Dr Manlio Tassieri
- Reader (Biomedical Engineering)
email:
Manlio.Tassieri@glasgow.ac.uk
R468, School of Engineering, Advanced Research Centre, Glasgow, G11 6EW
https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6807-0385Biography
Manlio Tassieri is a Reader within the Division of Biomedical Engineering at The University of Glasgow.
He is a Council Member of The British Society of Rheology, a Member of the Institute of Physics, an Associate Member of the Institute of Non-Newtonian Fluid Mechanics, a Delegate of the Individual Members on the European Society of Rheology Committee, an Ordinary Member of The IoP-Polymer Physics Group, an Ordinary Member of The IoP-Liquids and Complex Fluids Group, an EPSRC Peer Review Full College Member, and an Editorial Board Member of Scientific Reports & International Journal of Molecular Sciences.
He graduated as a Chemical Engineer from the Department of Chemical Engineering, The University of Naples “Federico II” in 2000. During his final‐year project, he developed two novel rheo-optical methods for determining interfacial tension in disperse polymer blends. After graduating, he continued collaborating with researchers in Naples on a pioneering study of the shear induced clustering of gelling droplets in aqueous biphasic mixtures. This topic is of particular interest, for instance, to the food processing industry.
Later, in 2000, he moved to a consultant designer post at TECNOSISTEM S.p.A. Whilst there, his main undertaking was to design ventilation and fireproof systems for underground railways. This involved contributions to the design of the Turin underground railway project associated with the 2006 Winter Olympic Games.
In 2003 he decided to follow his aspiration to become an academic researcher. To do this, he embarked on research in the field of Microrheology of semi-flexible bio-polymers at the School of Physics & Astronomy of The University of Leeds, from where he graduated with a PhD in 2007.
Following his PhD, he held a postdoctoral research position in the Polymer Science and Technology IRC at The University of Leeds, collaborating in the Microscale Polymer Processing project.
In 2008 he moved to the Division of Biomedical Engineering at The University of Glasgow to take up a Research Assistant post studying the use of optical tweezers to measure properties of biological cells.
In 2010 he was awarded a Royal Academy of Engineering Research Fellowship to combine Microrheological techniques with Microfluidic devices. The aim of this Fellowship was to deliver new sensitive tools that measure conformational changes of biological systems at nano‐ and micro‐length scales, occurring as a consequence of pathological phenomena and/or variations in the surrounding solutions (e.g. due to drug stimulation or osmotic changes).
In April 2013, he has been elected council member of The British Society of Rheology.
In July 2016, he has been elected Associate Member of the Institute of Non-Newtonian Fluid Mechanics.
In September 2016, he has been invited to become a member of the EPSRC Peer Review Associate College.
In January 2017, he has become a member of the Institute of Physics.
In February 2017, he has been invited to become an Editorial Board Member for Scientific Reports, a journal published by Springer Nature.
In September 2017, he has been elected Ordinary Member of the Polymer Physics Group Committee at the Institute of Physics.
In August 2018, he has been promoted to EPSRC Peer Review Full College Member.
In October 2018, he has been elected as a “Delegate of the Individual Members” on the European Society of Rheology Committee.
In March 2020, I have been invited to become an Editorial Board Member of the International Journal of Molecular Sciences (MDPI, IF 4.183), for the section “Macromolecules”.
In March 2020, I have been elected Ordinary Member of the Liquids and Complex Fluids Group at the Institute of Physics.
He acts as academic advisor for both national and international funding councils:
- The Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council;
- Science and Technology Facilities Council;
- Royal Academy of Engineering;
- The Leverhulme Trust;
- The French National Research Agency;
- The National Science Centre (NCN) Poland;
- Air Force Office of Scientific Research (AFOSR).
He acts as an academic referee for international scientific journals, such as Science, Physical Review Letter, Lab on a Chip, Macromolecules, Scientific Reports, Langmuir, RSC Soft Matter, Journal of the Royal Society Interface, PLOS ONE, Biomedical Optics Express, RSC Advances, Optics Express, Journal of Rheology, Journal of Chemical Physics, Biomicrofluidics, Industrial & Engineering Chemistry Research, Physical Review E, Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society A, Europhysics Letters, Applied Spectroscopy, Applied Optics, Cellular and Molecular Bioengineering, Journal of Polymer Engineering.
Research interests
Manlio’s research interests are mainly in the fields of rheology and microrheology applied to study biological and bio-analytical systems. His expertise encompasses experimental studies on polymer physics and biophysics (i.e. bio-polymer network and cell mechanics), with a significant track record of publications in leading international peer reviewed scientific journals. He is internationally renowned as an expert in these fields, thanks to a series of novel experimental and analytical methods that he has developed for measuring the viscoelastic properties of complex materials (such as living cells) and for making new discoveries on polymeric dynamics.
Currently his research interests are focused on:
- The study of the dynamics of semi-flexible polymer solutions such as actin filaments and self-assembling peptides, for which a basic analytical model aimed at predicting their viscoelastic properties has not yet been agreed upon;
- The study of the viscoelastic properties of hydrogels commonly used for 3D cell-cultures, as their mechanical properties control the fate of (stem) cells. However, despite its importance, a bijective correspondence between the gels' stiffness and cells' behaviour is still missing.
- The development of a novel and unbiased analytical method for the characterization of electrocardiogram (ECG) abnormalities and prediction of cardiovascular diseases.
Grants
£573,684.00 research grant awarded on February 2023 by EPSRC & NERC, in collaboration with Prof. Daniele Faccio and Prof. Stuart Humphries at the University of Lincoln. Project title: "Quantum-enabled Nano-scale Rheology Of The Microbial Seawater Environment" (EP/X035905/1 - EP/X035689/1).
£232,731.00 research grant awarded on June 2021 by Innovate UK, Knowledge Transfer Partnerships (KTP), in collaboration with Prof. Manosh Paul and Soapworks Ltd. KTP Application (12905).
£27,525.00 research grant awarded on January 2021 by EPSRC IAA & Glasgow Knowledge Exchange Fund, in collaboration with Prof. Manosh Paul and Soapworks Limited. Project title: "Panta Rhei: Syndet Characterisation and Process Modelling".
£11,000.00 International Exchanges 2020 grant awarded on January 2021 by The Royal Society/CNR, in collaboration with Dr M. Vassalli, Prof. D. Fioretto and Dr M. Mattarelli. Project title: "Novel tools for mechanobiology: from Atomic Force Microscopy to Brillouin spectroscopy" (IEC/R2/202232).
£12,995.00 research grant awarded on June 2020 by EPSRC IAA, in collaboration with Dr R.P. Middlemiss and Dr M. Vassalli. Project title: "Feel the Force: A calibration tool for cantilever-based force sensors".
1,080,000 JPY (~£7,440.00), awarded on the 15th of March 2019 by ICR, Kyoto University, in collaboration with Dr S. K. Sukumaran, Prof. Y. Masubuchi, Dr J. Ramirez, Prof. H. Watanabe and Dr Y. Matsumiya. Project title: "High Frequency Rheological and Dielectric Response of Polymeric Liquids".
£6750.00, awarded on the 18th of October 2018 by SRPe, in collaboration with academics and industries across UK and Europe. Title: "Artificial cells as distributed nanobots in Engineering and Healthcare".
£973,623.00, awarded on the 7th of March 2018 by the EPSRC, in collaboration with Prof. Amanda Wright et al. Project title: "Experiencing the micro-world - a cell's perspective" (EP/R035067/1 - EP/R035563/1 - EP/R035156/1).
£447,357.00, awarded on the 28th of November 2012 by the EPSRC, in collaboration with Professor Miles Padgett et al. Project title: "Upgrading the small scale equipment base for early career researchers in the engineering and physical sciences" (EP/K031732/1).
£40,000.00, awarded on the 11th of June 2012 by the University of Glasgow, School of Engineering, in collaboration with Dr Alasdair W. Clark and Dr Steven Neale. Project title: "Novel Optical Electrical Mechanical Sensory Platform".
£1,729.00, awarded on the 27th of April 2012 by the University of Glasgow, School of Eng. PI fund.
£763,325.00, awarded on the 1st of September 2010 by The Royal Academy of Engineering/EPSRC. Project title: "Rheology at the Microscale: New Tools for Bio-analysis" (10216/101).
Supervision
Manlio Tassieri is first supervisor to:
Mr Matthew Smith
Manlio Tassieri is second supervisor to:
Mr Charles Li
A PhD position is available within the Biomedical Engineering Division. The aim of the project is to deliver new instruments and tools for measuring fundamental information on the nature of macromolecular interactions, in solution. For more information please contact Dr Manlio Tassieri (Manlio.Tassieri@glasgow.ac.uk).
