Dr. Wrenn and his collaborators, Dr. Rohan Tikekar of the Department of Nutrition and Food Science at the University of Maryland, College Park, and Dr. Nitin Nitin of the Food Science and Technology Department at the University of California, Davis, received a USDA-NIFA grant for their project "Sonochemical Processes for Inactivation of Spoilage Microorganisms on Surface of Fresh Produces and Food-Contact Surfaces." During this two-year project, Dr. Wrenn and his doctoral students will investigate the feasibility of using microbubble cavitation to destroy harmful bacteria in a controlled manner.
Dr. Wrenn and his Drexel collaborators, Dr. Aaron Fafarman of Chemical and Biological Engineering, and cardiologists Brett Angel, MD, and Andrew Kohut, MD of Drexel Medicine, received a Coulter-Drexel Translational Research grant for their project aimed at developing a "Physiologically-Activated Intravenous Ultrasound Contrast Agent." The team recently invented a novel technology (with the potential to revolutionize treatment of heart attack patients) and is working to establish a clinical product based thereon.