Govind Rao's Biography

Govind Rao, Director, Center for Advanced Sensor Technology and Professor, Chemical, Biochemical and Environmental Engineering, UMBC, Baltimore

Govind Rao is Professor of Chemical & Biochemical Engineering and Director of the Center for Advanced Sensor Technology at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County. He obtained his Bachelor of Science degree in Chemical Engineering from the Indian Institute of Technology, Madras. His Ph.D. degree was from Drexel University in Chemical Engineering. He has been a faculty member at UMBC since 1987.

Dr. Rao’s research has focused on applications of fluorescence spectroscopy to bioprocess engineering. His lab has developed next-generation sensors for low-cost non-invasive monitoring of oxygen, pH and pCO2 in bioreactors. In addition, novel sensors for glucose and glutamine have been developed. These sensors have led to a paradigm shift in bioprocess technology, as they collectively enable High Throughput Bioprocessing. In addition, the Rao lab has focused on developing novel applications of Green Fluorescent Protein in Bioprocessing. Its unique fluorescent properties and ease of use in a variety of culture systems have provided new insights into heterologous protein production. Recently, the Rao lab has started developing the next generation of sensors based on surface plasmon coupled fluorescence. These promise to lead to ultra-sensitive and ultra-fast sensors but at low-cost.

He has received several awards. These include the Presidential Young Investigator Award from the National Science Foundation, Outstanding Teaching and Research Awards from UMBC, the Van Lanen Award from the American Chemical Society, the Gaden Award from Biotechnology & Bioengineering, the University System of Maryland Regents Award for Excellence in Research and he has been named a 2003 Innovator of the Year by the Maryland Daily Record. Dr. Rao has several patents and these have been licensed to Fluorometrix, which he co-founded. Dr. Rao has served as the Chair of the Biotechnology Division of the American Chemical Society and on the Editorial Board of several prominent journals. In 2007, he was elected as a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science.