On April 30, the Center for Bioelectronics at Old Dominion University brought together more than 100 researchers, clinicians, students and industry partners for the NanoBioTech Biomedical Innovation and Integrated Health Systems (BIIHS) 2026 Conference. Held at Ҵý’s Ted Constant Convocation Center, the one-day conference created a regional forum for exploring how nanotechnology, bioelectronics, advanced materials and integrated systems are reshaping the future of healthcare.
The conference reflected a growing shift in biomedical research: some of the most promising advances are emerging not from a single discipline, but from the intersection of multiple fields.
Organized across two tracks: Biointerfaces & Sensing and Biofabrication & Systems – NanoBioTech 2026 brought together researchers exploring innovative approaches to diagnostics, therapeutics, biosensing, biomaterials, wearable technologies, and integrated health systems, spanning fundamental materials and device development through clinically relevant technologies.
“The future of healthcare will not be defined by a single technology or discipline. It will be shaped by how we bring sensing, materials, bioelectronics, data and clinical expertise together to create solutions that can meet patients where they are,” said Gymama Slaughter, Ph.D., executive director of Ҵý’s Center for Bioelectronics.
That vision was reflected throughout the conference. Plenary speaker Reza Ghodssi, Ph.D., of the University of Maryland, highlighted the potential of ingestible microsystems to transform how diseases of the gastrointestinal tract and other systemic conditions are monitored and treated. His work integrates microsystems, sensors, electronics and actuators into ingestible technologies capable of monitoring biomarkers and enabling targeted drug delivery.
Keynote speakers Azahar Ali of Virginia Tech, Netz Arroyo of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Michael Daniele of North Carolina State University, and Vamsi Yadavalli of Virginia Commonwealth University further demonstrated how emerging technologies are creating new possibilities for continuous sensing, advanced biointerfaces, biomaterials and integrated health systems.
“I enjoyed listening to the presentations, and it was equally wonderful to spend quality time talking with the graduate students and post-doctoral associates during lunch and the poster session,” said Reza Ghodssi, Ph.D., of the University of Maryland. “We should definitely consider expanding NanoBioTech to the whole Mid-Atlantic region annually.”
The conference also recognized emerging researchers through the 2026 NanoBioTech Best Poster Awards. Phuc Long Duong of the Catholic University of America was recognized for rapid antibiotic susceptibility testing; Shiya Han of Virginia Commonwealth University for sustained drug delivery and neuroprotection in age-related macular degeneration; Abdellatif Ait Lahcen of Ҵý for antiretroviral therapy monitoring; and Sri Ramulu Torati of Ҵý for laser-induced graphene-enabled electrochemical biosensing of cancer and inflammatory biomarkers.
Together, these projects illustrated the breadth of innovation emerging at the intersection of nanotechnology, bioengineering and medicine. Additional presentations explored flexible biosensors, microfluidics, wireless bioelectronics, drug delivery, cancer diagnostics, cardiac monitoring and computational biomedical technologies.
What stood out about NanoBioTech 2026 was not simply the diversity of research, but the connections among these fields. A nanostructured electrode can become a wearable biosensor. A microsystem can become an ingestible diagnostic device. An advanced material can enable localized therapy. A sensor can become part of a wireless and digitally connected healthcare system.
These connections point toward a future in which healthcare can move beyond episodic testing toward systems capable of detecting changes earlier, providing actionable information and enabling more personalized interventions.
NanoBioTech 2026 provided a glimpse of what is possible when these communities come together. By creating a space for scientific exchange, interdisciplinary collaboration and mentorship of emerging researchers, the Center for Bioelectronics and its regional partners are helping strengthen the biomedical innovation ecosystem in Hampton Roads and beyond.
The future of healthcare will not be defined by isolated discoveries. It will be defined by what happens when those discoveries connect.