BIOENGINEERING SYSTEMS

Yi Yan Yang obtained Ph.D. degree from Tsinghua University (China) in 1990. She was an Associate Professor in Tsinghua University before she joined Institute of Materials Science and Engineering (Agency for Science, Technology and Research – A*STAR, Singapore) in 1998. She moved to Institute of Bioengineering and Nanotechnology (IBN, A*STAR) in 2003 as a Group Leader. Currently, she is Covering Executive Director of Institute of Bioengineering and Bioimaging (IBB), and an Adjunct Research Professor at Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, National University of Singapore. She has 252 publications in peer-reviewed journals including Nat. Mater., Nat. Nanotech., Nat. Chem., Nat. Commun., Adv. Mater., Advanced Science, Adv. Funct. Mater., Angew. Chem. Intl. Ed., ACS Nano, Biomaterials, and J. Control. Release, Adv. Healthc. Mater., Nanomedicine: Nanotechnology, Biology and Medicine (Nanomedicine) (H-index: 80; Citations: 20142), and 69 patents granted (3 patents have been licensed to two spin-off companies).

She has received many invitations to hold lectures and seminars in Singapore and overseas. In addition to her scientific contributions, she has organized and chair-ed a number of symposiums and seminars over the years. In 2009, Singapore Women’s Weekly Magazine awarded her the Great Women of Our Time Award, Science and Technology Category. In January 2016, she was elected to the American Institute for Medical and Biological Engineering (AIMBE) College of Fellows. Her work on antimicrobial polymers was named Scientific American’s “Top 10 World Changing Ideas” in 2011. She serves as an Associate Editor for Nanomedicine: Nanotechnology, Biology and Medicine, and on the Editorial Board for Advanced Healthcare Materials. Her other professional activities include member of Material Research Society (MRS) in Singapore and MRS (USA), and member of American Chemical Society (ACS).

Publication & Patent: 
Yi Yan Yang

Dr. Cyrus Beh received his Bachelors in Bioengineering from the National University of Singapore, and his Ph.D. in Biomedical Engineering from the Johns Hopkins University. Since returning to Singapore in 2014, he has worked in A*STAR’s Molecular Engineering Laboratory. He has been involved in various A*STAR research initiatives, and has received almost $2.5 million in funding for his projects, with ongoing collaborations with researchers from A*STAR, NTU, as well as local hospitals (NUH and TTSH).
His research interests include soft materials for bioprinting purposes; polymer chemistry; microfluidics and microfabrication; and fluorescence spectroscopy. He has applied his expertise to the development of a novel 3D bioprinter developed here in A*STAR, and is using it in the care and treatment of chronic wounds, as well as other bioprinting applications. His other work includes an A*CCELERATE GAP-funded gene transfection device, as well as a program to develop next-generation dressings for burn wounds.

Publication & Patent:
Cyrus, Weijie BEH

Prof Hanry Yu, studied Cell Biology under Prof Michael P. Sheetz, initially at Wash U. – St. Louis, then Duke University, USA; and did postdoctoral research with Prof Gareth W. Griffiths at the European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL) in Germany. He was awarded Human Frontier Science Programme (HFSP) long-term research fellowship, HFSP research grant, and many research grants supporting interdisciplinary translation R&D. He is currently Professor of Physiology (NUSMed) and Mechanobiology (MBI) at the National University of Singapore; and leads a Cell and Tissue Engineering group at the Institute of Bioengineering and Bioimaging (IBB), A*STAR; and co-leads a cell therapy manufacturing programme (CAMP) at the MIT research entity (SMART) in Singapore. He integrates biomaterials, tissue mechanobiology and engineering, biomedical optics and AI data analytics into solutions for pharmaceutical, environmental, and recently food industries. Prof Yu was a visiting professor at the Massachussett Institute of Technology, USA and Southern Medical University, China. He has trained many students and staffs in leading universities in the US and Asia who went onto successful career in academia or industry; built several institutions and companies, published >200 papers, delivered >250 invited talks, and consults for institutions worldwide. Prof Yu is currently serving as a handling editor for the scientific journal Biomaterials; and the overseeing editor for the theme: Biomaterials for Future Food.

Yiqi has a keen interest in genetic and molecular tinkering and has previously worked on gene therapy during his DPhil with a specific interest in gene delivery and RNAinterference (RNAi). Other than trying to take the world by storm with his magic performances, he is also working on developing synthetic mirtrons for therapeutic RNAi, exosomes for gene delivery and a number of side projects that are either destined for a tiny scientific splash or doomed to catastrophic failure. He is also a believer in skill specialization and collaborations, especially when the error bars get really wide.

Publication & Patent:
Yiqi SEOW

Yugen Zhang is a Senior Principal Investigator at the Institute of Bioengineering and Bioimaging (IBB), A-Star, Singapore. He graduated from the University of Science and Technology of China (USTC) in 1987, where he received his PhD in Chemistry in 1992. After his PhD, he joined USTC as a faculty member and was promoted to Professor in 1999. He visited Riken (Japan) (1996 to 1997, 2000 to 2001), where he worked as visiting scholar in Prof. Zhaomin Hou’ group. Before he joined IBN in 2004, he had been working at Harvard University as a post-doctoral research associate in Prof. RH Holm’s group (2002-2004). He has co-authored more than 210 papers and 50 patents. His current main research areas include: (1) antimicrobial technologies, focusing on development of green antimicrobial technologies and their applications in infection control and food security; (2) advanced biomaterials and their applications in medical devices; (3) green chemistry for industrial applications. His current research work is supported by several major funding agencies, including NRF-CRP (2018-2023), IAF-ICP (2018-2021), and several industrial RCAs (2017-2021).

Publication & Patent:
Yugen ZHANG

Ichiro Hirao received his PhD degree in 1983 from Tokyo Institute of Technology in Japan. In 1984, he started his work at University of Tokyo (Prof. Miura K.), as a research associate, and in 1989, he discovered extraordinarily stable mini-hairpin DNA. In 1992, he became an associate professor at Tokyo University of Pharmacy and Life Sciences. In 1995, he moved to Dr. Andrew Ellington’s laboratory at Indiana University, to learn evolutional engineering methods. In 1997, he returned to Japan to join a JST ERATO project of Prof. Yokoyama S., as a group leader, and started a research to expand the genetic alphabet of DNA. He continued his work at The University of Tokyo, as a professor in 2002–2006 and at RIKEN as a team leader in 2006–2015. His team first succeeded in the development of new base pairs that function as a third base pair in replication and transcription. In 2007, he founded the venture company ‘TAGCyx Biotechnologies’ to commercialize his technology. In 2015, he moved to IBN, A*STAR in Singapore, with his team member to disseminate Xenobiology. In 2018–2020, he served as covering Executive Director at IBN. His extensive experience and achievements in the cutting-edge and emerging fields of Biotechnology and Xenobiology, specifically his discovery of new DNA base pairs for expanding the genetic alphabet, place him in good stead to lead this research area.

Projects
Genetic Alphabet Expansion using Unnatural Base Pair Systems
High-Affinity DNA Aptamer Generation

Publication & Patent:
Ichiro HIRAO