Support l'X A research internship at Columbia University to help mending hearts
Two students of the Ingénieur Polytechnicien Program, Solène Léger and Lucie Chicaud, completed their research internship during their third-year studies at the University of Columbia, and more precisely at the laboratory of the Irving Medical Center, dedicated to developing innovative treatments for congenital heart diseases, particularly those requiring artificial valve implants.
A five-month research internship represents a cornerstone of the third year in the Ingénieur Polytechnicien program. It challenges students to apply their scientific expertise to a specific issue within their field of specialization and to integrate into a research team at a public research organization or R&D center. To further enrich this professional experience with a cultural and linguistic immersion, École Polytechnique encourages students to pursue their internships in France and abroad.
In their third year of studies in the Ingénieur Polytechnicien Progam, students select from 15 specialization options. Solène Léger and Lucie Chicaud both decided to specialize in biological fields - Solène in biophysics and Lucie in biological engineering. Both applied for an internship in Columbia University’s Pediatric Heart Valve laboratory, directed by Professor David Kalfa.
An outstanding expert in this field, Professor Kalfa was, until recently, Associate Professor of Surgery at the Columbia School of Medicine in New York. A long-standing research collaboration with Abdul Barakat, a faculty researcher at École Polytechnique and co-director of the interdisciplinary Engineering for Health (E4H) center at Institut Polytechnique de Paris, keeps him well connects him with the research team in France.
Under Professor Kalfa’s leadership, the laboratory’s research teams are pursuing two main avenues:
The development of stretchable polymeric valves and the transplantation of living-cell-based donor valves. A key challenge in the latter approach is preserving tissue integrity and bio-viability from the time it’s harvested from the donor to the time it’s transplanted into the child recipient.
During their internship, Solène Léger and Lucie Chicaud collaborated with researchers on a pioneering technique currently being explored to enhance surgical outcomes for children with heart conditions.
“It was for me a fantastic exposure and hands-on translational research experience which strengthened my desire to drive and translate biomedical innovations into real-world applications,” declares Lucie Chicaud.
Following her internship, Lucie Chicaud is now pursuing studies in Translational Medicine in a Joint Master program between UC Berkeley and University of California San Francisco as part of her 4th-year studies in the Ingénieur Polytechnicien Program.
Solène Léger and Lucie Chicaud on the Alliance program’s podcast Vis-à-vis about her research internship and shared insights: “Young Researchers Who Mend Broken Hearts”