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- Associate Professor in Digital Bioprocess Engineering
- Dept of Biochemical Engineering
- Faculty of Engineering Science
Duygu is an Associate Professor in Digital Bioprocessing and Biochemical Engineering at the UCL Department of Biochemical Engineering. She is an Associate Member of the Institution of Chemical Engineers (AMIChemE), a Member of the Society for Biological Engineering (AIChE), and a Member of the International Metabolic Engineering Society (AIChE).


Duygu’s main contributions are to the Smart Biosystems and Bioprocesses research group (DigiSmartBio) and focus on the adaptation of digital technologies to develop data-driven and mechanistic modelling approaches for handling complexity in microbial and mammalian biosystems and bioprocesses. Her research focuses on bringing systems engineering and systems biology together to address the problems we currently face in the design, development and control of functional biological entities and bioprocesses. She also helps to develop plans for digital/data/AI research at the UCL East Manufacturing Futures Lab.
Duygu works at the interface of bringing information at the cellular level and at the bioprocess level together in order to make well-informed decisions on how to improve design and facilitate system automation for bioprocessing and biomanufacturing. Her group develops data-driven and mechanistic modelling approaches for handling complexity in microbial and mammalian biosystems and bioprocesses, as well as methodologies and tools for predicting and controlling system behaviour for the purpose of designing structures that are capable of making decisions to guide their future actions.
Her research areas include understanding cellular stress during recombinant protein production by microbes (with Professor Gary Lye), design of concerted microbial metabolic activities to mimic multicellular behaviour (with Professors John Ward, Gary Lye and Nicolas Szita), analysing and improving the controllability of complex hierarchical networks in living systems (with Professor Jurg Bahler (UCL Genetics, Evolution & Environment)), development of data-driven experimental approaches in the domain of cell and gene therapies (with Dr Qasim Rafiq) and the implementation of data-driven approaches in understanding elucidate conformational dynamics changes within protein formulations (with Professor Paul Dalby).
Current
grants include a Royal Academy of Engineering grant on the use of
non-conventional yeasts for functional food production through data-driven
process optimisation with Yeditepe University (Turkey), an AstraZeneca Beacon
Project Grant on the utilisation of AI-driven technologies for achieving
superior controller responses in mammalian cultures, and a Johnson Matthey
grant on overcoming challenges in the production of difficult to express
enzymes, both with the University of Cambridge.
Duygu’s teaching activities are focused on final year undergraduate and postgraduate degree programmes operated by the department. At undergraduate level she contributes to the module on Bioprocess Systems Engineering (Year 4) and leads the Stochastic Calculus and Uncertainty Analysis (Year 4) module within the IEP Maths Minor.
At
Masters level she contributes to modules on Bioprocess Design and Economic
Evaluation, Bioprocess Facility Design, and Bioprocess Design Research Project.