Lim Sierin

Assoc Prof Lim Sierin is an Associate Professor at the School of Chemistry, Chemical Engineering and Biotechnology, Nanyang Technological University (NTU), Singapore. She holds dual roles as Principal Investigator leading the Bioengineered and Applied Nanomaterials (BeANs) Lab and Molecular & Cellular Bioengineering (MCBe) Lab, and as Associate Dean of Global Partnerships at NTU Graduate College. Her research focuses on bioengineered nanomaterials, protein cage engineering, and sustainable biotechnology solutions for healthcare and environmental challenges.

Education: B.S. in Chemical Engineering (UCLA), Ph.D. in Biomedical Engineering (UCLA), Postdoc in Chemical Engineering & Materials Science (UC Irvine). Awards include the L'Oréal-UNESCO Women in Science Fellowship (2013) and Singapore 100 Women in Tech (2020). She champions women in STEM, founding Women@NTU (2018), Society of Women Engineers Singapore (2021), and co-founding the Promotion of Women in Engineering, Research, and Science (POWERS) program (2020).

Research highlights include protein cage-based drug delivery systems, bacterial cellulose biomedical applications, and enzyme engineering for plastic upcycling. Innovations from her lab have generated multiple patents, with four issued in the US/EU. Current projects explore nanocapsule imaging contrast agents, photosynthetic energy systems, and extremophile biotechnology.

Grants and partnerships include collaborations with Molecular Frontiers (Tropical Molecules project) and participation in global initiatives like the Singapore Center on Environmental Life Sciences Engineering (SCELSE). Her labs engage in interdisciplinary work spanning biomaterials, synthetic biology, and nanomedicine, with over 50 peer-reviewed publications to date.