Designing innovative biomaterials and drug-delivery systems through a synthesis-driven, data-focused research approach.
Development of New Biomaterials
Solving Global Challenges with Chemistry
Symposium (Health) — Therapeutic Interventions to Combat Bacterial Resistance. IUPAC · CCCE Virtual 2021, August 13–20.
Polymer-based drug delivery systems
Self-assembling polymeric particles that encapsulate a payload and display peptide ligands on the surface, so binding — and therefore uptake — happens at the intended cell. The design question is always the same: how much function can you put on the outside before the assembly stops behaving.
Cryopreservation and cryoprotectant development
A postdoctoral project with the Atlantic Veterinary College, the Atlantic Fisheries College and local farming companies: novel cryoprotectants that control ice formation so cells and tissue come back viable after thawing, rather than mechanically destroyed by crystals.
Peptide–polymer conjugate design
The result I'm proudest of: a novel peptide sequence that self-assembles into functional architectures and shows immunomodulatory activity. Conjugated to RAFT-made polymer chains, it becomes a platform — one end doing chemistry, the other doing immunology — with applications in immunotherapy and drug encapsulation.
Nanocrystalline cellulose from tunicates
With TUNISTRONG Technologies Inc.: extracting nanocrystalline cellulose and proteins from tunicates for value-added applications, and providing the analytical backbone — method development, characterisation, SOPs and reporting — for process development projects.
In Vitro Biological Evaluation & Assay Development
Assessing efficacy, safety and mechanism via ELISA, flow cytometry, Western blot and viability assays in mammalian and bacterial cell-culture systems — designed, validated and documented so the numbers mean the same thing next month.