Team – EmBioSys Lab

Principal Investigator

Siddharth Deshpande, PhD

Associate Professor

(siddharth.deshpande(at)wur.nl)

Pune – Bremen – Basel – Delft – Wageningen

I am an interdisciplinary scientist fascinated by living systems and curious to understand how biomolecules self-organize to form functional modules necessary for life. My interests lie in biological soft matter, self-organization, bioengineering, and on-chip microfluidics. I thoroughly enjoy interacting with students, the process of designing experiments, and the thrill of unexpected discoveries.

After obtaining my bachelor’s degree in microbiology from University of Pune, India, I moved to Germany for a master’s degree in biochemistry and molecular biology from University of Bremen. Eventually, I obtained my PhD in biophysics from University of Basel, Switzerland. A postdoctoral position in the lab of Cees Dekker at Delft University of Technology marked my long-term transition to the Netherlands. Since 2019, I am a group leader at Wageningen University. The broad vision of my lab is to tackle exciting biological questions through bottom-up/biomimetic systems and create soft matter-based materials with biotechnological potential.

Core members

Xuefeng Shen, M. Tech

PhD student (co-supervised with Jasper van der Gucht)

Lianyungang – Zhenjiang – Jinju – Changzhou – Wageningen

I am a multidisciplinary researcher and curious to explore the mysteries and potentials of natural world. My research interests focus on fluid dynamics, soft matter physics and rheology. In addition to my previous experience in multiphase fluid dynamics of complex fluids, I will try to fill the knowledge gap of coalescence mechanisms of Pickering emulsion droplets by using cutting-edge techniques like microfluidics, optical tweezing and confocal microscopy.

Udit Ghosh, Integrated BS-MS

PhD student (part of the MSCA doctoral network SIGSYNCELL)

Guwahati – Kolkata – Barcelona – Wageningen

Understanding how cells compartmentalize at the subcellular level to facilitate biochemical reactions has long been my interest. With experience in molecular and cell biology, synthetic biology, and microscopy, I aim to address intracellular communication through designer membraneless organelles within cell-like assemblies. The idea is to generate multiple, functional, condensate-basesd compartments within synthetic cells to drive independent enzymatic reactions. The bigger picture could potentially further our understanding of the dynamic yet specific nature of sub-compartments in natural cells.

Alireza Kheradvar Kolour, MSc

PhD student (co-supervised with Guillermo Amador)

Kolour – Fardis – Rezvanshahr – Tehran – Wageningen

At EmBioSys Lab, my research builds on investigating the role of lipids in gecko and insect adhesion. This project aligns with my interest in researching macromolecules, polymers, and biomaterials for practical applications. Geckos and insects are particularly attractive for studying adhesion. Their ability to attach and detach provides valuable insights into the design of environmentally friendly, reusable adhesives that operate on a variety of surfaces and conditions. Understanding these strategies could lead to advances in fields ranging from biomedical and agricultural devices to robotics and microfabrications.

Amanuj Jaman Middya, MSc

PhD student

Bankura – Kolkata – Wageningen

My research interests lie in liquid crystal–based soft matter systems, with a particular focus on biosensing and interfacial phenomena. I have prior experience working with Pickering-stabilized liquid crystal emulsions for analyte sensing. At EmBioSys Lab, my research will focus on developing cholesteric liquid crystal–based lab-on-chip sensing platforms for advanced biosensing applications. We aim to fabricate cholesteric liquid crystal droplets within microfluidic architectures to achieve real-time and visual detection of amphiphilic biomolecules. By integrating microfluidics, microscopy, and spectroscopy, I seek to understand and exploit interfacial biochemical interactions and translate them into robust, reproducible sensing signals.

Maximilian Angermann, MSc

PhD student (co-supervised with Costas Nikiforidis and Simone Ruggeri)

Dresden – Zagreb – Potsdam – Wageningen

I am an interdisciplinary researcher with a background in biotechnology and bio-based material science. My research focuses on understanding structure-property relationships in biological and biobased materials and applying this knowledge to the sustainable design of novel bio-inspired materials. At the EmBioSys Lab, my work will focus on advancing our understanding of the structure-function relationship of the milk fat globule, a complex emulsion structure in milk. Using state-of-the-art techniques including confocal microscopy, AFM nanoscale imaging and infrared nanospectroscopy, and microfluidics, I will reverse-engineer the milk fat globule’s intricate trilayer membrane using plant-based components.

Emilie Alaux, PhD

postdoc (part of the Biodiscovery platform – UNLOCK)

Montpellier – Tolouse – Wageningen

I am a French agricultural engineer who first jumped between bioprocesses involving microalgae, cyanobacteria and bacteria, before completing a PhD in microbial engineering combining fermentation and microbial ecology techniques. After a first postdoc studying microbial interactions in anaerobic systems, I will now develop an optics and microfluidics-based single-cell platform, including a Raman spectroscopy system. I am very much looking forward to contributing to microbiome research through this project within the Biodiscovery platform in UNLOCK.