Yanyi Huang

I am a final-year PhD student at RMIT University specialising in food chemistry, and my thesis entitled “In-depth understanding of interactions between alpha-amylase and phenolics from pitaya fruit utilising molecular biochemistry, enzymatic assays, spectroscopy and in-silico simulations” was summitted in November 2024. My research interest is upcycling bioactive compounds into medicinal applications to improve health outcomes through sustainable innovation. I have worked on projects such as 3D printing of chocolate and recycling food by-products to minimise waste and enhance nutritional quality. My collaborative experience with chemists, engineers and clinicians, paired with my background in mentoring and teaching postgraduate and undergraduate students, enables me to work in diverse teams. As a course tutor, I have been teaching and communicating in multiple languages, with experiences of presenting at multiple international conferences and successfully building up collaborations.

• Certificate of The Future of Leadership, 05/2024, Australian Technology Network of Universities & OpenCred, Completing The Future of Leadership on disruption, globalisation and thinking like a futurist
• RMIT University Representative, International Day of Women and Girls in Science, 02/2024, Having been interviewed as a representative for International Women and Girls in STEM, an article featuring the discussion has been published: https://www.rmit.edu.au/students/news/2024/feb/celebrating-women-and-girls-in-science
• Establishing Collaborative Ties, 2019-2020, Moving from Zhongkai University to Lincoln University as a student, I helped establish a partnership between the two schools. My contributions included motivating Zhongkai University students to participate in exchange programs or pursue dual bachelor’s degrees at Lincoln University

Google Scholar site: yanyihuang-google scholar, h-index: 4

Total of 117 citations

1.  Yanyi Huang, Samantha J. Richardson, Charles S. Brennan & Stefan Kasapis (2023). Mechanistic insights into α-amylase inhibition, binding affinity and structural changes upon interaction with gallic acid. Food Hydrocolloids, 109467.  (https://doi.org/10.1016/j.foodhyd.2023.109467), IF: 10.7; 17 citations

2.  Yanyi Huang, Lloyd Condict, Samantha J. Richardson, Charles S. Brennan & Stefan Kasapis (2023). Exploring the inhibitory mechanism of p-coumaric acid on α-amylase via multi-spectroscopic analysis, enzymatic inhibition assay and molecular docking. Food Hydrocolloids, 108524. (https://doi.org/10.1016/j.foodhyd.2023.108524), IF: 10.7, 27 citations

3.  Yanyi Huang, Mengya He, Stefan Kasapis, Margaret A. Brennan & Charles S. Brennan (2021). The influence of the fortification of red pitaya (Hylocereus polyrhizus) powder on the in vitro digestion, physical parameters, nutritional profile, polyphenols and antioxidant activity in the oat‐wheat bread. International Journal of Food Science & Technology (https://doi.org/10.1111/ijfs.15530), IF: 3.6; 13 citations

4.  Yanyi Huang, Margaret A. Brennan, , Samantha J. Richardson & Charles S. Brennan (2021). Maturation Process, Nutritional Profile, Bioactivities and Utilisation in Food Products of Red Pitaya Fruits: A Review. Foods, 10(11), 2862. (https://doi.org/10.3390/foods10112862), IF: 5.2; 59 citations

5.  Yanyi Huang, Samantha J. Richardson, Charles S. Brennan & Stefan Kasapis (2024). A comparative study between caffeic acid and protocatechuic acid: The mechanism of acrylic group inhibition on α-amylase activity. Manuscript was submitted to Food Bioscience and waiting for reviewers’ comments.

6.  Adetiya Rachman, Yanyi Huang, Margaret Brennan, Charles Brennan. Effect of soy protein isolates inclusion on physicochemical, functional, and nutritional properties of buckwheat gels. European Food Research and Technology (2024): 1-7. (https://doi.org/10.1007/s00217-023-04445-0), IF: 3.3

7.  Jinhai Luo, Yingzi Wu, Ashaimaa Y. Moussa, Yanyi Huang, Yu Fu, Yun Wei, Jincan LUO, Baojun Xu. Unveiling the Molecular Mechanisms of Adzuki Bean (Vigna angularis) Derived Bioactive Phytochemicals in Combating Obesity. Food Bioscience (2024): 105515. (https://doi.org/10.1016/j.fbio.2024.105515) , IF: 4.8

8.  Jinhai Luo, Yingzi Wu, Ashaimaa Y. Moussa, Yanyi Huang, Yu Fu, Jincan LUO, Baojun Xu (2024). Unveiling the Molecular Mechanisms of Adzuki Bean (Vigna angularis) Derived Bioactive Phytochemicals in Combating Obesity. Manuscript was submitted to cells and waiting for final decisions.

9.  Yu Fu, Jinhai Luo, Yanyi Huang, Zhonghao Fang, Baoning Liu, Zifeng Yang, Charles S. Brennan, Baojun Xu, Jincan Luo (2024). L-Clausenamide Ameliorates LPS-Induced acute lung injury via modulating oxidative stress and apoptosis. Manuscript was submitted to the special issue of Network Pharmacology: An Emerging Field in Drug Discover of Journal of Antioxidants.

10.  Minyi Li, Yanyi Huang, Ziyang Chen, Yichuan Li, Shengjing Lai, Zhixiong Huo, Lijie Chen, Qin Wang, Huifan Liu. Brewing process of Dendrobium chinensis and immature pomelo functional wine. China Brewing, 2020, 39(4): 131-136. (http://manu61.magtech.com.cn/zgnz/CN/10.11882/j.issn.0254-5071.2020.04.026), 1 citation

Visiting PhD student

Switzerland, Thailand and China, 2022-2024

I was invited to visit the labs, meet with the staff and fellow PhD students at Zürich University of Applied Sciences (ZHAW), ETH Zürich, Beijing Normal University-Hong Kong Baptist University and Chiang Mai University to foster potential collaborations

Presenter

The 5th International Symposium on Food Science and Human Health, Wuhan, China 3rd-4th, August 2024

Oral presentation on “In-depth understanding of interactions between alpha-amylase and phenolics from pitaya fruit utilising molecular biochemistry, enzymatic assays, spectroscopy and in-silico simulations”

Presenter

Campus Bio Medico University of Rome, Italy 25th, July 2024

I was invited to present my PhD work “In-depth understanding of interactions between alpha-amylase and phenolics from red dragon fruit for the development of diabetic-friendly foods” at Campus Bio Medico University of Rome

Presenter

Food for Thought: Pioneering the Future of Food, Melbourne, Australia 27-28th, November 2023

Poster presentation on “Mechanisms of gallic acid as a natural α-amylase inhibitor for diabetic-friendly foods”

Student Chair

RACI/MPG CHEM2023 student symposium, Melbourne, Australia 24-26th, October 2023

As a student chair for the symposium

Presenter

The 21st Gums and Stabilisers for the Food Industry Conferences held in Thessaloniki, Greece, 6-9th, June 2023

An oral presentation on “Insights into the inhibitory mechanisms of gallic acid in red pitaya fruit against porcine pancreatic α-amylase: multi-spectroscopic analysis, enzymatic inhibition assay and molecular docking”

Presenter

The 16th International Hydrocolloids Conference, Guelph, Canada, 23rd-26th, October 2022

An oral presentation on “Exploring the inhibitory mechanism of p-coumaric acid from pitaya fruit on α-amylase via molecular biochemistry, enzymatic assays, spectroscopy and in-silico simulations”

Presenter

Reddit Institute Conference and Colloquium, Wellington, New Zealand, 7-9th, April 2021.

Poster about “The influence of the fortification of red pitaya (Hylocereus polyrhizus) powder on the in vitro digestion, physical parameters, nutritional profile, polyphenols, and antioxidant activity in the oat‐wheat bread”

• Professor Charles Brennan, Chief Scientific Director - Food & Nutrition Innovation, charles.brennan@rmit.edu.au, +61 399254177
• Professor Samantha Richardson, Associate Dean Higher Degrees Research, samantha.richardson@rmit.edu.au, +61 399257897
• Professor Stefan Kasapis, Professor, Food Science, stefan.kasapis@rmit.edu.au, +61 399255244
• Dr. Arianna Dick, Lecturer, School of Science, arianna.dick.zambrano@rmit.edu.au