PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR
Koji Sode, Ph.D
Professor of Biomedical Engineering
William R. Kenan Jr. Distinguished Professor
Email: ksode@email.unc.edu
Dr. Sode is a Distinguished Professor in the UNC/NCSU joint Department of Biomedical Engineering. He also serves as the Adjunct Professor at the Institute of Global Innovation Research, and at the Department of Biotechnology and Life Science, Tokyo University of Agriculture and Technology, Japan. Dr. Sode is a Fellow of the National Academy of Inventors and the American Institute for Medical and Biological Engineering (AIMBE).
He holds more than 40 issued US patents (and over 100 foreign patents) that are licensed, co-assigned, or assigned to companies which include suppliers of blood glucose monitoring products in the world. He is the founder of the Ultizyme International Ltd. (2003). He has published over 320 peer reviewed research articles and serves as Editor for Biosensors and Bioelectronics and as Congress Committee of The World Congress of Biosensors. His current research interests are 1) Biomolecular engineering toward the application for biodevice development and novel bioprocess design, 2) Biodevice development including biosensors, 3) Synthetic biology to creating novel biocatalyst/microorganisms to realize novel biosensing and bioprocesses.
The strategic research concept of Dr.Sode' s research lab is to discover, design, and create novel molecules based on biomolecular engineering and novel bioprocesses based on synthetic biology approaches to develop innovative biosensing technologies dedicated to healthcare management. Representative achievements in the lab are the biomolecular engineering of enzymes for glucose monitoring for both 2nd generation and 3rd generation electrochemical biosensing systems. Currently, Sode's lab is focused on the development of 1. Novel in situ, real-time, multi-parameters biosensing systems, 2. Innovative POCT sensing systems for biomarker detection, 3. Novel biosensing systems for mental health care and for diabetes care, and ultimately 4. Autonomous biosensing actuators realizing smart drug delivery systems. These research topics are all based on the original and unique concept to create biomolecules dedicated solely for the creation of biomedical devices that improve the quality of life and of human health.
Lab staff
POSTDOC RESEARCH ASSOCIATE
Mika Hatada, Ph.D
Email: mikah@email.unc.edu
Current research
Biosensor, Protein engineering
I love Fishing!
POSTDOC RESEARCH ASSOCIATE
Madoka Nagata, Ph.D
Email: mnagata@email.unc.edu
Current research
I am aiming to develop continuous monitoring of therapeutic monoclonal antibody using aptamer, which is a single strand DNA and can bind to target molecule specifically.
Lab member
GRADUATE STUDENT
Ellie Wilson
Current research
Enzyme engineering, biosensors
GRADUATE STUDENT
Joe Kerrigan
Current research
Protein engineering, biosensors
GRADUATE STUDENT
Bryant Kane
Current research
Enzyme engineering, biosensors
GRADUATE STUDENT
Thy Le
Current research
Enzyme engineering, biosensors
GRADUATE STUDENT
Mukund Khanwalker
Current research
Enzyme engineering, biosensors
GRADUATE STUDENT
David Probst
Current research
Biosensors
UNDERGRAUATE
Truc Tran
Current research
Enzyme engineering, biosensors
GRADUATE STUDENT
Kartheek Batchu
Current research
Enzyme engineering, biosensors
Undergraduate
UNDERGRADUATE
Allie Boyer
UNDERGRAUATE
Madelyn Andrew
UNDERGRADUATE
Luke Shehee
UNDERGRADUATE
Varun Kochar
UNDERGRADUATE
Corrine Drabenstott
UNDERGRAUATE
Aimee Pack
UNDERGRADUATE
Elijah Walton
UNDERGRAUATE
Varsha Venkatapathy
Visiting scholars
Alumni
Mentored Postdoctoral Associates
• Dr. Noya Andrea Maren Loew (January 2018 – December 2020)
• Dr. Jinhee Lee (April 2018 – June 2021)
• Dr. Junko Okuda-Shimazaki (September 2018 – August 2022)
• Dr. Inyoung Lee (2021 Apr. – 2022 June)
Mentored International Research Specialists (visiting research scholar with J1 status)
• Dr. Inyoung Lee; Republic of Korea (2018 – 2021Mar.; visiting graduate research scholar 2018 – 2020, Post doctoral research specialist 2020 – 2021.Mar.)
• Takumi Yanase; Japan (2018 – 2019 visiting graduate research scholar)
• Hayato Kimura; Japan (2018 – 2019 visiting graduate research scholar)
• Shouhei Takamatsu; Japan (2018 – 2019 visiting graduate research scholar)
• Mika Hatada; Japan (2018 – 2019 visiting graduate research scholar)
• Sanghoon Kim: Republic of Korea (2018 – 2019 visiting graduate research scholar)
• Dr, Takenori Satomura; Japan (2019 Post doctoral research specialist)
• Madoka Nagata; Japan (2019 – 2020 visiting graduate research scholar)
• Yuma Hayato; Japan (2019 – 2020 visiting graduate research scholar)
• Dr. Mika Hatada; Japan (2020 – 2022; Post doctoral research specialist)
• Madoka Nagata; Japan (2020 – present; research specialist)
• Takumi Yanase; Japan (2021-2022; visiting graduate research scholar)
• Dr. Moon Il Kim; South Korea (2022-2023; visiting researcher)
• Mai Hamasaki (2022- 2023; visiting graduate research scholar)
• Miho Oda (2022- 2023; visiting graduate research scholar)
• Misae Nazuka (2022- 2023; visiting graduate research scholar)
• Saman Taufiq (2022- 2023; visiting graduate research scholar)
Mentored Undergraduate students (research assistant)
• Matthew Lothspeich, BME 2018
• Jamison Austin Hauser, BME 2018 - 2019
• Kartheek Batchu, BME 2018 – 2021 (BME 495 Undergraduate Research in BME as a Specialty Elective, BME 691 Senior Honors Thesis in Biomedical Engineering), 2021 – 2022 Graduate Technical Assistant (BME Master program student), (2022 - current; Technical Assistant)
• Stephan Henly, BME 2018 – 2020 (Lucas Scholar Awardee)
• Pradham Venkata Tanikella, BME 2018 - 2020
• Joe Adam Jr Kerrigan, Chemistry 2018 – 2020 (Chem 395)
• Anthony Michael Schinelli, Chemistry 2019 – 2020 (Chem 395)
• Thy Le, Chemistry 2019 – 2021 (Chem 395)
• Truc Thanh Tran, BME 2019 – 2021 (Lucas Scholar Awardee)
• Suruya Shanmugam, BME 2019 - 2020
• Elias Joseph Stephanoporous, BME 2019 – 2020 (BME 495 Undergraduate Research in BME as a Specialty Elective)
• Napoleon Pham Nguyen, BME 2020 – 2021 (Abrams Scholar Awardee)
• Maddie Katherine Smith, BME 2020- 2020
• Thien Anh Nguyen, BME 2020 – 2021 (BME 295 Research in Biomedical Engineering)
• Nathan Lopus, BME 2022 – 2022
• Michael Cotton, BME 2022 – 2022