CityU receives Grand Challenges Explorations grant for groundbreaking research in global health and development

Description

Dr. Carol Lin Sze-ki, Associate Professor in the School of Energy and Environment (SEE) at City University of Hong Kong (CityU) has been awarded US$100,000 by Grand Challenges Explorations (GCE), an initiative of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, for a novel way to cultivate 10 distinct probiotic bacteria simultaneously.

Dr. Lin, an expert on microbial fermentation and bioprocessing, will lead the project in collaboration with Dr Srinivas Mettu from the Department of Chemical Engineering at The University of Melbourne, with expertise in soft surfaces and hydrogels. The grant will be used to develop a specially designed bioreactor that can accommodate a huge variation in the microbial environment. Mimicking the human gut, the microbial environment enables the growth of multiple strains of probiotic bacteria. The bioreactor can help to manufacture low-cost gut microbial biotherapeutics with a target cost of USD$0.1 per dose consisting of 1 billion bacteria.

GCE supports innovative thinkers worldwide to explore ideas that can break the mold in how we solve persistent global health and development challenges. Dr Lin and Dr Mettu’s bold idea is one of 56 GCE Round 22 grants announced by the foundation from approximately 1,700 proposals submitted in the round (i.e. an overall successful rate of 3.3%).