Chris Toumazou is Regius Professor of Engineering, Chair in Biomedical Circuit Design, Director of the Centre for Bio-Inspired Technology and Founder and Chief Scientist for the Institute of Biomedical Engineering at Imperial College London. He is also Founder of two successful medical device companies – DNA Electronics (DNAe) and DnaNudge. Chris is distinguished for his ground-breaking research in bringing silicon technology to the field of medical devices for early detection, diagnosis and therapy.
In 1994, he was the youngest Professor ever to be appointed at Imperial College London, at age 33. In 2013, he became London’s First Regius Professor of Engineering, awarded to Imperial College London during the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee.
Toumazou’s research include cochlear implants for born-deaf children, an artificial pancreas for Type 1 diabetics, wireless heart monitors for personalised ambulatory health monitoring, co-inventing semiconductor-based DNA sequencing, inventing an intelligent neural stimulator as a drug alternative for obesity, and a pioneering Lab-in-a-Cartridge testing platform and wearable device that enables consumers with predispositions to Type 2 Diabetes, hypertension and obesity to shop more healthily based upon their DNA and lifestyle. This technology has now been adapted to deliver rapid, lab-free RT-PCR COVID-19 testing – now in nationwide deployment across NHS hospitals.
In this and many other areas he has published over 750 research papers, holds over 80 patents and employs over 300 people in his combined medical device companies and Imperial College London’s Institute of Biomedical engineering.
He is a recipient of The Royal Society’s Gabor Medal for his invention of semiconductor-based genetic testing, the IEEE Field Medal in Biomedical Engineering for Outstanding Contributions to Biomedical Circuit Technology, the IET Faraday Medal, the Royal Academy of Engineering’s Silver Medal for pioneering contributions to British industry, and the IET’s JJ Thompson Medal for Electronics.
In 2006, he founded (IEEE BIOCAS), now the largest Biomedical Circuits Society in the world. He was elected in 2006 to Academia Europea. In 2008, he was elected Fellow of the Royal Academy of Engineering and a Fellow of the Royal Society. In 2013, he was further elected Fellow of the Academy of Medical Sciences – only one of very few people who are Fellows of all three UK national academies. In 2009, he received the World Technology Award (sponsored by Time Magazine) for Health & Medicine.
In 2009, his commercial laboratories at DNA Electronics (DNAe) were used to launch the Government’s Life Sciences blueprint and visited by a ministerial delegation, led by then Prime Minister Gordon Brown. In 2014, he won the prestigious European Patent Office’s European Inventor Award for his invention of DNA rapid testing using a microchip. This was selected amongst thousands of patents submitted each year, becoming the first British winner of a prize in this contest since 2008.
In 2016, DNAe won a major contract from the BARDA Authority of the US Department of Health to develop its sequencing platform for rapid diagnosis of antimicrobial resistant infections and influenza for all US hospitals. Thanks to Toumazou’s ground-breaking innovation being delivered commercially by his companies DNAe and DnaNudge, it is possible to have a simple cheek swab at the doctor’s office or even a retail shop to help treat and contain the spread of virulent infections, and prevent the development of chronic conditions including diabetes and heart disease.
Professor Toumazou’s innovations in bio-inspired technology and personalised medicine have revolutionised healthcare and pushed the boundaries of biomedical engineering. His invention of semiconductor DNA sequencing has revolutionised genetic testing. With DNA Electronics, Professor Toumazou has pioneered rapid near-patient live diagnostics, delivering actionable information to clinicians and saving lives across the world by enabling the right treatment at the right time.
DnaNudge is now bringing the next frontier of genetics closer to the consumer – nudging consumers towards healthier choices while shopping, based upon their DNA plus lifestyle. In response to the COVID-19 pandemic and global public health crisis, Professor Toumazou and his team adapted this technology created to address an epidemic – obesity and Type 2 diabetes – to help with the fight against a pandemic. The result was the development of a rapid, lab-free COVID-19 RT-PCR test. The “CovidNudge” 90-minute test is now being rolled out across the UK’s NHS, improving patient and staff safety. The test also offers unique pooling capabilities, delivering gold-standard PCR testing at unprecedented low cost. In 2020, Professor Toumazou was named as a recipient of the President’s Special Award for Pandemic Service by the Royal Academy of Engineering, in recognition of his exceptional engineering achievement.
Academic Qualifications:
1980-83 BSc (Hons) in Engineering, First Class (electrical/electronic options), Oxford Brookes University
1983-86 Research Assistant at Oxford Brookes University
PhD in collaboration with the University of Manchester (UMIST)
Honours Attained:
• 2020: DnaNudge named in first place in annual Top 60 Innovation list, Retail Insider Digital Retail Innovations report
• 2020: DnaNudge’s DnaBand awarded GOOD DESIGN BEST100 and GOOD DESIGN AWARD 2020 and DnaNudge’s NudgeBox awarded GOOD DESIGN AWARD 2020, The Good Design Award
• 2020: Winner of the President’s Special Award for Pandemic Service, Royal Academy of Engineering
• 2020: Joint Entrepreneur of the Year Award, UK BioIndustry Association (BIA)
• 2016: Winner of the Elektra European Electronics Industry Awards Lifetime Achievement Award
• 2015: Winner of the IEEE Field Medal in Biomedical Engineering for Outstanding Contributions to Biomedical Circuit Technology
• 2014: Winner of The IET Faraday Medal
• 2014: Awarded Honorary Fellowship, Cardiff University
• 2014: Winner of European Inventor Award, European Patent Office
• 2013: Becomes London’s first Regius (Royal) Professor of Engineering
• 2013: Elected Fellow of the Academy of Medical Sciences
• 2013: Winner of The Royal Society’s Gabor Medal in recognition of success in applying semiconductor technology to DNA analysis
• 2012: Awarded Honorary DSc, Mahanakorn University, Thailand
• 2011: Awarded JJ Thompson Medal for Electronics, IET
• 2010: Electronic Product Design’s e-Legacy Award for Medical Advances for DNA Electronics
• 2010: IET Innovation Awards in Electronics, Emerging Technologies and Healthcare for DNA Electronics
• 2010: Elected Fellow of the City and Guilds Institute
• 2010: Awarded Honorary Deng from Oxford Brookes University
• 2009: Innovation Award for the Institute of Biomedical Engineering, Times Higher Education Awards (THE)
• 2009: Best British Inventions, BBC Focus Magazine,
• 2009: Elektra European Electronics Industry Award for R&D for DNA Electronics
• 2009: Emerging Technology of the Year Award, National Microelectronics Institute
• 2009: Individual winner of the World Technology Award for Health and Medicine, sponsored by Time Magazine, World Technology Network
• 2008: Innovation in Engineering Award, Institution of Engineering and Technology
• 2008: Elected Fellow of the Royal Society
• 2008: Elected Fellow of the Royal Academy of Engineering
• 2007: Silver Medal for Pioneering Contributions to British Industry, Royal Academy of Engineering
• 2007: Start-Up of the Year Award, National Microelectronics Institute
• 2007: Elected Member of Academia Europaea
• 2006: Outstanding Innovation Award, Oracle
• 2005: IEEE Circuits and Systems Education Award for pioneering contributions to telecommunications and biomedical circuits and system
• 2004: Elected Fellow of the IEEE
• 2003: The Clifford Patterson Lecture Prize Bronze Medal, The Royal Society
• 1993: Recipient of the IEE Electronics Letters Premium Award
• 1992: Recipient of the Outstanding Young Author Award, IEEE CAS
• 1991: Recipient of the IEE Rayleigh Best Book Award, Imperial College is recognition of research in the Department of Electrical Engineering
Memberships/Associations:
• 2021: International Member of the United States National Academy of Engineering (NAE) – “For innovations in electronics for medicine, including rapid diagnostics”
• 2014: Awarded Honorary Fellowship, Cardiff University
• 2013: Becomes London’s first Regius (Royal) Professor of Engineering
• 2013: Elected Fellow of the Academy of Medical Sciences
• 2008: Elected Fellow of the Royal Society
• 2007: Elected Member of Academia Europaea
• 2004: Elected Fellow of the IEEE
Committees:
• Royal Society: Theo Murphy Blue Skies Awards
• Singapore Government: advisor on medical devices
• Chairman UK EPSRC Healthcare Panel
• Chairman UK ESPRC Electronics and Photonics Panel
• Election Committee Fellowship of the royal Society
• Chairman Royal Society Panel to Award the Theo Murphy Blue Skies Award
• Member Wellcome Trust Technology Transfer Challenge Committee
• Member UK Foresight Committee on Infectious Diseases
• Member UK MOD Defence Strategic Advisory Committee on Critical Technologies
• Member European Network for Analog Research (NEAR)
• Editor-in-Chief IETs Electronics letters
• International Advisor for Singaporean Government in medical devices
• Chair Professor National Science Council of Taiwan
Family was from Yialousa.
