Bionano Laboratory University of Guelph - Team Members

BioNano Group

2015-04-26T12:16:18-04:00

Bionanolab Celebrated Canada's 150th Birthday - July 2017

Niagara Falls - Lab Retreat - July 2017

APRIL 2015

July 2016 - BioNano at CSBE Conference Halifax

Principal Investigator

2011-06-15T21:48:31-04:00

Suresh Neethirajan, Ph.D., P.Eng

Associate Professor, Bioengineering

Suresh received his Ph.D in Biosystems Engineering from the University of Manitoba, where he developed biosensors, and image processing algorithms for quality monitoring of food. He completed his Post-doctoral fellowships at the Nanobiotechnology Laboratory, National Food Research Institute, Japan and also at the Biological and Nanoscale Systems Group at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory, USA. During his research tenure in USA and Japan, Suresh developed nanostructured microfluidic platforms for studying bacterial chemotaxis, and biological systems. He has also developed nanoscale analytical techniques for understanding biofilm formation, adhesion kinetics of bacteria, biosensors and in characterizing biomaterials and imaging cytogenetics. (Biosketch / Citation) (Picture 1, Headshot, Picture 3)

Current members

2011-08-08T20:21:00-04:00

	Xuan Weng Research Engineer (03/2014 ~ Current) Xuan Weng completed her PhD from the Mechanical & Mechatronics Engineering department of the University of Waterloo in January 2014, and M.Sc. in the College of Bioengineering at Chongqing University, China. Xuan has developed a microfluidic system for pathogen detection based on DNA hybridization for her PhD thesis. She also developed a miniaturized system for rapid and quantitative detection of Cocaine metabolites, and a PDMS microchip based sensor for rapid detection of formaldehydes in food. She enjoys music, cooking and playing badminton.
	Syed Ahmed Post-Doctoral Scientist (08/2016 ~ Current) Syed Ahmed graduated with the joint (dual) PhD degree from Shizuoka University of Japan and the Pusan National University of Korea in 2015. His Ph.D dissertation introduced preparation of fluorescent hybrid nanostructure combined with plasmonic-fluorescent and magneto-fluorescent and further expanded the physical study of plasmon–semiconductor hybrid nanostructure to develop a highly sensitive detection of influenza virus based on exciton-plasmon interaction. He has also developed sensitive influenza virus detection system using nanomaterials as artificial enzymes. In his spare time, he enjoys shopping and eating out with family.
	Satish Kumar Post-Doctoral Scientist (09/2016 ~ Current) Satish Kumar Tuteja graduated with his PhD degree in Nanoscience and Nanotechnology department of CSIR-Institute of Microbial Technology of India in June 2016. His PhD thesis was on the development of nanostructures based ultra-sensitive electrochemical biomedical and environmental biosensors. His research interests are in biosensor and diagnostic lab on a chip sensor development; surface functionalization and biointerface development; antibody and aptamer engineering for sensing and diagnostics and nano device fabrication.
	Rohit Chand Post-Doctoral Scientist (01/2017 ~ Current) Rohit Chand obtained his Ph.D in Electronic and Electrical Engineering from Sungkyunkwan University, South Korea in 2015 and M.Sc. from KIIT University, India. During his Ph.D., he developed electrochemical and microfluidic biosensors for the detection of cancer biomarkers. Before joining BioNano Lab, Rohit also worked as a post-doctoral fellow and research professor at Sungkyunkwan University. His research work involves micro-fabrication, surface functionalization, biosensors, and lab-on-a-chip development. He likes traveling, hiking, and watching movies.
	Vasanth Krishnamoorthy Post-Doctoral Research Scientist (09/2017 ~ Current) Vasanth Ragavan was working as an assistant Professor in Food technology and Nanotechnology at Amity University Rajasthan, India. He received PhD in Engineering Sciences from Food Engineering Department, CSIR - CFTRI, Mysore, and AcSIR, New Delhi. Earlier, he did Master’s in Food technology from ACT campus, Anna University, Chennai. His research interests include synthesis and characterization of nanomaterials to improve the performance of analytical methods for the detection of food contaminants. In free time, he does gardening, cooking and reads history books. He was a bowling all-rounder in CFTRI cricket team and occasionally plays professional matches.
	Abdulmonem Murayyan PhD Student (09/2016 ~ Current) Abdul completed his Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in biological engineering from the University of Guelph. His research project focuses on the investigation of the polymicrobial bacterial biofilms in cystic fibrosis lungs. Currently, he is working on studying the antiproliferative capacity of bioactive compounds found in Ontario grown onion varieties on cancer cell lines. During his free time, Abdul enjoys fishing, soccer, photography, and aikido.
	Xuanjing Jiang PhD Student (07/2016 ~ ) Xuanjing received her Bachelor's and Master's degrees in food science and engineering department of the College of Food Science of Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University of China. Her research interest is in post harvest biology and technology of fruit and vegetables, focusing on enhancing the quality of fresh agricultural products. She has been awarded a scholarship from Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University and is currently working on a project concerning food safety using nanotechnology tools at the University of Guelph as a visiting research associate. During her free time, Xuanjing enjoys watching movies, listening to music and playing badminton.
	Alzahrani, Abdulhakeem (Kimo) PhD Student (01/2015 ~ Current) Kimo is currently a Phd student in the Food Science program at the University of Guelph. His research project is focused on the role of the persister state on the survival of non-O157 Shiga Toxin Escherichia coli during fresh produce production and post-harvest processing. The persister cells of non-O157 has been isolated along with identification of influencing factors (cultivation mediums, temperature, manure exudates, root exudates and inducers such as indole and Ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid) on the survival of persister using the classic approach of antibiotic selection. Currently, he is investigating the role of metabolic triggers to induce or reverse dormancy in STEC at a single cell level using microfluidic platforms at the BioNano Lab. Kimo received his MS.c in the Food Science program at the University of Guelph in 2014, and B.Sc. in Food Science and Human Nutrition at the King Saud University, Saudi Arabia in 2009. In my free time, he likes to play volleyball, cook, and go out with his family and friends.
	Rick Bosma MSc Student (09/2017 ~ Current) Rick is a MASc student in the Biological Engineering program at the University of Guelph. He received his Bachelor of Engineering from Lakehead University and earned his P.Eng License in 2008. Rick has worked as an engineer in the dairy industry since 2009 and is currently investigating methods of detecting antibiotics in milk. When away from his research, Rick enjoys motor racing and building scale models.
	Patrick Egan MSc Student (09/2017 ~ Current) Patrick is a MASc student in the Biological Engineering program at the University of Guelph. While also receiving his Bachelor of Engineering degree from the University of Guelph in Biomedical Engineering, he showed specific interest in Bio-instrumentation. Patrick’s current research interest is geared towards the development of biosensors for pathogen detection. In his spare time Patrick enjoys watching movies, listening to music, and spending time with friends and family.
	Saipriya Ramalingam PhD Student (09/2017 ~ Current) Saipriya Ramalingam is currently a full time PhD student at the BioNano Lab. She has a year of research assistantship at the Nanotechnology Research Centre , SRM University. Prior to that, she was a research student as the Nanomaterial and Systems lab at Jeju National University, South Korea. She had completed her Masters in Nanoscience and Bachelors in Biomedical Engineering in India. Her research interests include drug delivery, nanotherapeutics and the incorporation of novel nanomaterials for biosensing applications. She carries rich understanding in synthesis and characterization of nanomaterials and its application in electrochemistry. Saipriya’s current research revolves around the fabrication of point- of care devices for disease detection.
	Josephine Yee MSc Student (09/2017 ~ Current) Josephine is a MASc student in the Biological Engineering program at the University of Guelph. She received her Bachelor of Engineering in Biomedical Engineering also at the University of Guelph. Her research interest is on developing biosensors for biomedical applications. Outside of her studies, Josephine enjoys playing video games, doing crafts and inline skating. Her thesis project involves development of wearable sensors for real-time disease detection.
	John Buozis Masters Student (09/2016 ~ Current) John is a MASc student in the Biological Engineering program at the University of Guelph. He received his Bachelor of Engineering, also at the University of Guelph, in the field of biological engineering. John's work involves developing biosensors using microfluidics and nanotechnology for biomedical applications, and more specifically on the development of biosensors for the detection of avian influenza. Outside of his studies, John enjoys spending time with friends, playing and listening to music, and playing the odd video game.
	Nick Vanstone MSc Student (09/2016 ~ Current) Nick is a MASc student in the Biological Engineering program at the University of Guelph. He received his Bachelor of Science in Engineering from Queen’s University and specialized in applied mathematics and mechanical engineering. Nick’s work involves using infrared spectroscopy and chemometrics to develop quick and inexpensive laboratory testing methods for the agriculture and food industries. More specifically, he hopes to develop methods that will be able to detect adulteration in food products as well as quantify the presence of specific components in foods. Outside of research, he plays various sports including volleyball and running and he also enjoys photography.
	Amit Tah MSc Student (05/2017 ~ Current) Amit is a MASc student in the Biological Engineering program at the University of Guelph. He received his Bachelor's degree in Biomedical Engineering from the University of Guelph in 2015. Upon graduation, Amit worked at Christie Digital Systems. Amit's project concerns development of paper based nano-biosensing platforms for food safety applications.
	Chelsey Tremblay MSc Student (01/2017 ~ Current) Chelsey is a MSc student in food microbiology at the University of Guelph. She received her Bachelor’s degree in microbiology, also from the University of Guelph, in February of 2017. Her work as an undergraduate student involved studying the survival of Listeria spp. introduced onto and into candy apples following ozone and peroxide treatment, in hopes of improving industry critical control plans. Chelsey’s current work involves studying the persister state of non-0157 Escherichia coli in regards to lettuce production and food safety using both traditional culturing methods and microfluidic systems. Outside of the laboratory Chelsey can often be found listening to fantasy podcasts, playing board games, baking, or partaking in a zumba class.
	Simranjit Sahni Master's Student (09/2014 ~ Current) Simranjit completed his Bachelor's of Engineering from Guru Gobind Singh Indraprastha University, India in the field of Electrical and Computer Engineering. As a graduate student, Simranjit is working on developing biosensors and instrumentation solutions for biomedical applications. In his spare time, he enjoys playing table tennis, poker, watching soccer and indulge in playing console games.
	Jack Mogus High School Project Student (10/2016 ~ Current) Jack is a grade 11 student at Garth Webb Secondary School with a passion for STEM. He has participated in science fairs since grade 7 and has competed at the national level for three years in a row. At the BioNano Lab, Jack's work involves researching and developing novel nano composite materials through investigating their properties and applying it to various new and innovative applications. Jack's current science fair project is a study on reinventing the medical glove using biotechnology and nano composites. In his spare time he enjoys doing Taekwondo, listening to music, volunteering, and advocating for First Nations rights through his own organization, Change by YOUth.
	Alan (Yi Lan) Wang NSERC URA Student (05/2017 ~ Current) Alan is a 4^th year biomedical engineering student at the University of Guelph. Yi Lan’s work at the Bionano lab involves developing portable biosensors with the intent of detecting Johne's disease in cows. In his spare time, he enjoys listening to music, playing video games, and socializing with friends.

Alumni

2012-09-06T18:59:57-04:00

Post Doctoral Fellows / Research Associate

Murugan Veerapandian

Kristina Doxsee

Mohammad Jalali

Longyan Chen

Abdulmonem Murayyan

PhD Students

Sahar Hemmati - 2015

Afsaneh Najarian - 2017

Masters Students

Ryan Berthelot - 2017 - Electrotaxis and Electrical Property Quantification of Pathogenic Bacteria Using Microfluidics and Nanoscale Imaging (Link)

Cynthia Maria Manohar - 2017 - Antioxidant and Antiproliferative Activity of Flavonoids from Ontario Grown Onions by Pressurized Low Polarity Water Technology (Link)

Simranjit Shahni - 2017

Adam Vogt 2016

Satvinder Panesar - 2016 - Ultra-Sensitive Detection of Breast Cancer Biomarkers Using Time-Resolved FRET and Quantum Dots

Nawfal Adam Mungroo - December 2015 - SERS based Point-of-care Biosensing System for Food-borne Pathogen Detection (link)

Kazi Tahsin - December 2015 - Health Monitoring and Detection of Cattle Diseases Using Wireless Biosensors in the Livestock Industry

Abu Muslim - May 2015 - Nanite Path Planning Using Genetic Algorithm and RPF Method

Harshpreet Nanda - December 2014 - Design and Development of Wireless Sensor Network for Stored Grain Quality Monitoring

Eric Birkenhauer, December 2014 - A Multifactor Analysis of Polymicrobial Wound Pathogenic Biofilms Using Conventional Assays, Nanoscale Imaging, and a Microfluidic Platform (link)

Rekha Dhayakaran, December 2014 - Investigation of the Antimicrobial Activity of Soy based Isoflavones and Peptides against Pathogenic Biofilms (link)

Matthew DiCicco - May 2013 - Assessment of Novel Antimicrobial Therapy against Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus pseudintermedius Biofilm with Conventional Assays and a Microfluidic Platform (link)

Undergraduate Students

2017 - Connor Ormsby, Jorge Olmos Cordero, Meghan Fragis, Yi Lan Wang

2016 - Michael Lissemore, Isaac Thevathasan

2016 - Robert Hunter, Parker Bondi, Amelia French, Amit Tah, Drew Anderson, Danielle Suzuki, Lane Harper, Tanush Chadha

2015 - Gautam Gaur, Gustavo Oliveira, Jan Van Niekerk

2014 - Evan Wright, Lee Preiss, Luciana Yumiko Daikuara

2013 - Wenting Zhao, Zhao Yangguanwei, Evan Wright

2012 - Jacob Terry, Shreya Nijhawan, Alexander Griffith, Mark Fletcher, Anup Suresh, Jeremy Devine, Lesley Shea

Some Group Pictures

July 4, 2016 - Canadian Society for Bioengineering 2016 Conference - World Trade Convention Centre, Halifax, Nova Scotia. L to R: Steven Panesar, Kristina Doxsee, Cynthya Manohar, Ryan Berthelot (backrow), Xuan Weng, Isaac Thevathasan (backrow), John Buozis, Michael Lissemore (backrow), Abdulmonem Murayyan & Suresh Neethirajan

June 23, 2016 - Steven Panesar - Master's Post Defense Celebration at Grad Lounge Bar

Left to Right: Suresh, Steven, Kristina, Xuan, Cynthya, Ryan & Abdul

May 5, 2015 - OMAF Food Safety Research Forum - Hanlon Convention Centre, Guelph

Left to Right: Jan van, Robert, Rekha, Xuan, Suresh, Mazin, Murugan, Nawfal

December 19, 2014 - Christmas Lunch Party - East Side Marios, Guelph

Left to Right: Nawfal, Dr. Hayward, Rekha, Xuan, Eric and Harshpreet

July 16, 2014 - Montreal - American Society for Agri-Biological Engineers and the Canadian Society for Bioengineering Joint Conference. Left to Right: Evan, Lee, Nawfal, Eric, Suresh, Rekha, Sahar