Could you give a few information about yourself and your scientific background, including previous studies and obtained degrees?

I completed my BSc and MSc degrees in (Organic) Chemistry and Chemical Engineering at the National Graduate School of Chemical Engineering of Lyon in France. During my studies, I took a professional gap year at a small research lab in Biel, Switzerland, working in biopolymer chemistry and concluded my diploma thesis in the field of homogeneous catalysis and organic chemistry at ETH, in Zürich.

Could you provide details about your scientific research, and previous projects, listing your key expertise and skills? 

My skills lie in synthetic and analytical chemistry, with early work focused on the synthesis and characterization of lignin-based polyurethane foams, adapting the formulation for scale-up applications in collaboration with industrial partners. Semester projects during an exchange year involving the synthesis of novel chiral ligands for Cobalt catalysis and Actinide-based metal-organic frameworks further expanded my knowledge in organic and inorganic synthesis. My MSc thesis allowed me to undertake an independent research project involving the diastereoselective one-step construction of complex cyclic ethers from diketones using a metal-free catalyst.

What was the motivation for joining the Aureus project?

It is a multidisciplinary project that offers opportunities for learning and engaging with collaborators from diverse areas of expertise. It will also provide extensive training in fields I am currently less familiar with but keen to explore, such as structural biology.

What is the motivation and aim of your PhD project?

The project aims to develop an efficient and reliable automated method for synthesizing well-defined long-chain Wall Teichoic Acids (WTAs), which are located on the surface of S. aureus cell walls. Certain residues such as D-alanine are challenging to install, but are key fragments involved in interacting with the host immune system. This will also be studied with collaborators of the consortium.

Could you write a few sentences about yourself, your hobbies, interests? 

I love the outdoors: hiking, sailing and mountaineering are some of my favorite sports, although on a regular basis I run or go the gym. I do love a good beer sometimes too!