Dr Raman Vaidyanathan

Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering

Senior Lecturer in Chemical Engineering

Course Director MSc (Eng) Biological and Bioprocess Engineering

Course Director MSc (Eng) Biochemical Engineering with Industrial Management

Dr Raman Vaidyanathan
Profile picture of Dr Raman Vaidyanathan
s.vaidyanathan@sheffield.ac.uk
+44 114 222 7526

Full contact details

Dr Raman Vaidyanathan
Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering
Room G60
Sir Robert Hadfield Building
Mappin Street
Sheffield
S1 3JD
Profile

I joined the Department as a lecturer in 2007. I'm a chemical graduate with a Masters degree in Biotechnology (both from India) and completed my PhD in 2001 from the University of Strathclyde in Glasgow, where I investigated the application of near infrared spectroscopy to monitor industrially relevant bioprocesses involving filamentous microorganisms. This was work done in collaboration with Eli Lilly.

I have over five years of pre-doctoral industrial experience applying biotechnological solutions to environmental engineering problems.

Before joining Sheffield I was a research associate at the University of Manchester, where I investigated a) the application of secondary ion mass spectrometry with buckminsterfullerene (C60) cluster ions as primary ion sources to characterize biological surfaces, and b) laser desorption ionization mass spectrometry for metabolomic applications.

I also spent my post-doctoral years investigating the application of soft ionization mass spectrometry to characterize biological systems, at Aberystwyth in Wales.

Research interests

Algae Biotechnology
Systems and synthetic biology
Bioprocess Engineering
Bioenergy
Bioinformatics and use of machine learning
Metabolomics and Proteomics
Mass spectrometric imaging

Publications

Books

  • Vaidyanathan S, Harrigan GG & Goodacre R (2005) Metabolome Analyses:. Springer. RIS download Bibtex download

Journal articles

Chapters

  • Padmaperuma G, Butler T, Shuhaili FAB, Almalki WJ & Vaidyanathan S (2020) Microbial Consortia: Concept and Application in Fruit Crop Management In Srivastava AK & Hu C (Ed.), Fruit Crops Diagnosis and Management of Nutrient Constraints (pp. 353-366). Elsevier View this article in WRRO RIS download Bibtex download
  • Padmaperuma G, Butler TO, Shuhaili FABA, Almalki WJ & Vaidyanathan S (2020) Microbial consortia: Concept and application in fruit crop management, Fruit Crops (pp. 353-366). Elsevier RIS download Bibtex download
  • Vaidyanathan S & Goodacre R (2005) Understanding the behaviour of pathogenic cells: proteome and metabolome analyses. In Griffiths M (Ed.), Understanding Pathogen Behaviour (pp. 3-52). CRC Press RIS download Bibtex download
  • Vaidyanathan S & Goodacre R (2003) Proteome and metabolome analyses for food authentication In Lees M (Ed.), Food authenticity and traceability [electronic resource] (pp. 71-100). Woodhead Publishing RIS download Bibtex download
  • Vaidyanathan S & Goodacre R (2003) Metabolome and Proteome Profiling for Microbial Characterization, Metabolic Profiling: Its Role in Biomarker Discovery and Gene Function Analysis (pp. 9-38). Springer US RIS download Bibtex download
  • Vaidyanathan S & Goodacre R (2003) Metabolome and proteome profiling for microbial characterization: Mass spectrometric applications. In Harrigan GG & Goodacre R (Ed.), Metabolic Profiling (pp. 9-38). Springer RIS download Bibtex download
  • Marmiroli N, Peano C, Maestri E, Lenstra JA, Märtlbauer E, Vaidyanathan S, Goodacre R, Benson I, Le Gall G, Colquhoun IJ , Kelly SD et al (2003) Contributor contact details, Food Authenticity and Traceability (pp. xiii-xvii). Elsevier RIS download Bibtex download
  • Vaidyanathan S & Goodacre R (2003) Proteome and metabolome analyses for food authentication, Food Authenticity and Traceability (pp. 71-100). RIS download Bibtex download

Conference proceedings papers

  • Vaidyanathan S, Salim M, Hurley C & Pugh J (2013) Vapour-mediated ion activation for enhanced SIMS imaging. SURFACE AND INTERFACE ANALYSIS, Vol. 45(1) (pp 290-293) RIS download Bibtex download
  • Vaidyanathan S (2013) Cellular metabolic profiling using ToF-SIMS. SURFACE AND INTERFACE ANALYSIS, Vol. 45(1) (pp 255-259) RIS download Bibtex download
  • Vaidyanathan S (2009) ANYL 380-Matrix effects in biomolecular imaging using ToF-SIMS. ABSTR PAP AM CHEM S, Vol. 238 RIS download Bibtex download
  • Vaidyanathan S & Longworth J (2009) BIOT 402-Seeking the message in the medium: Metabolic footprints of microalgal cultivations for bioenergy. ABSTR PAP AM CHEM S, Vol. 238 RIS download Bibtex download
  • Fletcher JS, Henderson A, Biddulph GX, Vaidyanathan S, Lockyer NP & Vickerman JC (2008) Uncovering new challenges in bio-analysis with ToF-SIMS. APPLIED SURFACE SCIENCE, Vol. 255(4) (pp 1264-1270) RIS download Bibtex download
  • Vaidyanathan S, Fletcher JS, Lockyer NP & Vickerman JC (2008) TOF-SIMS investigation of Streptomyces coelicolor, a mycelial bacterium. APPLIED SURFACE SCIENCE, Vol. 255(4) (pp 922-925) RIS download Bibtex download
  • Vaidyanathan S, Fletcher JS, Henderson A, Lockyer NP & Vickerman JC (2008) Exploratory analysis of TOF-SIMS data from biological surfaces. APPL SURF SCI, Vol. 255(4) (pp 1599-1602) RIS download Bibtex download
  • Vaidyanathan S, Lopez-Diez C & Goodacre R (2007) Proteome and metabolome analyses for rapid authentication of food.. Rapid Methods Europe 2005 (pp 29-48). Noordwijk aan Zee, the Netherlands, 24 May 2005 - 25 May 2005. RIS download Bibtex download
  • Vaidyanathan S, Kell DB & Goodacre R (2005) Electrospray-ionization mass spectrometry of protein mixtures: Influence of instrumental settings and proteomic implications.. ABSTRACTS OF PAPERS OF THE AMERICAN CHEMICAL SOCIETY, Vol. 229 (pp U185-U185) RIS download Bibtex download
  • Vaidyanathan S, Jones D, Jenkins T, Kell DB & Goodacre R (2005) Metabolomic investigations using laser desorption ionisation mass spectrometry on porous silicon. ABSTRACTS OF PAPERS OF THE AMERICAN CHEMICAL SOCIETY, Vol. 229 (pp U245-U245) RIS download Bibtex download
  • Vaidyanathan S & Goodacre R (2003) Metabolite and protein profiling of whole cells using soft-ionization mass spectrometry for rapid microbial characterization.. ABSTRACTS OF PAPERS OF THE AMERICAN CHEMICAL SOCIETY, Vol. 225 (pp U199-U199) RIS download Bibtex download
  • Vaidyanathan S, Kell DB & Goodacre R (2002) Rapid, high-throughput microbial characterization by metabolite and protein profiling of whole cells using soft-ionization mass spectrometry.. ABSTRACTS OF PAPERS OF THE AMERICAN CHEMICAL SOCIETY, Vol. 224 (pp U199-U199) RIS download Bibtex download
  • Vaidyanathan S, Macaloney G & McNeil B (2000) Measurement of mycelial biomass in a submerged bioprocess using near infrared spectroscopy.. NIRS-’99 - Proceedings of the 9th International conference on Near-infrared spectroscopy (pp 429-433). Chichester, UK RIS download Bibtex download

Preprints

Research group

Our current research focus is in developing and establishing microalgae-based value chains and processes that can be carbon negative and offer environmentally sustainable solutions with wider impact in the chemicals, materials, energy, food and health sectors. We are working with a diverse group of microalgae, including Chalmydomonas sp., Chlorella sp., Dunaliella salina, Scenedesmus sp., Phaeodactylum tricornutum, Nannochloropsis oceanica, Porphyridium purpureum, etc. The investigations include molecular level understanding and identification of relevant metabolic pathways, metabolic modelling, systems level characterisations, chemical and biochemical process engineering, techno-economic assessments, resource utilisation towards a circular bio-economy. We have been funded by UKRI BBSRC and EPSRC o develop an understanding of lipid accumulation in microalgae towards sustainable biofuels production, and by EU H2020, through an MSCFA to study nutrient uptake by microalgae.

We have identified key delineating features suitable for lipid accumulation in marine microalgae that would help in selecting appropriate strains and process conditions suitable for oil production in microalgae [1]. We have studied nutrient uptake in the context of lipid accumulation in P. tricornutum and N. oceanica [2], as well as in N. salina and D. salina [3] and have reported on the differences in the capacity between species to respond to the supply of nitrogen and exposure to high intensity light towards increased lipid accumulation. We have reported on cryopreservation of Chlorella to preserve its lipid accumulating capacity [4]. We are working towards a better understanding of carbon uptake by microalgae [5] to enable appropriate interventions for carbon capture and utilisation. Methods to characterise dissolved inorganic carbon [6], intracellular biochemical compositions [7,8], proteomic and metabolomic data acquisition in microalgae [9,10,11,12] have been established. We are developing strategies for microalgae based microbial co-culture systems for better bioproduct formations [13, 14]. Accumulation of the health-promoting polyunsaturated fatty acids, such as EPA, in the diatom, P. tricornutum have been characterised in pilot-scale outdoor PBRs, as a part of BBSRC funded research (PHYCBIV-28), as well as cell lysis for extraction of products from microalgae (PHYCBIV-13). The development of a biorefinery concept with microalgal cultivations to sustainably sequester CO 2 and produce economically viable processes is being explored with the diatom P. tricornutum [15, 16]. These include downstream processing considerations [17, 18].

We wish to build on these findings and develop relevant microalgae-based value chains and materials to enable sustainable interventions in diverse sectors, including renewable energy generation [19, 20], agriculture [21], aquaculture practice, food production, nutrition, health, bulk and fine chemical manufacture. These interventions are aimed at developing environmentally inclusive, economically impacting routes to future food security, chemical manufacturing, health and energy generation. We have wider expertise in microbial characterisations, omic analyses, mass spectrometric imaging, bioinformatics, bioprocess monitoring and microbial process engineering.

Grants

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0003267012003601?via%3Dihub

Teaching activities
  • CPE403/6030 - Environment: Gaseous Emissions
  • CPE401 - Research Project (MEng)
  • CPE6009 – Bio-energy
  • CPE6016 – Bioanalytical Techniques (MSc BBE)