معرفی
Kristel Bernaerts is a Professor at KU Leuven's Faculty of Engineering Sciences within the Department of Chemical Engineering, leading research in Chemical and Biochemical Reactor Technology and Safety (CREaS). She serves as Program Director for POC Safety Engineering and holds multiple leadership roles including membership in the Faculty Council of Engineering Sciences and the Committee for Prevention and Protection at Work.
- Faculty of Engineering Sciences
- Chemical and Biochemical Reactor Technology and Safety (CREaS)
- iSi Health - KU Leuven Institute for Physics-based Modeling
Her research focuses on microbial biotechnology with emphasis on oral microbiome engineering, biofilm dynamics, and chemical process safety. Key areas include probiotic delivery systems for periodontal treatment, microbial reactor optimization, and safety engineering for biological products. She develops innovative technologies like slow-release devices for oral probiotics and electrospinning-based encapsulation methods.
Recent publications reveal strong trends in oral biofilm modulation (65% of 2023-2025 works), microbial community engineering (25%), and safety/risk analysis (10%). Her work bridges fundamental microbial ecology with clinical applications, particularly in periodontitis treatment and probiotic delivery.
As an active supervisor, she mentors PhD candidates including Loverdou, N. and Bäcker, L.E. across interdisciplinary projects spanning chemical engineering, dentistry, and synthetic biology. Her current €15M+ research portfolio includes:
- EU-funded MICROTUNe platform for bioprocess optimization (2024-2030)
- Probiotic dry toothpaste development (2024-2027)
- Wood-eating beetle microbiome valorization (2023-2027)
- AI-driven antivirulent protein design (2024-2028)
She leads the POC Safety Engineering program and contributes to chemical engineering education through courses on process safety, reactor engineering, and analytical chemistry.
