U. of Portland gets $12M from inventor

PORTLAND, Ore., March 19 (UPI) -- The inventor of a heart valve that has saved thousands of lives is giving $12 million to rebuild the University of Portland's engineering building.

Donald Shiley, 87, of San Diego, is co-inventor of the Bjork-Shiley heart valve. He graduated from the private Catholic university in 1951, The Oregonian newspaper reported.

The donation by Shiley and his wife, Darlene, will be used to upgrade and expand the engineering building that was built in 1949.

Donald Shiley's work in bio-mechanical research led to the invention of breakthrough technology for the tilting-disk heart valve "the foundation for numerous subsequent heart valves," the Oregonian said.