Brancato, Sara Maria (2025) Design and in-vivo validation of learning-based controllers via a sim-to-real approach. [Tesi di dottorato]

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Tipologia del documento: Tesi di dottorato
Lingua: English
Titolo: Design and in-vivo validation of learning-based controllers via a sim-to-real approach
Autori:
Autore
Email
Brancato, Sara Maria
saramaria.brancato@unina.it
Data: 1 Novembre 2025
Numero di pagine: 123
Istituzione: Università degli Studi di Napoli Federico II
Dottorato: Computational and quantitative biology
Ciclo di dottorato: 38
Coordinatore del Corso di dottorato:
nome
email
Ceccarelli, Michele
[non definito]
Tutor:
nome
email
di Bernardo, Mario
[non definito]
Data: 1 Novembre 2025
Numero di pagine: 123
Parole chiave: Cybergenetics, Sim-To-Real, Control Based Continuation
Settori scientifico-disciplinari del MIUR: Area 09 - Ingegneria industriale e dell'informazione > ING-INF/05 - Sistemi di elaborazione delle informazioni
Area 09 - Ingegneria industriale e dell'informazione > ING-INF/06 - Bioingegneria elettronica e informatica
Informazioni aggiuntive: CICLO DOTTORATO XXXVIII
Depositato il: 07 Apr 2026 06:32
Ultima modifica: 12 Ago 2026 05:39
URI: https://www.fedoa.unina.it/id/eprint/17120

Abstract

Control strategies are increasingly applied in synthetic biology to achieve robust and predictable cellular behavior. However, the inherent stochasticity, nonlinear- ity, and context-dependence of biological systems make reliable implementation challenging. This thesis develops data-efficient strategies for regulating single cells and microbial communities by combining control theory, machine learning, and experimental platforms. The core contribution is the successful application of a sim-to-real framework for controlling bacterial population density, alongside the design of a dual-chamber bioreactor architecture for regulating population density and composition in microbial consortia. Multiple control strategies were developed, and both the bioreactor architecture and the sim-to-real framework were validated in vivo, demonstrating precise regulation with minimal experimen- tal effort. Additionally, Control-Based Continuation (CBC) was implemented to probe nonlinear dynamics and guide more informative data acquisition. Together, these approaches establish a pathway toward robust, scalable, and data-efficient control of living systems.

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