Background and activities

 

 

MISSION:

Our mission is to control the microworld. 

Combining biotechnology and control theory, we explore feedback control of microorganisms, particularly of bacteria. Our vision is to gain control over microbiological processes and to harness the power of microorganisms for research and industrial purposes.     

Awards:

1. Coordinator of iFermenter, a bio-based EU H2020 BBI-JU project, 5.6 mill Euro, 2018-2022.

2. Coordinator of SafeFood, an EU project of 6 countries and 8 groups (about 2.5 mill euro, 2016-2019). 

  • The main aim of the project is to turn food products (ready-to-eat products based on meat, fish and vegetables) safer and more durable, by reducing or inhibit the ability of Listeria monocytogenes to recover from high pressure processing (HPP). This can extend the shelf-life of food, increasing its resistance to food-related bacteria (by rendering the food “non-hospitable” for this type of bacteria) and decrease the amount of food waste from processing and throughout the food chain. Cutting edge biotechnological methods will be applied in this project.

Go to the project website

3. Leader in ERA SysMed-COPD project, 5.1 mill NOK (2018-2021), Here we use machine learning to improve diagnosis and prognosis for COPD.

4. Head of BioSystems feedback control real-time fermentation laboratory. 

RESEARCH AREA:

  • Feedback control of bacteria (e.g. L. monocytogenes, C. glutamicum)
  • Transcription and translation regulation - modelling, analysis and control
  • Sensory motor control in animals (neuroscience)
  • Bioinformatics tools: Gene network discovery  (advance analysis tools)
  • cellular regulation and signaling (modelling)

Current PhD students:

  • Bahareh Nikvarpar
  • Pedro Lira 
  • Andrea Tuveri
  • Fabienne Roessler
  • Haakon Holck

Graduated students: (PhD level)

  • Naresh D. Jayavelu, PhD 
  • Jørgen Skancke, PhD

 Graduated Students (M.Sc level)

  • 12 students