Shuvo Roy

Shuvo Roy is an American biomedical engineer known for his work with Bio-MEMS including the invention of an artificial kidney. He currently serves as a professor at the Department of Bioengineering and Therapeutic Sciences, University of California, San Francisco.

Early life and education Shuvo Roy was born on 10 November 1969 in Dhaka (now in Bangladesh) to Asoke Nath Roy, a public health physician, and Ratna Roy, a teacher. His grandfather Nagen Dey was a professor of English at Sir Ashutosh Mukherjee College, Boalkhali. He hails from Chittagong Division, his paternal family being from Rosangiri in Fatikchhari and his maternal family being from Alkaran Ward.

Roy started his elementary education in Siddheswari in Dhaka but moved with his father, mother and siblings to Uganda in 1974 where he received most of his education including at the Jinja Senior Secondary School (his mother being employed at the institution).

Career

Roy has developed silicon nanopore membranes (SNM) to achieve high-efficiency blood ultrafiltration while selectively retaining specific solutes and serving as an immunoprotective barrier for encapsulated cells. The SNM are the fundamental underlying technology for the development of an implantable bioartificial kidney.

Using this technology, he has shown feasibility for an implantable bioartificial pancreas (iBAP). Previous attempts to develop a bioartificial pancreas have been severely limited by insufficient mass transfer and a limited supply of beta cells, but Roy says that ultra-high hydraulic permeability characteristic of the SNM will enable appropriate mass transport (especially oxygen, glucose, and insulin) to achieve optimal beta cell performance, while the ultra-selective pore characteristic of the SNM enable unprecedented immunoisolation. Also, the iBAP can utilize a human stem cell derived fully functional beta cell that provides and unlimited supply of beta cells.

He is a founding member of the University of California, San Francisco Pediatric Device Consortium. 2004 NASA Group Achievement Award, Harsh Environment MEMS Harry Wm. and Diana V. Hind Distinguished Professorship in Pharmaceutical Sciences II in the University of California, San Francisco School of Pharmacy. KidneyX Redesign Dialysis prize.