Experience

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  Ardra Inc

  • Sydney and Mississauga, Canada

  • Fermentation Specialist

    • Aug 2022 - Present
    • Sydney and Mississauga, Canada

    • Implemented sustainable bioprocessing strategies in bioreactor-based fermentations resulting in 2.5-foldincrease in cell density and optimized biotransformation process leading to 4-fold enhancement in leaf aldehyde titers.• Optimized downstream process for addressing challenges associated with desired product recoveryfacilitating process scale-up and commercialization of leaf-aldehyde.• Performed microbial strain characterization and culture media optimization for targeted improvementsin heme and other porphyrin titers ensuring seamless transition to 100L scale.• Conducting chemical analysis of desired product and other metabolites for product quality assurancethrough HPLC and GC-FID.• Procurement and set-up of new bioreactor equipment and ensuring maximum operational efficiencyresulting in reduced downtime.• Maintenance of various lab equipment, implementation of cGMP & cGLP standards and ensuring safework culture for team.• Reviewing and implementation of standard operating protocols (SOPs), meticulously maintain batchrecord and creation of comprehensive technical documentation.• Active contribution in experiment design, R&D plan meetings, data interpretation, routine presentationof experimental findings and ensuring constant coordination with technical team.

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  Mitacs

  • Waterloo, Ontario, Canada

  • Research Intern

    • Sep 2021 - Dec 2021
    • Waterloo, Ontario, Canada

    • Implemented bioprocessing strategies resulting in 3-fold enhancement in titers of heme and related porphyrins at lab scale leading to successful process scale-up to 5L and 30L.• Developed solid phase extraction (SPE) technique for efficient heme purification and recovery.• Performed strain engineering, plasmid preparation, shake-flask cultivation, bioreactor fermentation and chemical analysis of metabolites.

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  University of Waterloo

  • Canada
  • Higher Education
  • 700 & Above Employee

  • Graduate Research Assistant

    • Sep 2019 - Dec 2021

    Master's Thesis (Under supervision of Professor C Perry Chou)• Conducted strain engineering and bioprocessing strategies for bio-based production of high-value chemicals (Butanone, 5-ALA, and PBG) in Escherichia coli as microbial cell factory (results published in a first author research paper: https://doi.org/10.1186/s40643-021-00482-3).• Implemented heterologous gene expression with DNA plasmid transformation, gene-knockouts using P1 phage transduction, and gene knockdown using CRISPRi in Escherichia coli for enhanced product biomanufacturing through bioreactor fermentation operations.

  • Graduate Teaching Assistant

    • Sep 2020 - Aug 2021

    Organized and led laboratory sessions, oversaw experiments, ensured safety protocols are followed, and assessed the performance of undergraduate students in following laboratory courses : 1. Introduction to Nanotechnology Engineering (NE 100) • Taught intricacies of designing in SolidWorks and provided an introduction to basic electronic circuitry.2. Chemical Engineering Lab 1 (CHE 290) • Instructed students in determining the heat of combustion and heat of solution using a calorimeter. • Conducted investigations into the chemistry behind batteries, exploring the performance of lead-acid batteries, and overseeing the creation and study of hand-made coin cells.3. Material Characterization Methods (NE 226L) • Determining particle size and studying transformation of titanium dioxide from its anatase to rutile form using a powder X-Ray diffractometer.

  • Short project

    • Oct 2020 - Nov 2020

    • Prepared DNA templates using Golden-Gate assembly for construction of virus-like particles (VLPs) composed of L1 and L2 capsid proteins fused with SARS-CoV-2 antigen for use with tobacco cell lysates and Escherichia coli lysates.

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  Novozymes

  • Bengaluru, Karnataka, India

  • Research Intern

    • Jun 2019 - Aug 2019
    • Bengaluru, Karnataka, India

    • Investigated stain removal capabilities of enzymes on diverse fabrics using Tergotometer in the Household Care Division (Research & Technology) and conducted colorimetric analysis.• Conducted Automated Mechanical Stress Assay (AMSA) for determining enzyme stability and screening.

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  Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi

  • India
  • Higher Education
  • 700 & Above Employee

  • Graduate Research Assistant

    • Jun 2018 - May 2019

    Master's Thesis (Under supervision of Professor Neetu Singh)• Conceptualized and developed protocol for synthesis of novel biocompatible core-shell nanoparticles, composed of piezoelectric barium titanate and EDTA-loaded mesoporous silica, capable of performing synergistic action of bio-stimulation as well as metal chelation for cancer therapy.• Conducted physiochemical characterization of nanoparticles including size, morphology, elemental composition, dispersion stability, porosity, specific surface area, surface charge, and crystal structure (using SEM, TEM, FTIR, Raman spectroscopy, DLS, Nitrogen adsorption-desorption isotherms, X-ray powder diffraction, and EDXS techniques) and dye adsorption/release profile studies.• Performed in-vitro hemolysis assay and biocompatibility/cell viability testing with MTT assay, AlamarBlue assay and Live/Dead assay using L-929 mouse fibroblast cell line for this novel composite nanoparticle based-therapeutic system.

  • Short-term Project

    • May 2018 - Jun 2018

    Short-term project (Under supervision of Professor Anup Singh)• Engineered a MATLAB-based image processing tool designed for application in photothermal therapy in Nanomedicine.

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  Dr B R Ambedkar National Institute of Technology, Jalandhar

  • Jalandhar, Punjab, India

  • Undergraduate Project

    • Jul 2016 - May 2017
    • Jalandhar, Punjab, India

    Undergraduate Project ( Under supervision of Professor Vinod Kumar Yata)• Conducted ligand binding affinity and molecular dynamic simulation studies resulting in identification of human basic fibroblast growth factor receptor 1 as potential protein target for Eugenol in Homo sapiens and its sequence homology study with eugenol-O-methyltransferase.• Drafted manuscript for research paper.

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  Kandhari Beverages Private Limited (Coca Cola India FBO)

  • Nabipur, Punjab, India

  • Summer Intern

    • May 2016 - Jul 2016
    • Nabipur, Punjab, India

    • Oversaw the standard industrial procedures for water treatment, beverage processing and bottling and quality assessment.• Participated in in-situ commercial wastewater treatment methods.