How did Arnav get the judges' attention? Arnav is working on a game-changer: a "liver on a chip." The technology will replicate the pathophysiology of the human liver, ending the need for animal testing or invasive research practices.
Arnav explained, "The number of available organs for liver transplanation is extremely limited but the death rate from end-stage liver failure keeps increasing. Our lab is trying to leverage advances in the fields of bioengineering and molecular biology to engineer tissue grafts that, once implanted, can grow and overtake the functionality of the native liver. In addition to studying drug responses, we have utilized the 'liver on a chip' developed in our lab to study how the human liver regenerates."
As a member of Sangeeta Bhatia’s Laboratory for Multiscale Regenerative Technologies, Arnav is concurrently funded by the National Science Foundation and The Paul & Daisy Soros Fellowships for New Americans.
Born in India, Arnav moved to the United States with his family when he was a teenager. "I grew up in northern India and then moved to Houston, Texas when I was 15 years old. Living in two different countries and cultures, and seeing the differences and similarities between the two, made me the scientist and engineer that I am today. I am well-equipped as a New American to help bridge the gap between health problems and medical resources," Arnav said.
Arnav is not the only New American on the 2016 list. Forbes used infographics to highlight the 2016 honorees’ New American profile: 19 percent are immigrants and 17 percent are "first-generation."