBE fellow,” he said. “I will continue to devote my life to improving our understanding of how cells sense tissues and to develop new technologies to aid in the treatment of diabetes. As an AIMBE fellow, I will embark on the next chapter of my career, which is to invent, develop, test and commercialize unprofitable medical devices for underserved groups, particularly in pediatrics. And more importantly, to build and share the resources for other scientists to do the same.”

Associate Professor Digman was acknowledged for her contributions to the development of and applications to fluorescence fluctuation spectroscopy and fluorescence lifetime imaging microscopy. Digman’s research focuses on quantitative spatial and temporal correlation spectroscopy, protein dynamics during cell migration, characterizing metabolic alterations in cells and tissues, and developing novel imaging technologies.

“I am honored to join my colleagues as an AIMBE fellow,” said Digman. “I want to thank my past and present group members, as well as collaborators for making so many things possible during this research journey. I’m also excited to support AIMBE’s mission of advocacy in the field of biomedical engineering. In addition, I want to thank Naomi Chesler, who was vital in all of our nominations, for her support and efforts in contributing to enhancing equity in our department.”

The AIMBE selected Chang Liu, associate professor, for his efforts in the fields of synthetic biology and directed evolution through the invention of in vivo hypermutation systems. He engineers specialized genetic systems that continuously and rapidly mutate user-selected genes in vivo. These systems allow researchers to evolve proteins at unprecedented speed, scale and depth in order to engineer new protein functions, probe the rules of evolution and understand the fundamental sequence-function relationships governing proteins and other macromolecules.

“I am delighted to be elected into the fellowship and look forward to fruitful interactions and endeavors with other members,” said Liu.

Professor Wendy Liu was recognized for contributions and service to the cell and tissue engineering community and advancing the field of immune cell mechanobiology. She uses bioengineering approaches to understand how the microenvironment regulates immune cell plasticity and immune-mediated wound healing. She is studying macrophages, innate immune cells that adopt a spectrum of functional phenotypes depending on their context and play a major role in wound healing and disease.

“I am honored and excited to receive this recognition from AIMBE,” she said. “I am also extremely grateful for the wonderful colleagues at UCI who have provided a supportive environment, and all of my collaborators and students who have contributed to our work.”

AIMBE’s mission is to recognize excellence, advance public understanding, and accelerate medical and biological innovation. Its College of Fellows includes over 1,500 honorees who work in academia, industry, clinical practice and government. The formal induction ceremony will be held during AIMBE’s 2022 Annual Event on March 25.

Read more on the UCI Samueli School of Engineering website.

Institute Director Thomas Milner, an investigator in the field of laser-based medical devices and a
pioneer in optical imaging of tissue, received a $75,000 award from the Developmental Research
Program (DRP) of the Developmental and Hyperactive Ras Tumor (DHART) SPORE. The study focuses on
the early detection and treatment of cutaneous neurofibroma (cNF), imaging cNF at the earliest stages
of development for improved detection and treatment. The study has substantial translational
implications for treating cNF tumors, potentially allowing intervention at an early point of development
of cNF.

With a worldwide incidence of 1 in 3000, neurofibromatosis type 1 (NF1) is the most common inherited
cancer predisposition syndrome and the founding member of a group of developmental disorders that
are collectively termed “Rasopathies.” Clinical manifestations of NF1 include pigmented skin lesions,
skeletal dysplasia, learning disabilities, and an increased risk of developing specific neoplastic diseases
that progress to aggressive cancers. These premalignant and malignant tumors frequently affect
children, adolescents and young adults.

Collectively, the tumors that develop in NF1 patients are a substantial cause of morbidity and premature
mortality. In addition to its role as an initiating mutation in NF1-associated cancers, recent genome-wide
sequencing studies uncovered frequent somatic NF1 mutations in glioblastoma (GBM), acute myeloid
leukemia (AML), melanoma, lung adenocarcinoma and other sporadic cancers.
With the study, Milner and his research team offer a new and innovative area of focus as no other
studies such as this exist. Early intervention for various benign and potentially malignant tumors or
conditions for NF1 patients is important, as trying to manage these conditions is far more challenging
after they have been established.

The Developmental and Hyperactive Ras Tumor (DHART) SPORE was funded in 2015 with the goal of
implementing effective targeted molecular therapies for neoplasms and cancers characterized by NF1
mutations. The DRP project is funded by a generous commitment to the DHART SPORE by the
Neurofibromatosis Therapeutic Acceleration Program (NTAP).

Click here for more information about DHART SPORE.