Yi Ting Loo

Hello!

I am a 3rd year PhD student at MathSys II CDT,Link opens in a new window under the supervision of Prof Timothy Saunders (Warwick)Link opens in a new window, and part of the Saunders LabLink opens in a new window at the Centre for Mechanochemical Cell Biology (CMCB)Link opens in a new window at Warwick Medical School. My main research interests are computational and mathematical biology. For my PhD, I work closely with experimentalists to study the pattern formation and cell fate acquisitions through morphogen signalling during organ development. I study the dynamics of tissue development through modelling with ODEs, PDEs and other computational methods. A significant part of my research involves analysing immunofluorescence microscopy images to extract data for model fitting and gain insight on biological problems. My PhD projects focus on different model systems in development biology, including organoid (stem cell culture) development cultured in a spatially constrained environment. This project is part of a wider collaboration with the Briscoe LabLink opens in a new window (Crick InstituteLink opens in a new window). I also worked on the movement and diffusion of molecules in a tortuous extracellular environment, using 3D imaging data of the developing zebrafish brain. This work is in collaboration with the Biophysical Fluorescence LaboratoryLink opens in a new window at NUS, Singapore led by Prof Thorsten WohlandLink opens in a new window.

Education

University of Warwick, Coventry, UK

MSc Mathematics of Systems (with Distinction) (Autumn 2021 - Summer 2022)
BSc (Hons) Mathematics and Physics (First Class Honours) (Autumn 2018 - Summer 2021)

Publications

Zhu S, Loo YT (co-first author), Veerapathiran S, Loo TYJ, Tran BN, Teh C, Zhong J, Matsudaira P, Saunders TE, Wohland T. Receptor binding and tortuosity explain morphogen local-to-global diffusion coefficient transition. Biophys J. 2024 Jul 24:S0006-3495(24)00483-1. [BiophysicalLink opens in a new window][GitHubLink opens in a new window]

Conferences

Attendee and Poster Presentation at the Qlif e Quantitative Biology Spring School "Cell Dynamics in Developmental Systems"Link opens in a new window, ENS PSL, Paris, France (April 2025).

Poster Presentation at the Physics of Life ConferenceLink opens in a new window, Harrogate, UK (March 2025).
Poster Presentation (Awarded Poster Prize) at the Interphace SymposiumLink opens in a new window, Francis Crick Institute London, UK (February 2025).
Poster Presentation at the 3rd Crick Beddington Developmental Biology SymposiumLink opens in a new window, Francis Crick Institute London, UK (February 2025).
Poster Presentation (Awarded Poster Prize) at the London Mathematical Biology ConferenceLink opens in a new window, Francis Crick Institute, London, UK (September 2024).

Attendee at the Centre International de Rencontres Mathématiques (CIRM) Research Schools, Marseille, France (July 2024):
- Frontiers in Interacting Particle Systems, Aggregation-Diffusion Systems Equations and Collective Behavior.
- Mathematical Biology: Collective Behavior and Pattern Formation.

Contributed Talk at the Warwick-Cambridge Quantitative Cell Biology SymposiumLink opens in a new window, Coventry, UK (May 2024).
Poster Presentation at the European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL) Symposium, (The Mechanics of Life: From development to diseaseLink opens in a new window) at Heidelberg, Germany (April 2024).
Attendee at the Challenges and Opportunities in Physics of Life Winter SchoolLink opens in a new window at Durham University, UK (December 2023).

Teaching 24/25

Teaching assistant for fourth-year undergraduate module MA4N4 Transport Processes in Mathematical BiologyLink opens in a new window.
Teaching and marking assistant for first-year undergraduate module MA147 Mathematical Methods and Modelling 1Link opens in a new window.

Teaching 23/24

Term 1

Teaching assistant for second-year undergraduate module MA256 Introduction to Mathematical BiologyLink opens in a new window.

Marking assistant for first-year undergraduate module MA147 Mathematical Methods and Modelling 1Link opens in a new window.

Term 2

Teaching assistant for fourth-year undergraduate module MA4M9 Mathematics of Neuronal NetworksLink opens in a new window.

Teaching 22/23

Small group supervisions for first-year BSc MathStats students, modules include:

Term 1
MA140 Mathematical Analysis 1
MA138 Sets and Numbers

Term 2
MA152 Mathematical Analysis 2Link opens in a new window
MA149 Linear AlgebraLink opens in a new window

Previous Research Projects

Quantitative modelling of tissue morphogenesis using vertex models
(MSc Individual project, summer 2022)
Supervised by Prof Timothy Saunders, working in the Saunders Lab; with external collaborator Dr James Briscoe from The Francis Crick Institute.
Cyclists' cardiac conundrum:
Characterising features of athletes' heart rate data and finding the correlation with arrhythmia
(MSc Group project, spring 2022)
Supervised by Prof Colm Connaughton; and external partner Ian Green from Crickles; with group members Andrew Nugent and Jack Buckingham.
From stochastic model of single neurons to neuronal population
(BSc Final year project, autumn 2020 - spring 2021)
Supervised by Prof Magnus Richardson.
Modelling the impact of vaccination on the spread of multi-strain dengue virus in South East Asia
(URSS Project, summer 2020)
Supervised by Prof Michael Tildesley and Dr Warren Tenant.

Previous Work Experiences:

Postgraduate student project partner for WIHEA's project: Creating a 'Support the Supporter' resourceLink opens in a new window for Undergraduate Student Research (Spring 2022)
Research assistant at Global Nano NetworkLink opens in a new window (Summer 2021)
Student director of International Conference of Undergraduate Research (ICUR)Link opens in a new window 2021 (Autumn 2020-Autumn 2021)

Contact

Email:

yi-ting.loo@warwick.ac.uk

Offices:

D2.11, Zeeman Building
Level 3, IBRB, Gibbet Hill Campus

Skills

Programming Languages:

Proficient in Python (primary programming language), working knowledge of R, Julia and MATLAB.

Image Analysis Tools:

Cellpose, Fiji ImageJ, Paraview.

Others:

LaTeX, GitHub
Finite element solver for PDEs: FEniCS on Python.

Other Activities

Committee member (Communications Officer) of the Warwick SIAM-IMA Student ChapterLink opens in a new window (2023/24 and 2024/25).

I manage all chapter websites and social media, as well as chapter events publicity:
- Statistics, Probability, Analysis and Applied Mathematics (SPAAM) seminar seriesLink opens in a new window (weekly seminars during term)
- Applied Mathematics Postgraduate (AMP) ConferenceLink opens in a new window (8-10 July 2024) (postgraduate research conference and workshop on Communicating Research)