Team
Dr Brendan J. Battersby, PhD
Project Co-Lead (Mito)
Brendan is the Project Co-Lead and scientific co-inventor, with 25+ years’ expertise in researching mitochondrial biology and the connection to human pathologies (the MITO node of our technology). Brendan trained in Human Genetics at McGill University (Canada). At the University of Helsinki (Finland), Brendan is a Research Director and is passionate about developing a molecular understanding of biological processes and using these insights to develop new technology, tools and therapeutics.
Dr Sarah O'Keefe, PhD
Project Co-Lead (ER)
Sarah is the Project Co-Lead and scientific co-inventor, with 9+ years’ expertise in understanding how cellular proteins are made at the endoplasmic reticulum (the ER node of our technology). Prior to MITOGUARDER, she was a Medicinal Chemist in Drug Discovery at Evotec (UK), trained in Biochemistry at the University of Manchester (UK) and in Chemical and Structural Biology at the University of Helsinki (Finland). Sarah is passionate about developing new and enhanced tools for both academic research and drug development.
Dr Tania Vane-Tempest, PhD
Principal Scientist
Tania is MITOGUARDER’s Principal Scientist, leading the scientific development of our innovative technology for enhanced protein production. She has 17+ years’ experience in molecular, cell and virus biology research acquired from her time at the University of Mauritius (Mauritius), Laboratoire Médical des Villes Soeurs (Mauritius), Université Libre de Bruxelles (Belgium) and the University of Helsinki (Finland). Tania now combines her diverse skillset and desire for scientific excellence to drive MITOGUARDER’s research and development.
Laura Juhola, MSc (Econ)
Commercial Lead
Laura is a senior marketing, branding, and business development expert with 15+ years of B2B & B2C experience e.g. in the FMCG, Fintech and Retail industries. Formally educated at the London School of Economics and Political Science (UK), Shanghai University of Finance and Economics (China), Universidad Carlos III Madrid (Spain) and the University of Vaasa (Finland), Laura leverages her extensive corporate experience in modern marketing and her creative, entrepreneurial mindset to drive the commercialisation of MITOGUARDER technology.
Dr Kah Ying Ng, PhD
Senior R&D Scientist
Kah Ying is advancing our R&D efforts as MITOGUARDER's Senior R&D Scientist. She has 20+ years’ expertise in molecular, cell and virus biology research at the Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR) (Singapore), National Centre for Infectious Diseases (Singapore) and the University of Helsinki (Finland). Kah Ying's primary research focus has been on mitochondrial biology and the connection to human pathologies (the MITO node of our technology).