Pittsburgh, August 29, 2026 — The University of Pittsburgh Department of Neurological Surgery and the Swanson School of Engineering's Department of Bioengineering have launched a postdoctoral training program, Neural Engineering in Neurosurgery: Bridging Engineering to Clinical Practice, supported by a new National Institutes of Health T32 award (1T32NS147937-01).
The program is co-directed by Jorge González-Martínez, MD, PhD, professor and vice chair of neurological surgery, and Aaron Batista, PhD, professor of bioengineering. It pairs four postdoctoral associates with four neurosurgery residents, supported by 32 affiliated faculty and clinicians. Postdocs shadow neurosurgeons in the operating room, and residents pursue laboratory research under an engineering mentor.
Each pair is matched to one of eight collaboration clusters where bioengineering and clinical strengths already overlap: epilepsy, stroke, speech and language mapping, sensory restoration, pain, trauma, movement disorders, and brain tumors. Projects include defining how much tissue is safe to remove during tumor resection, developing spinal cord stimulation approaches for chronic pain, and building implantable sensors and closed-loop neuromodulation systems. Trainees also complete a yearlong course, BIOENG 2805: Translational Neural Engineering.
"As doctors, we typically stay in the OR, so we don't have many chances to interact with engineers," González-Martínez said. "We know the challenges and the gaps we need to work on, but we don't always know how to answer those challenges."
The program builds on existing collaborations at the University, including work by González-Martínez and School of Medicine collaborator Elvira Pirondini using thalamic stimulation to restore speech and motor function after stroke. Both directors describe the T32 as a first step toward a lasting bridge between engineering and medicine at Pitt.
"This is a very unique opportunity to finally create an educational environment that combines neural engineering and neurosurgery," González-Martínez said. "We've never had something like this, and it's just the first step to creating a larger integration between bioengineering and neurosurgery."
Adapted from a story by the University of Pittsburgh Swanson School of Engineering: Engineering Enters the Operating Room.