Murri Hussain

• Successfully onboarded the AMBR250 and trained scientists on use to perform optimization work on the manufacturing pDNA fermentation process.
• Worked closely with 3 major clients to discuss and deliver process development solution upstream
• Delivered optimal solutions to the team for analytical testing:

1. Better, faster throughput sequencing capabilities

2. Run and analysis of pDNA utilizing capillary gel electrophoresis

• Worked closely with quality control team to deliver solutions for pDNA analysis and testing.

• Independent, senior-level scientist building fermentation pipeline(s) for strain optimization and screening in E. coli for the production of fabs (antibodies.)
• Consulted on Y. lipolytica and S. cerevisae process developments project with external clients.
• Ran a media optimization study using shake flasks/AMBR250 to achieve ~50% improvement in protein expression for high cell density fermentation in E.coli
• Worked with vendors to demo and onboard tools establishing data analytics for fermentation at Abbott (YSI, HPLC, Offgas, real-time biomass probes.)
• Ran KLa studies to successfully establish equivalency across reactor geometry, and manufacturers.
• Worked with the strain design team to build a high-through, robust seed train process using microplates/ shake flasks and constant substrate release.
• Received hands-on training on cell culture processes for hybridoma and CHO cell lines.
• Trained part-time contractors to run fermentation.

• Assisted with purchase/build of core capabilities for Berkeley biotech start-up of six 2L BiostatB bioreactors, offline gas measurement, and analytics.
• Built out fermentation laboratory space with wet-lab space suited for molecular biology to augment fermentation efforts.
• Developed initial proposal to use continuous fermentation in fed-batch reactors for strain screening and optimization.
• Developed fermentation upstream capabilities - media formulation, testing, validation, and an initial data pipeline.
• Onboarded DSP methods for protein separation and purification with tangential flow filtration (TFF) for protein concentration, buffer-exchange, and ion-exchange chromatography for purification.
• Managed two research associates.
• Developed SOPs and CIP protocols for operating 2L, and 10L scale fermentors.

• Managed project timelines, designed fermentation run plans, developed RACI charts, guided experimental plans, conducted data analysis using JMP, and reported progress to leadership.
• Assumed technical scale-up lead position, guiding production scale-up and process improvements with external CROs. Accomplished 3x titer improvements relative to initial tech transferred process.
• Led fermentation team through challenging tech-transfer and process validation for scale down of industrial fermentation process towards equivalency at bench scale. Leveraged different teams/operations to troubleshoot complex media, studying filamentation in tanks; Accomplished initial project success scaling down 3-tank seed to main process. *Logistical COVID-19 triggered project removal off pipeline*

• Led upstream fermentation development efforts 0.5-2L Bioreactor scale, 2 processes/ 2 molecules - DARPA Living Foundries: 1000 molecule program. Achieved close to 6x titer improvements relative to plate titers in 9 months (patent published on histamine fermentation).
• Collaborated closely with fermentation scale-up team successfully generating tech-transfer documentation for 4 molecules/ 3 fermentation processes.
• Established four different feeding profiles and fermentation strategies for Yarrowia lipolytica enabling on/off switching of lipid biosynthesis.
• Managed small 3-person fermentation team to reach contractual milestones for DARPA.
• On-boarded metabolite on/off pathway, byproduct profiles for scaled molecules. Used this information to guide next round of engineering, identify bottlenecks.

• Designed metabolic pathways and led efforts to test and validate engineered strains in plates prior to tank production for histamine in yeast, Yarrowia lipolytica (patent published).
• Reached 3x improvement relative to base strain in under 6 months.
• Onboarded new tools for integrating/ expressing genes (yeast and bacteria) and utilized new tools to generate over 1000 strains through 2 rounds of engineering in Y. lipolytica.
• Coached and mentored 2 research associates with high throughput strain builds and molecular biology to accomplish greater than 70% build success rates across 2 microbe
• Acted as liaison between metabolic engineering team and DNA factory operations team to mitigate build risks and ensure timely delivery.

• Built a start-up lab and developed protocols for molecular biology techniques: qRT-PCR (one step, two step), cloning methods, protein expression, purification.
• Built vectors with secretion tags and expressed recombinant fungal ligninases and peroxidases in yeast, Yarrowia lipolytica.
• Used FPLC ion-exchange, size exclusion (SE) with AKTA system to purify proteins at small-scale.
• Published papers on genetic engineering methods (promoter development, CRIPSR in Y. lipolytica.)
• As the first graduate student in lab, primary responsibilities included augmenting efforts on advisor to build fully functioning lab, training new graduate and undergraduate students.