Jun 9 (Fri) @ 12:30pm: "System Identification and Adaptive Control Applications in Pharmacokinetics,” Murat Kaan Erdal, ECE PhD Defense

Abstract 

The recent development of continuous molecular monitoring platforms creates an unprecedented opportunity to understand drug pharmacokinetics, which is the study of how drugs are distributed within and eliminated from the body. In this work, we take advantage of this new opportunity to identify individualized compartmental pharmacokinetic models with high precision. We show how identifying such models allows us to test some physiological assumptions about drug transport kinetics that are almost universally accepted but rarely tested. Because the precision of the identification process is an important factor in testing these assumptions, we also propose a way to design experiments to maximize the information content of the measured data.

The availability of individualized compartmental pharmacokinetic models also offers a chance for improvement in clinical practices. In particular, we first discuss how such models can help in sample collection for better clinical outcomes while reducing the burden on patients. Next, we design an adaptive feedback control mechanism to adjust drug intake and use it in animal experiments to keep drug concentration levels at targeted levels.

Bio

Murat Kaan Erdal is a Ph.D. candidate in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering at the University of California, Santa Barbara, advised by Professor Joao Hespanha. He is interested in using control theoretic methods with data-driven biomedical applications. He received two B.S. degrees, one in Electrical and Electronics Engineering and another in Mathematics, from Bogazici University in Turkey in 2017.

Hosted by: Professor João Hespanha

Submitted by: Murat Kaan Erdal <m_erdal@ucsb.edu>