Anuruddhika U Rathnayake
Uda (Anuruddhika Rathnayaka Mudiyanselage) is a PhD candidate at the University of Queensland (UQ), Australia. Her research explores the nutritional properties, bioaccessibility, and bioavailability of strawberry phytochemicals and their interactions with dairy and plant-based dairy milk alternatives. Using advanced analytical and metabolomics approaches, she investigates how food matrices influence the stability and functionality of bioactive compounds. Her interests include functional foods, nutrition, food bioactives, and food processing for improved health outcomes. Before joining UQ, Uda worked as a lecturer in Food Science in Sri Lanka. She holds a Master's degree in Marine Biotechnology from Gangneung-Wonju National University, Republic of Korea (2020), where her thesis, "Characterization and Purification of β-Secretase Inhibitory Peptide from Sea Cucumber (Holothuria spinifera) Enzymatic Hydrolysates," focused on isolating bioactive peptides capable of inhibiting β-secretase activity and evaluating their cellular effects in a neuroblastoma cell line of Alzheimer's disease. She brings additional experience in the isolation and purification of bioactive compounds from a range of natural sources, including seaweed, sea cucumber, and black tea, and in evaluating their pharmaceutical potential. Uda completed her Bachelor's degree in Food Science and Technology at the University of Sri Jayewardenepura, Sri Lanka (2018).
Abstracts this author is presenting: