Each month we are going to be highlighting one of the PhD’s of the project so their work can be showcased. We continue with Ana Mateos, PhD in MPIP Mainz. We are asking the PhD’s five questions and here is how Ana answered.
Good morning Ana, tell us a little bit about yourself.
Hello! I’m Ana Mateos Maroto, a Spanish chemist living and working in Germany. I obtained my PhD degree in November 2020 at the Department of Chemical Physics of the Universidad Complutense de Madrid (Madrid, Spain) under the supervision of Prof. Dr. Francisco Ortega Gómez and Dr. Fernando Martínez Pedrero. During my PhD I worked on the design of new platforms for encapsulation and transport of active compounds, and their characterization from a physico-chemical perspective. In June 2021 I joined the group of Dr. Svenja Morsbach and Prof. Dr. Katharina Landfester at the Max Planck Institute for Polymer Research (Mainz, Germany) as a postdoctoral researcher. I’m currently working on the surface functionalization of extracellular vesicles as part of the BOW Project. In my free time I like to travel and read, and of course enjoy a good beer with friends!
Could you explain your last discovery?
We are exploring different possibilities for the surface modification of extracellular vesicles in order to provide different properties to the final BOW products.
Which is the advancement for science and technology that you are currently studying?
The strategies that we are following would allow us to improve the prolonged blood circulation or targeting to specific cells of the BOW hybrids, which in turn would allow other researchers to explore different biological effects of the surface-modified materials.
Which would you say are the possible impacts on society?
The potential long-term impact of this research will be of great importance, as it would open the door to the design of new drug delivery systems with new properties for the treatment of specific diseases.
Is there someone you want to acknowledge?
I would like to acknowledge Prof. Dr. Katharina Landfester and Dr. Svenja Morsbach for welcoming me into their group and allowing me to develop my career in such an interesting project in the best working environment. And of course all the BOW consortium partners!
