Renewals – Graphene for Water in Life Sciences
Investigation of processes occurring in liquid environments is a prerogative for understanding a vast class of phenomena in life and material sciences. RENEWALS project aims at overcoming the present limits in exploiting and understanding the “bio” phenomena at various levels by adding new capabilities to the characterization tools at CERIC-ERIC facilities for investigation of processes occurring in liquid environments. The research group will use the Austrian CERIC partner facility at the Technical University Graz to develop and fabricate environmental cells using photon and electron transparent graphene membranes.
Principal Investigator (PI): Maya Kiskinova
These Graphene Liquid Cells (GLCs) will permit both transmission and reflection acquisition modes in order to meet the requirements for performing cross-talk characterization of specimens using transmission X-ray microscopy (TXM), infrared (IR) microscopy, deep-UV Raman, X-ray fluorescence (XRF) microscopy and AFM at Italian CERIC partner facility at Elettra Sincrotrone Trieste, high resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM) at the Romanian CERIC partner facility at the National Institute of Material Physics (NIMP) in Magurele, and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) at the Czech CERIC partner facility at the Charles University in Prague. The GLCs will be optimized for cutting-edge experiments with bio-cellular samples in aqueous media, while keeping the material complexity under control and meeting the stringent requirements of each particular system under investigation. The GLCs performance and potential will be demonstrated by exploring the correlations between cytotoxic effects and NPs’ interaction, uptake and localization in hydrated human lung cells. The planned research addresses the major challenge of the growing application of NPs: their potential adverse effects for living organisms that still lack standardized in vitro tests for nano-toxicity assessment. The new research opportunities and the expected outcomes of RENEWALS will confer to CERIC the international visibility in complementary micro-analysis of cellular and hydrated samples for understanding a vast class of phenomena relevant to potential health and environment hazards of nano materials.
Scientific field(s) and main challenges of the project
RENEWALS aims to maximize the cross-talk between different electron, photon and tip-based microscopies in order to provide a comprehensive understanding of biological samples. The main challenge of the project is to achieve this goal letting unaffected the biological complexity and natural aqueous environment by designing and fabricating graphene-based liquid cells.
Contacts
Lisa Vaccari, tel: +39 335 123 6228
Maya Kiskinova, tel: +39 335 127 2661
Posters and presentations
RENEWALS poster, April 2017 (pdf, 10,6 MB)
RENEWALS presentation, June 23, 2016 (pdf, 10,6 MB)
CERIC research project resources
To be linked to a page that is the same for all the research
Research Group
1989 – Sc. D. Habilitation; 1977 – Ph.D. in Physical Chemistry; 1972 – Master in Chemistry.
1977-1989 – Scientist & Assoc. Prof. Bulgarian Academy of Sciences/Sofia State University.
1990-2010 – Senior Scientist & Coordinator of x-ray microscopy projects at Elettra. \\2011- Elettra Research Project Coordinator.
Visiting positions and Honors:
1980 – National Bureau of Standards, USA;
1982-84 – IGF-KFA, FRG;
1987/88 – University of Pittsburgh, USA;
2004/5 – AvH
Distinguished Scientist FHI-Berlin;
2002 – Italian citizenship for scientific merits.
Brief research profile:
Expertise: Physico-chemical properties of nano-structured materials, thin films and interfaces, surface reactions, fuel and solar cells, nano-toxicology and transient states of matter. All electron and photon based spectroscopies, micro-spectroscopy and X-ray imaging.
Publications and Dissemination: 295 articles in reviewed journals, 14 invited reviews and articles, one book, three book chapters and 2 U.S. Patents. Over 100 invited talks and plenary lectures at International Congresses, Conferences, Symposia, Workshops etc. H-index 42 (SCOPUS)
1999 – MsC. Msc in Chemistry
1999-2002 – Research Fellow at national Institute for Matter Physics, Trieste
2005 – Ph.D. in Pharmaceutical Science
2005-2006 – Researcher at CBM (Consortium for the Center of Molecular Biomedicine), Trieste
2006-2011 – Researcher (Beamline scientist) at the infrared beamline at Elettra – Sincrotrone Trieste, SISSI
2011-Present – Coordinator of the Chemical and Life Sciences branch of the infrared beamline at Elettra – Sincrotrone Trieste, SISSI
Brief research profile:
Expertise: Micro- and nano-fabrication technologies and their interfacing with biological systems; FTIR microspectroscopy of biological systems under physiological conditions; Complementation of FTIR microspectroscopy with diverse analytical techniques (AFM, micro-XRF, flow-cyrometry, …) for biological system characterization and analysis;
Publications and Dissemination: Over 60 articles in reviewed journals, 4 book chapters, over 20 invited talks and lectures at International Congresses, Conferences, Symposiums, Workshops, Universities and Research Centers. H-index – 20 (SCOPUS)
2006 M.S. Inorganic Chemistry, University of Trieste, Italy
2011 Ph.D. Nanotechnology – Experimental Physics, University of Trieste, Italy
2011-2014 – Research Fellow at Berkeley Synchrotron Infrared Structural Biology Program, LBNL, Berkeley
2015-Present – Researcher (Beamline scientist) at SISSI at Elettra – Sincrotrone Trieste
Brief research profile:
Expertise: Synchrotron Infrared Spectroscopy, FTIR Imaging, Microfluidics, Microfabrication, Chemical Characterization, Bacterial Characterization, Bacterial Community Analysis. Multivariate analysis, Python, R.
1998 – Ph.D. in Physics at the University of Grenoble
1998-1999 – Postdoc at the European Synchrotron (Grenoble, France)
1999-2015 – Senior Scientist at Elettra (Trieste, Italy)
2015 – Head of the Scientific Program of FERMI Free Electron Laser (Trieste, Italy)
Awards:
2012 – Kai Siegbahn Prize (Uppsala, Sweden);
2015 – Innovation Award on Synchrotron Radiation (Berlin, Germany);
2016 – Outstanding Scientist Award (Bari, Italy)
Brief research profile
Expertise: dynamics of disordered systems like: liquids, supercooled liquids, glasses and polymers; bio-related materials; samples in extreme thermodynamic conditions; surface science; Free Electron Laser related science (Nonlinear Optics, Four Wave Mixing, and Coherent Diffraction Imaging).
Publications and Dissemination: 140 articles in reviewed journals, 3 invited reviews and articles, Over 100 invited talks and plenary lectures at International Congresses, Conferences, Symposia, Workshops etc. H-index 33 (SCOPUS)
2004 Degree in Physics
2008 PhD in Physics
2008-2011 – Post doctoral position at Elettra – Sincrotrone Trieste, on the TIMEX TIMEX end-station at the FERMI free electron laser (FEL) facility in Trieste
2012-Present – Researcher (Beamline scientist) at the Inelastic Ultraviolet Scattering IUVS at Elettra – Sincrotrone Trieste
Brief research profile
Expertise: Structure and dynamics of disordered systems, in particular by using inelastic scattering techniques like Brillouin and Raman. Design and construction of vacuum-equipment and top-table optical systems. Competence in X-Ray photoemission and scanning probe microscopy. Publications and
Dissemination: Over 30 publications in reviewed international journals, several lectures at International Conferences, and workshops. H-index – 8 (SCOPUS)
1999-MsC. Msc in Electronic Engineering
2000-2003 – Ph.D. in Electronic Engineering (Politecnico di Milano, Milano, Italy)
2003-2005 – PostDoctoral Research Assistant at King’s College London (Department of Physics), London, UK
2005-2007 – PostDoctoral Research Assistant at C2RMF, Louvre Museum, Paris, France
2007-2011 – Researcher (Beamline scientist) at the TwinMic soft X-ray Microscopy beamline at Elettra – Sincrotrone Trieste, Trieste, Italy
2011-Present – Responsible of the TwinMic soft X-ray Microscopy beamline at Elettra – Sincrotrone Trieste, Trieste, Italy
Brief research profile
Expertise: Soft X-ray spectromicroscopy, X-ray Fluorescence, X-ray Imaging, Archaeometry. Complementation of soft X-ray Microscopy with diverse analytical techniques (AFM, FTIR, X-ray fluorescence at high energy, SEM…) for biological systems’ and materials’ characterization and analysis.
Publications and Dissemination: Over 100 articles in reviewed journals; an international patent concerning an innovative X-ray Diffraction (XRD) system; over 20 invited talks and lectures at International Congresses, Conferences, Symposiums, Workshops, Universities and Research Centers; academic teaching at Politecnico di Milano, King’s College London, University of Trieste and ICTP (Trieste). H-index – 18 (SCOPUS)
2008 – Master in Physics, Uzhhorod State University, Uzhhorod, Ukraine
2013 – PhD, Faculty of Mathematics and Physics, Charles University in Prague, Czech Republic
2010-2011 – Junior researcher, synchrotron Spring-8, Aioi, Japan
2011 – 2013 – Research Scientist, Faculty of Mathematics and Physics, Charles University in Prague, Czech Republic
2013 – Senior Researcher, Faculty of Mathematics and Physics, Charles University, Czech Republic
Brief research profile
Expertise: Carry out research in collaboration with visiting scientists as well as own research, and do the day-to-day management and running of the NAP-XPS laboratory in the frame of CERIC-ERIC Infrastructures. Current research is mainly focused on investigation of thin film catalysts suitable for fuel cell applications. Expert in the field of near-ambient pressure X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (NAP-XPS), synchrotron radiation photoelectron spectroscopy (SRPES), low energy electron diffraction (LEED), physical vapour deposition (PVD), magnetron sputtering, fuel cells, electrochemistry.
Publications and Dissemination: more than 43 publications in reviewed journals. H-index – 11 (WoS)
1989 – MsC. in Physics at the University of Pisa
1990-1993 – PhD Fellow at the University of Trieste, Physics Dept.
1991-1992 – Visiting Scientist at the Ludwing Maximilian University, München
1994 – Ph.D. in Condensed Matter Physics
1994-2000 – Researcher (Beamline Scientist) at the ESCA Miscroscopy Beamline of Elettra Sincrotrone Trieste
2000-2002 – Visiting Research Fellow at Princeton University (Chemistry Dept.)
2003-Present – Coordinator of the NanoInnovation Lab at Elettra Sincrotrone Trieste; Member of the Board of Experts of the PhD course in Nanotechnology, University of Trieste and of the PhD Course in Neurobiology at SISSA, Trieste
Brief research profile
Expertise: Surface functionalization and bio-functionalization; self-assembling; surface bio-recognition; cell biomechanics; Atomic Force Microscopy in liquid environment; Nanolithography; Fluorescence Microscopy; X-ray photoemission.
Publications and Dissemination: Over 60 articles in reviewed journals, over 30 invited talks and lectures at International Congresses, Schools, Universities and Research Centers. Organization of 3 International Schools in Nano-B ioscience and 2 International Workshops. H-index 18 (SCOPUS)
1991 MsC in Pharmaceutical Chemistry and Technology (University of Trieste)
1995 Ph.D. in Biochemistry (University of Trieste)
1995-2000 Postdoc in Biocrystallography at the Biozentrum, Basel (CH)
2001-2006 Senior Scientist in the R&D Dept. of Pharmacia/Pfeizer/NMS (Milan, IT).
2006-2007 Head of Biochemistry in NMS (Milan, IT).
2008 Sr Consultant for NMS, Art.11 Project coordinator (Milan/Trieste, IT).
2009-Present Senior Scientist in the Structural Biology Lab of Elettra.
2016-Present Head of the Protein Facility of Elettra
Brief research profile
Expertise: Molecular biology, protein biochemistry, biotechnology and structural biology (macromolecular crystallography). Prolonged experience in recombinant protein production technologies for basic research and industrial drug discovery applications. Research interests on different aspects of protein sciences and technologies, applied to molecular oncology and drug discovery. Experience as Project Leader in INTERREG Project (2007-2013 ITA-SLO Programme).
Publications and Dissemination: 30 articles in reviewed journals, one book, 2 book chapters, over 20 invited talks and lectures at International Congresses, Conferences, Symposiums, Workshops, Universities and Research Centers. H-index 22 (SCOPUS)
1994 – BSc. in Physics, Faculty of Physics University of Bucharest, Romania: Optical engineering, optical spectroscopy and laser technologies
1995 – MSc. in Physics, Faculty of Physics, University of Bucharest, Romania: Optical engineering, optical spectroscopy and laser technologies
2001 – Ph.D., University of Bucharest and University Louis Pasteur Strasbourg, France; Physics: thin films growth, structure and properties Work experience
1994-2010 – researcher/senior researcher at the National Institute of Materials Physics, Bucharest, Romania, analytical electron microscopy (TEM/HRTEM, STEM, SEM, EDS, EELS);
2010-present – Senior researcher rank I, Head of the Laboratory of Atomic Structures and Defects in Advanced Materials at the National Institute of Materials Physics, Bucharest, Romania
Visiting positions and Honors:
1997-2000 – PhD student at Louis Pasteur University, Strasbourg, France, Institute of Physics and Chemistry of Materials in Strasbourg – IPCMS (cotutelle)
Nov. 2001–Sep. 2002, post-doc at Claude Bernard University in Lyon, France; 2003-2007 – 18 months of secondments as visiting researcher at EMAT – University of Antwerp, Belgium
2009 – “CONSTANTIN MICULESCU” Prize of the Romanian Academy for 2007, Physics Section, on the subject “Extended structural defects in advanced materials”
Brief research profile
Expertise: TEM/HRTEM characterization of extended defects in crystalline materials. Quantitative HRTEM characterization of strain fields associated with extended defects and interfaces. Analytical microstructural characterization of advanced materials by HRTEM, STEM, EDS, EELS.
Publications and Dissemination: over 110 papers in ISI journals, one book, four book chapters. Over 60 participations in international congresses, conferences, symposia, workshops with invited talks, oral presentations and posters. H-index 18 (Web of Knowledge)
2005-2008 – B.Sc. in Physics at University of Oil and Gas, Faculty of Letters and Sciences, Specialization “Physics”
2008-2010 M.Sc. in Physics, University of Bucharest, Faculty of Physics, Specialization “Optic, Spectroscopy, Plasma and Lasers”
2011-2015 PhD in Physics, University of Bucharest, Faculty of Physics, Specialization “Solid State Physics”
2011-2016 – Scientific Research Assistant at National Institute of Materials Physics, Laboratory of Atomic Structures and Defects in Advanced Materials
”’2016-present – Scientific Research at National Institute of Materials Physics, Laboratory of Atomic Structures and Defects in Advanced Materials
Brief research profile
Expertise: The study of the extended defects, interfaces, strain field and chemical composition of inorganic materials using advanced analytical TEM investigations.
Publications and Dissemination: Over 30 articles in reviewed journals and over 10 talks at International Congresses, Conferences, Symposiums, Workshops, Universities and Research Centers. H-index – 7 (SCOPUS)
2010 – Ph.D. in Physics, University Claude Bernard Lyon, France ;
2008 – Master in Microstructure Imaging, University Claude Bernard Lyon, France; 2006 – Master in Optical Technologies, University Politehnica Bucharest, Romania.
2016-present – Senior Researcher Rank III, National Institute of Materials Physics, Magurele, Romania.
2004-2016 – Assistant Researcher, National Institute of Materials Physics, Magurele, Romania.
Brief research profile
Expertise: Microstructural characterization of nanoparticles in biological media. All transmission electron microscopy techniques.
Publications and Dissemination: 18 articles in reviewed journals, one book. H-index 5 (SCOPUS)
1992 – Master in Physics;
1996 – Ph.D. in Physics;
2008 – Assoc. Prof. Habilitation.
1996-2009 – Assistant Prof., Faculty of Mathematics and Physics, Charles University (Czech Republic)
2009–Present – Associate Prof., Faculty of Mathematics and Physics, Charles University (Czech Republic)
Visiting positions: 1993 – University Aix-Marseille III, France; 1997-1998 – Blaise Pascal University, France; 2005-2006 ICYS, NIMS, Japan.
Brief research profile
Expertise: Physico-chemical properties (structure, composition, morphology and reactivity) of surfaces and interfaces, thin films of metal-metal oxide systems (model systems as well as real nano-structured materials for catalysis, sensor and fuel cell application) with a focus on metal-substrate interaction and dimensional phenomena. Ion, electron and photon based spectroscopies and electron microscopy.
Publications and Dissemination: 100 publications in reviewed international journals, 1 book chapter, 1 Japan Patent, H-index – 24
1998 – Master in Physics, Uzhhorod State University, Uzhhorod, Ukraine 2001 – Ph.D. in Physics, Charles University, Prague, Czech Republic
2001 – 2004 – Research Fellowship at Elettra Synchrotron, Trieste, Italy
2005 – 2007 – Research Fellowship at National Institute for Materials Science, Tsukuba, Japan
2008 – present – Senior Researcher, Beamline Scientist at Materials Science Beamline at Elettra Synchrotron, employed by Charles University, Prague, Czech Republic
Brief research profile
Expertise: Author and co-author of 110 scientific publications on physical chemistry of surfaces and thin film physics. Carry out research in collaboration with visiting scientists as well as own research, and do the day-to-day management and running of the MSB beamline. Current interests include investigation of phenomena and physico-chemical properties of planar nano-scale size metal and metal oxide systems with respect to interaction with organic and bio molecules. Expert in all types of photoelectron spectroscopy, IR spectroscopy and diffraction techniques.
Publications and Dissemination: more than 110 publications in reviewed journals. H-index – 18 (SCOPUS)
Degree in Engineering of Materials, PhD in Industrial Engineering
2004-2005 – Grant Fellow at national Institute for Matter Physics, Trieste (TASC), Modena (S3), Italy
2006-2012 – Junior Scientist at Austrian Academy of Sciences, Graz, Austria
2012-present – Senior Scientist the Austrian SAXS beamline outstation at Elettra-Sincrotrone Trieste of the Institute of Inorganic Chemistry, Graz University of Technology, Graz, Austria. Responsible for scientific and technical matters of Deep X-ray Lithography beamline in a partnership between Elettra -Sincrotrone Trieste and Graz University of Technology.
Brief research profile
Expertise: Interdisciplinary combination of microfabrication and characterization techniques, in particular synchrotron SAXS and X-ray lithography, both for the construction of microfluidic devices as new sample environment, and for the development of novel materials for applications in chemistry and biology. Combination of bottom-up and top-down approaches for the development of new functionalized materials and structures with applications in biotechnology. The final goal is to obtain a spatially tailored functionality in microdevices.
Publications and Dissemination: More than 50 publications in reviewed international journals, 1 book chapter, 1 patent, 3 invited talks and lectures at International Conferences, Symposia and Workshops. H-index – 16
Publications
- Functionalized Mesoporous Thin Films for Biotechnology
Sartori B., Amenitsch H., & Marmiroli B., Micromachines, 2021, DOI. - Addressable Graphene Encapsulation of Wet Specimens on a Chip for Optical, Electron, Infrared, and X-ray based Spectromicroscopy Studies
Arble C., Guo H., Matruglio A., Gianoncelli A., Vaccari L., Birarda G., & Kolmakov A., Lab on a Chip, 2021, DOI - Structural and Mechanical Properties of Silica Mesoporous Films Synthesized Using Deep X-Rays: Implications in the Construction of Devices
Steinberg P. Y., Lionello D. F., Medone Acosta D. E., Zalduendo M. M., Amenitsch H., Granja L. P., Marmiroli B., Angelomé P.C. & Fuertes M. C., Frontiers in Materials, 8, 27, 2021, DOI - Structural study of the hydration of lipid membranes upon interaction with mesoporous supports prepared by standard methods and/or X-ray irradiation
Marmiroli B., Sartori B., Kyvik A., Ratera I., & Amenitsch H., Frontiers in Materials, 8, 275, 2021, DOI - Graphene liquid cells for multi-technique analysis of biological cells in water environment
Matruglio A., Zucchiatti P., Birarda G., Marmiroli B., D’Amico F., Kocabas C., Kiskinova M., Vaccari L., Journal of Istrumentation, 2018, 13 (5), DOI