NIAN Rui received a B.S. in Chemical Engineering and Technology from Tianjin University in 2003, and a PhD in Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering from National University of Singapore in 2008. He joined Sartorius Korea Biotech, South Korea as a senior researcher thereafter. In 2010, he spent the first half of year as a postdoctoral fellow in Temasek Life Sciences Laboratory (Singapore) and then joined A-Bio Pharma as a lead scientist. In that role, he mainly took charge of the downstream process development of various biosimilars in both lab and pilot scale. After two years, he joined Bioprocessing Technology Institute (BTI, A*STAR, Singapore) and worked as a research scientist in downstream processing group, where his research focused on the development of next generation bioseparation technology. This represented a network of novel fractionation technologies designed to overcome the economic, performance and productivity limitations of current manufacturing technology for the purification of recombinant proteins and vaccines. In 2015, he joined Qingdao Institute of Bioenergy and Bioprocess Technology (QIBEBT), Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS). He is currently a professor and the leader of Biological Protein Materials Group. The knowledge and experiences gained from working in both academia and private industry have provided him with a broad background and a unique perspective on research and development as well as in cutting-edge science. He has published so far over a dozen of peer-reviewed papers on internationally recognized journals such as Journal of Chromatography A, Chemical Engineering Science and Biotechnology Progress, and he was also invited to give lectures in many international conferences both in China and abroad.
Research Areas
1) Genetic engineering to produce functional proteins in bacterial, fungal, and mammalian cells
2) Production of a variety of diverse and complex proteins and peptides
3) High-value products for specific applications in pharmaceutical, military, aerospace and automotive industries
Education
08/2003 - 08/2008 National University of Singapore, Singapore
PhD, Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering
09/1999 - 07/2003 Tianjin University, Tianjin, China
Bachelor, Chemical Engineering and Technology
Experience
Work Experience
Professor, Qingdao Institute of Bioenergy and Bioprocess Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences (09/2015 - present)
- Led biological protein materials group. In this group, genetic engineering makes it possible to produce functional proteins in bacterial, fungal, and mammalian cells. A variety of diverse and complex proteins and peptides are produced and these very high-value products can be used for specific applications in pharmaceutical, military, aerospace and automotive industries.
Research Scientist, Downstream Processing, Bioprocessing Technology Institute, Singapore（06/2012 - 09/2015）
- Managed research projects about development of novel technology for monoclonal antibody purification which support major reduction in cost, combined with major improvement in quality.
- Key member of CrysBio Pte Ltd (one of the key technology developers for this A*STAR Spin-Off Company)
- In charge of the cooperation with GE, Pall and Sartorius.
Lead Scientist, A-Bio Pharma Pte Ltd, Singapore（07/2010 - 05/2012）
- Led the development of purification processes for therapeutic monoclonal antibodies (mAbs).
- Led pilot-scale purification (from up to 200 L cell harvest).
- Conducted trouble-free technology transfer from R&D site in Singapore to the commercial production site in China, ensuring the streamlined technology transfer and successful scale-up in production site.
- Inspected and audited laboratory protocols, data, reports, procedures, facilities, equipment records, training records, documentation practices, and safety practices to assure compliance with current GLP regulations, applicable SOPs, and other requests.
- Performed training of new personnel and trainee.
Postdoctoral Fellow, Temasek Life Sciences Laboratories (TLL), Singapore（01/2010 - 07/2010）
- Managed a research project about the expression and purification of a vaccine for fish using yeast expression system.
- Managed a research project about bioethanol production via enzymatic hydrolysis of plant materials (sugar biomass).
Senior Researcher, Sartorius Korea Biotech Co Ltd, South Korea（08/2008 - 12/2009）
- Managed a collaborative research project (with Sungkyunkwan University, Suwon, S. Korea) to develop efficient purification and refolding strategy applicable to large-scale protein production.
- Supervised several graduate and undergraduate students in research project to screen peptides with specific affinity towards different substrates.
Conferences
Nian R, Gagnon P. The Hidden life of Protein A. IBC's 7th Annual BioProcess International Conference & Exhibition, Aug. 12-13, 2015 Shanghai, China.
Nian R, Gan HT, Zhang W, Gagnon P. Improvements in process economy with non-column purification. Adbances in Purification Technologies CHI’s 6th Annual The Bioprocessing Summit, Aug. 21-22, 2014, Boston, MA.
Nian R, Lee J, Gan HT, Gagnon P. New purification technology for purification of lower-cost higher-quality biosimilar antibodies. IBC's 5th Annual BioProcess International Conference & Exhibition, Aug. 20-21, 2013 Shanghai, China.
Nian R, Lee J, Gan HT, Gagnon P. Emerging downstream processing technology for improving recovery, purity, and safety of therapeutic antibodies. May 15-16, 2013 Pathogen Clean Asia Summit, Shanghai, China.
Nian R, Lee J, Gan HT, Gagnon P. Advancing biosimilar production with improved technology for antibody purification. Mar. 19-21, 2013 Biologic Manufacturing World Asia Conference, BioPharma Asia, Singapore.