Dr. James Grotberg, Ph.D., M.D.

Expert Publications

• Surfactant-spreading and surface-compression disturbance on a thin viscous film.
• Surfactant effects in model airway closure experiments.
• A rat lung model of instilled liquid transport in the pulmonary airways.
• Respiratory fluid mechanics and transport processes.
• Steady-state pleural fluid flow and pressure and the effects of lung buoyancy.
• Liquid plug flow in straight and bifurcating tubes.
• Reversible switching of high-speed air-liquid two-phase flows using electrowetting-assisted flow-pattern change.
• Gas exchange by intratracheal insufflation in a ventilatory failure dog model.
• Effect of ventilation rate on instilled surfactant distribution in the pulmonary airways of rats.
• Gas dispersion in volume-cycled tube flow. I. Theory.
• Gas dispersion in volume-cycled tube flow. II. Tracer bolus experiments.
• The effect of airway wall motion on surfactant delivery.
• Spectral content of forced expiratory wheezes during air, He, and SF6 breathing in normal humans.
• Steady propagation of a liquid plug in a two-dimensional channel.
• Microfluidics for flow cytometric analysis of cells and particles.

Media Releases

Dr. James Grothberg is a Professor in the Department of Biomedical Engineering and the Department of Surgery at the University of Michigan. A seasoned emergency physician, he is the founding Director of the University of Michigan NASA Bioscience and Engineering Institute.

He received his Doctor of Philosophy in Fluid Mechanics at Johns Hopkins University, and then completed his medical education at the University of Chicago. 

Following his internship year, he joined the faculty at Northwestern University from 1981 to 1998, jointly appointed in the Department of Biomedical Engineering and the Department of Anesthesiology. During that period, he practiced emergency medicine in the Chicago and downstate Illinois regions. In 1998, he joined the University of Michigan.

Maintaining fellowship status, Dr. Grotberg is a Fellow of the American Physical Society's Division of Fluid Dynamics, a Fellow of the American Institute for Medical and Biological Engineering, an Inaugural Fellow of the Biomedical Engineering Society, and a Fellow of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers. The latter cited him as “the leading Biofluid Dynamicist in the United States and among the top two or three in the world.”

Among his other roles, he is Associate Editor of Annual Review of Fluid Mechanics and Biophysical Journal, and a previous Associate Editor of Physics of Fluids and Journal of Biomechanical Engineering. He was the Kenan Distinguished Professor at Princeton University (2009), and maintained visiting appointments in the Department of Physics at Ecole Polytechnique, the Department of Applied Mathematics at Ecole Normale Superieure de Cachan, and Universite Paris-Est, Faculte de Medecine, in France.

An enthusiastic researcher, Dr. Grotberg’s research focuses on biofluid dynamics and biotransport, primarily in the respiratory system. These include experimental and theoretical investigations of surfactant replacement therapy, aerosol delivery into the lung, microgravity ventilation, airway closure and reopening, flow induced oscillations such as wheezing and its relation to flow limitation, obstructive sleep apnea, liquid ventilation, high frequency ventilation, and implantable artificial lungs.

Together with colleagues, he has collaborated to develop “Lung-on-a-Chip” microfluidics technology for testing pulmonary cells in controlled mechanical and chemical challenges. His work has been funded by NIH, NSF, NASA, NATO, BSF (Israel-US), ANR (France), The Coulter Foundation, The Whitaker Foundation, and industry.

Recommended Articles

• What Are Ketones?

  Almost every cell in the body has a primary source of energy, which is usually glucose. However, when the body doesn't have enough glucose, the liver responds by producing chemicals known as ketones, converting stored fatty acids into ketone bodies. Ketones are used as a backup fuel source when...

• What Is Epistaxis?

  What is epistaxis?Epistaxis or commonly called a nosebleed is defined as a type of bleeding that occurs from the nostrils, the nasal cavity, or the nasopharynx. Nosebleeds are mostly caused by the rupture of blood vessels inside the nose. Bleeding may be spontaneous or caused by injuries or trauma....

• Chikungunya Fever: Symptoms, Treatment, and Prevention

  Introduction Chikungunya is a viral infection that is transmitted by mosquitoes. The chikungunya virus causes a sudden onset of fever along with severe joint pain. The illness is not considered as contagious, but in rare instances, the virus can get transmitted through contact with a person's...

• Influenza B: What You Need to Know

  Influenza Influenza, also commonly called as the flu, is a highly contagious respiratory infection caused by viruses, particularly influenza A or influenza B. These viruses usually infect the throat, nose, and lungs. Although the flu causes mild symptoms in most people, it can also cause severe...

• Leukocyte Esterase Test

  Leukocyte Esterase Urine TestLeukocyte esterase (LE) is an esterase produced by white blood cells (WBCs) or leukocytes. A leukocyte esterase test is a urine test used to detect the presence of white blood cells and other health conditions associated with infection.Normally, leukocyte esterase...

• What Causes Dehydration?

  Humans have approximately 60 percent of water in the body. Even if 1.5-2 percent of that water is lost, mild dehydration will start, which can lead to severe dehydration requiring immediate medical attention. Because your mood, energy level, and coordination deteriorate with the loss of body fluids,...