I’m currently working on a project, funded by the Microbial Food Hub (UKRI), exploring how the natural diversity of filamentous fungi can be harnessed to develop novel and sustainable mycoprotein.

I completed my PhD in Microbiology at the University of Kent in 2024 through the BBSRC-funded South Coast Doctoral Training Partnership (SoCoBio DTP). My project investigated how natural isolates of the yeast Scheffersomyces stipitis differ in their suitability for second general bioethanol production.

I completed my undergraduate degree in Biomedical Science from the University of Kent in 2020.
I am passionate about microbiology, particularly the ways we can exploit the natural capabilities of yeasts and fungi to produce sustainable bioproducts.

Key Publication

Rizzo, M., Soisangwan, N., Vega-Estevez, S., Price, R.J., Uyl, C. et al. (2022) Stress combined with loss of the Candida albicans SUMO protease Ulp2 triggers selection of aneuploidy via a two-step process. PLOS Genetics, 18(12): e1010576. doi: 10.1371/journal.pgen.1010576.