Loving one’s work, unfortunately the privilege of a few, represents the best, most concrete approximation of happiness on Earth...
Claudia Bonfio
Group Leader
Biography
I was born in Siena, a beautiful medieval city in Tuscany, mostly known for the wine produced in the surroundings. I completed my BSc and MSc studies in Chemistry and my PhD in Biomolecular Sciences in late 2017, working on the origin and catalytic activity of ancient proteins. Later, as a Marie Sklodowska Curie Fellow, I joined the MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology, where I looked into the chemical origin of modern cells. After a short stay at the University of Cambridge as an 1851 Research Fellow, exploring prebiotic membrane signalling, ISIS welcomed me to start my independent career. In September 2024, with my group, I moved back to Cambridge to make the Department of Biochemistry our new home. We are currently working on the design and development of functional primitive cells capable of Darwinian evolution.
Team
Fidan Rahmatova
PhD Student
prebiotic lipid synthesis
Krishnakavya Thaipurayil Madanan
PhD Student
primitive liposomes
Simran Dhanwantri
PhD Student
coacervate-liposome interactions
David Russell
Postdoc
prebiotic lipid synthesis
Rob Ives
Postdoc
prebiotic lipid synthesis
Álvaro López-Acosta
Postdoc
lipid photodamage and membrane biophysics
Muhammad Ghufran Rafique
Oppenheimer Research Fellow
primitive coacervates
Surashree Goswami
Postdoc
peptide-membrane interactions
Natsumi Noda
Akika Altman-Chandler
MPhil Student
ribozyme-membrane interactions
Sofia Mezzetti
MSc student, University of Bologna
peptide-membrane interactions
Alumni
Fatma (Nina) Mihoubi, PhD Student (University of Strasbourg), 2026
Anna Luz Gomezová, MSc Student (Max Planck School Matter to Life – Molecular Systems Science and Engineering), 2026
Alex Papasavvas, MPhil in Planetary Science and Life in the Universe (University of Cambridge), 2026
Holly Copeland, MPhil in Planetary Science and Life in the Universe (University of Cambridge), 2026
Mia Cowley, Part II Biochemistry Student (University of Cambridge), 2026
Mafalda Merladet Moreno, Part II Biochemistry Student (University of Cambridge), 2026
Sam Brown, Part III Chemistry student (University of Cambridge), 2026
Tilly Leathart, Part III Chemistry student (University of Cambridge), 2026
Amy Lawson, Part III Chemistry student (University of Cambridge), 2026
Yuhan Li, PhD Student (University of Strasbourg), 2025
Rahma Ghani, MSc Student (CSC Graduate School, University of Strasbourg), 2025
Karina Nakashima, Rubicon Fellow (University of Cambridge), 2025
Yaam Deckel, MPhil Student (University of Cambridge), 2025
Jiashu Li, MSc student (Université Paris Sciences et Lettres (PSL)), 2025
Callum Harrison, Part II Biochemistry student (University of Cambridge), 2025
E White, Part II Biochemistry student (University of Cambridge), 2025
Maiia Aleksandrova, PhD student (University of Strasbourg), 2025 – now PDRA at EPSCI Paris
Mark Ely Namoro, MSc student (University of Strasbourg), 2024
Malak Jaber, MSc student (University of Strasbourg), 2024
Lucile Schnoebelen, BSc student (University of Strasbourg), 2023
Elif Su Özkök, BSc student, Summer Internship (Bilkent University), 2023
Jiashu Li, BSc student, Summer Internship (University of Strasbourg), 2023
Filippo Ruggiero, Erasmus+ student (University of Rome Tor Vergata), 2023
Valeria Boide-Trujillo, MSc student (University of Strasbourg), 2023
Sophia Seredyuk, BSc student, Summer Internship (Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv), 2022
Sergiu Bicic, MSc student (University of Strasbourg), 2022
Jordan Wasnaire, Erasmus+ student (KU Leuven), 2022