Miranda Yap
Encyclopedia
Miranda Yap is a professor of Chemical
and Biomolecular Engineering
Department of the National University of Singapore
, and the Executive Director of the Bioprocessing Technology Institute at the Agency for Science, Technology and Research
of Singapore (A*STAR).
in chemical engineering at the University of Toronto
in 1979; she had previously received a basic degree in applied chemistry from University of Singapore, now known as the National University of Singapore
(NUS), and a Master's degree in biochemical engineering at University College London
in 1973.
research centre in Singapore. She also founded two organisations, the Centre for Natural Product Research (now called Merlion Pharmaceuticals) and the Biopharmaceutical Manufacturing Technology Center (now called A-Bio Pharma). During this career, she published 58 papers in peer-reviewed journals.
In February 2006, Yap was named a Foreign Associate to the United States National Academy of Engineering
. Her election citation noted "her outstanding achievements in education, research and management in the field of mammalian cell culture". She is the only female scientist and second Singaporean to be elected to the academy.
Since November 2006, Yap also serves as Executive Director of A*STAR Graduate Academy (A*GA) focusing on talent management and development in partnership with Imperial College London
.
She has been a lecturer in the Advanced Course in Cell Technology at the University of Minnesota
, which describes her as:
Chemical engineering
Chemical engineering is the branch of engineering that deals with physical science , and life sciences with mathematics and economics, to the process of converting raw materials or chemicals into more useful or valuable forms...
and Biomolecular Engineering
Biochemical engineering
Biochemical engineering is a branch of chemical engineering or biological engineering that mainly deals with the design and construction of unit processes that involve biological organisms or molecules, such as bioreactors...
Department of the National University of Singapore
National University of Singapore
The National University of Singapore is Singapore's oldest university. It is the largest university in the country in terms of student enrollment and curriculum offered....
, and the Executive Director of the Bioprocessing Technology Institute at the Agency for Science, Technology and Research
Agency for Science, Technology and Research
The Agency for Science, Technology and Research is a statutory board under the Ministry of Trade and Industry of Singapore...
of Singapore (A*STAR).
Education
Yap earned her PhDPHD
PHD may refer to:*Ph.D., a doctorate of philosophy*Ph.D. , a 1980s British group*PHD finger, a protein sequence*PHD Mountain Software, an outdoor clothing and equipment company*PhD Docbook renderer, an XML renderer...
in chemical engineering at the University of Toronto
University of Toronto
The University of Toronto is a public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, situated on the grounds that surround Queen's Park. It was founded by royal charter in 1827 as King's College, the first institution of higher learning in Upper Canada...
in 1979; she had previously received a basic degree in applied chemistry from University of Singapore, now known as the National University of Singapore
National University of Singapore
The National University of Singapore is Singapore's oldest university. It is the largest university in the country in terms of student enrollment and curriculum offered....
(NUS), and a Master's degree in biochemical engineering at University College London
University College London
University College London is a public research university located in London, United Kingdom and the oldest and largest constituent college of the federal University of London...
in 1973.
Career
She returned to Singapore in 1982 to join NUS. With a government grant, she helped to establish the Bioprocessing Technology Unit (BTU) in 1990, which was later renamed as Bioprocessing Technology Centre (BTC) in 1995 as a National research centre for bioprocessing technology with Yap as the Director. In 2003, the centre was renamed the Bioprocessing Technology Institute (BTI) and relocated to the new BiopolisBiopolis
Biopolis is an international research and development centre located in Singapore for biomedical sciences. It is located in One-North in Buona Vista, near Dover, and is close to the National University of Singapore, the Singapore Polytechnic, the Institute of Technical Education, the National...
research centre in Singapore. She also founded two organisations, the Centre for Natural Product Research (now called Merlion Pharmaceuticals) and the Biopharmaceutical Manufacturing Technology Center (now called A-Bio Pharma). During this career, she published 58 papers in peer-reviewed journals.
In February 2006, Yap was named a Foreign Associate to the United States National Academy of Engineering
National Academy of Engineering
The National Academy of Engineering is a government-created non-profit institution in the United States, that was founded in 1964 under the same congressional act that led to the founding of the National Academy of Sciences...
. Her election citation noted "her outstanding achievements in education, research and management in the field of mammalian cell culture". She is the only female scientist and second Singaporean to be elected to the academy.
Since November 2006, Yap also serves as Executive Director of A*STAR Graduate Academy (A*GA) focusing on talent management and development in partnership with Imperial College London
Imperial College London
Imperial College London is a public research university located in London, United Kingdom, specialising in science, engineering, business and medicine...
.
She has been a lecturer in the Advanced Course in Cell Technology at the University of Minnesota
University of Minnesota
The University of Minnesota, Twin Cities is a public research university located in Minneapolis and St. Paul, Minnesota, United States. It is the oldest and largest part of the University of Minnesota system and has the fourth-largest main campus student body in the United States, with 52,557...
, which describes her as:
Prof Miranda Yap is the founding Director of BTI, which is the pivotal institution in advancing Singapore’s bioprocessing research and plays a critical role in Singapore’s success in the expansion of biomanufacturing industry. She has been instrumental in nurturing BTI’s growth; transforming it from its nascent days as the Bioprocessing Technology Unit in National University of Singapore to a renowned international institution today. She has trained numerous PhD and master students in many areas of biotechnology. In cell culture technology her work has spanned from early work on cellular physiology to recent transcriptome and proteome analysis for cell engineering.