Journal of Materials Chemistry Blog

Journal of Materials Chemistry B, Materials Advances, Biomaterials Science, Nanoscale, and Materials Horizons  were delighted to sponsor 2 prizes each for ‘The 40th Annual Meeting of the Japan Society of Drug Delivery System’, which was held in Japan from July 9th – 11th.

Please join us in congratulating Takuma Yoshikawa, Takuto Toriumi, Mitsuru Ando, Heemin Chang, Seigo Kimura, Taiki Yamaguchi, Eiji Yuba, Jeong Hoon Ko, Kyung Min Park, and Anh T.N. Dao for being selected as the winners! Find out more about them below:

Takuma Yoshikawa completed his Ph.D. in engineering at Kyushu University (Japan) in 2020. During his Ph.D. training, he was a research fellow of the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science, a research fellowship for young scientists (DC1). After the completion of his Ph.D., he worked as a technical staff at Kyushu University developing new small molecule therapeutics for chronic kidney disease as a part of a collaborative research with a pharmaceutical company in Japan. Since March 2021, he has been a postdoctoral researcher at the University of Washington (Advisor: Prof. Dr. Patrick S. Stayton). His main project is the development of a long-acting injectable polymeric prodrug (drugamer) for pre-exposure prophylaxis of the human immunodeficiency virus. He is leading the prodrug monomer/drugamer synthesis, developing the drugamer formulation, and performing the pharmacokinetic studies in rats and non-human primates including the quantification of drug concentration by liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry.

Takuto Toriumi received his Ph.D. degree in Engineering from the University of Tsukuba, Japan, with support from the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science. He then joined Prof. Yukio Nagasaki’s lab at University of Tsukuba as a post-doctoral researcher. Currently, He is an assistant professor at Faculty of Materials for Energy in Shimane University. His research interest is the development of biomaterials to improve healthy life expectancy, and his experiments range from the synthesis of materials to their evaluation in cells and animals. His current main theme is design and evaluation with drug delivery systems using functional polymers with antioxidants or amino acids to safely and effectively improve exercise performance.

Seigo Kimura is an assistant professor in the Integrated Research Consortium on Chemical Sciences at Nagoya University, Japan. He specializes in drug delivery of nucleic acid-based therapeutics and earned his Ph.D. under Professor Hideyoshi Harashima at Hokkaido University, where he also completed his M.S. and B.S. His research focuses on creating lipid-based nanoparticles for targeted delivery of nucleic acids (RNA, DNA) to tissues and cells. He has been investigating the in vivo delivery mechanism of LNP, uncovering the role of endogenous factors in tissue selectivity. He is also conducting functional analysis of novel nucleic acid modalities (chemically modified mRNA, circular mRNA) using LNP for therapeutic applications, such as protein replacement and cancer vaccines.

Taiki Yamaguchi is a Doctoral Course Student at the Graduate School of Pharmacy, Tokyo University of Pharmacy and Life Sciences. He is sponsored by the JST SPRING scholarship, which covers the cost of living and research expenses. His study focuses on nucleic acid and gene delivery systems using ultrasound-responsive nanobubbles. This system aims to treat cancer and central nervous system diseases. He was awarded Seven Star Pharmacist Candidate Award 2022 from the Nagai Foundation Tokyo.

Eiji Yuba received BS degree from the Department of Applied Materials Science, Osaka Prefecture University (OPU), Japan in 2006. He received MS and PhD degrees from the Department of Applied Chemistry, OPU in 2008 and 2010, respectively. He worked as Assistant Professor of OPU, from 2010 to 2017 and as an Associate Professor from 2017 to date, in the Department of Applied Chemistry, OPU. Also, he stayed in the University of Chicago (Jeffrey Hubbell laboratory) as visiting scholar in 2019. He served as Fellow for Science and Technology Policy, Cabinet Office, Government of Japan from 2020 to 2023 and as Advisor to the President of Osaka Metropolitan University from 2022 to present. Recently he internally moved to the Department of Chemistry and Bioengineering as Principal Investigator. His research interests are functional polymer-based nanomaterials for biomedical applications including drug delivery, gene vectors, diagnosis and immunoengineering.

Dr. Dao received her Master’s and PhD degrees from the School of Materials Science at the Japan Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (JAIST) in 2011 and 2014, respectively. From 2014 to 2017, she worked as a Postdoctoral Researcher for the JST-ImPACT Project, Japan. From 2018 until 2022, she served as an Assistant Professor at Tohoku University (Japan) and was promoted to Associate Professor at Nagasaki University (Japan) in 2022. Dr. Dao has received various academic awards, including the Shiseido Female Scientist Research Grant (2021), the Tanaka Encouragement Award for Research Related to Precious Metals (2020), and a Young Scientist Fellowship at the 67th Lindau Nobel Laureate Meeting in Germany (2017). Her research focuses on nanostructures of noble metals and biopolymers for applications in biosensing, diagnostics, and cancer therapy. Dr. Dao specializes in creating highly functional materials by leveraging the components’ inherent strength and advanced fabrication techniques.

We are delighted to announce that nominations are now OPEN for the prestigious 2024 Journal of Materials Chemistry Lectureship. Do you know an outstanding emerging scientist in the field of materials chemistry who deserves recognition? Nominate them today for a chance to win this respected award!

Established in 2010, this international lectureship honours early-career scientists who have made significant contributions to the field of materials chemistry, with previous recipients including Shaojun Guo, Christopher Bettinger, Henry Snaith, Maria Escudero-Escribano and last year’s winner Jovana Milić.

For more information and details on eligibility criteria and how to nominate a candidate, please visit the Journal of Materials Chemistry Lectureship webpage.

The deadline for nominations is 5 June 2024

Nominate a candidate now

Find out more about our 2023 Lectureship winner, Dr Jovana Milić, and our two runners-up, Dr Kwabena Bediako and Dr Laure Biniek or why not check out our fantastic 2023 shortlisted candidates.

You are of course welcome to circulate this information more widely with any colleagues who might be interested in making a nomination.

We look forward to receiving your nominations!

Journal of Materials Chemistry A is delighted to welcome Professor Sayan Bhattacharyya from Indian Institute of Science Education and Research (IISER) Kolkata, India to their Advisory Board.

Professor Sayan Bhattacharyya, Indian Institute of Science Education and Research (IISER) Kolkata, India

Professor Sayan Bhattacharyya is a Professor of Chemical Sciences at the Indian Institute of Science Education and Research (IISER) Kolkata, India. He received his bachelor’s at Calcutta University, and his PhD degree at the Indian Institute of Technology, Kanpur, before he carried out his postdoctoral work in the US.

He joined the Indian Institute of Science Education and Research (IISER) Kolkata, India in April 2010, and has moved from Assistant Professor, to Professor of Chemical Sciences. His research focus is the design and synthesis of nanoscale functional materials, elucidation of their fundamental electronic, optical and other physical properties, and the development of processes that lead to specific alternative energy solutions.

Here is what he had to say about his appointment to Journal of Materials Chemistry A:

• What does it mean to you to join the Advisory Board of Journal of Materials Chemistry A?

I am delighted to join the Advisory Board of Journal of Materials Chemistry A, which has set very high standards. Over the years, we have been publishing our research here, and reading high-quality articles by other research groups. The advisory board role will allow me to help the journal make decisions to promote seminal or outstanding scientific findings and influence future research.

• What is the current biggest challenge you face in your field?

Mankind has to solve the burgeoning problem of climate change, not only in the reaction flask at the laboratory scale but implementing the proven concepts on a societal level for bridging the gap between academia and industry. A systematic approach should be in place to identify and promote the best solutions, published in journals, which are often overlooked.

• What advances in your field are you most excited about?

I’m most excited about the immense potential of solar and thermal energy for solving the energy and environmental crisis. Secondly, advanced materials design is necessary for successfully replicating or mimicking the complexity and efficiency of natural processes. New inorganic / organic, and hybrid materials design is necessary with an understanding of their structural and electronic characteristics.

• Why do you feel that researchers should choose to publish their work in Journal of Materials Chemistry A?

Journal of Materials Chemistry A provides an ideal interdisciplinary forum, with a broad range of topics, for publishing the path-breaking, most-read and most-cited research articles. It caters to quality science in the field of energy conversion and storage applications. The editorial board members are very active, and provide rigorous service through peer review to accelerate the dissemination of scientific findings.

• Where do you see the materials chemistry field in the next 10 years?

I expect a comprehensive integration of materials chemistry into various domains of science and technology, demonstrating its interdisciplinary potential, and underscoring the interconnected nature of scientific advancements. Materials chemistry will play a central role in fields ranging from artificial intelligence and engineering to social sciences, reflecting its broad applications. The central role of materials chemistry can be envisioned through the collaborative efforts of researchers across different branches of science and technology, working towards the societal solutions to energy and environmental challenges.

 

Check out some of Professor Sayan Bhattacharyya’s recent publications in Royal Society of Chemistry journals:

• M. Maji, N. Dihingia, S. Dutta, S. Parvin, S. K. Pati, S. Bhattacharyya, Charge Transfer Modulated Heterointerface for Hydrogen Production at All pH. J. Mater. Chem. A 2022, 10, 24927-24937.
• R. Majee, Q. A. Islam, S. Mondal, S. Bhattacharyya, Electrochemically Reversible Lattice with Redox Active A-site of Double Perovskite Oxide Nanosheets to Reinforce Oxygen Electrocatalysis. Chem. Sci. 2020, 11, 10180-10189.
• S. Parvin, A. Kumar, A. Ghosh, S. Bhattacharyya, Earth-Abundant Bimetallic Catalyst Coated Metallic Nanowire Grown Electrode with Platinum-Like pH-Universal Hydrogen Evolution Activity at High Current Density. Chem. Sci. 2020, 11, 3893-3902.
• Q. A. Islam, R. Majee, S. Bhattacharyya, Bimetallic Nanoparticle Decorated Perovskite Oxide for State-of-the-art Trifunctional Electrocatalysis. J. Mater. Chem. A 2019, 7, 19453-19464.
• A. Kumar, D. K. Chaudhary, S. Parvin, S. Bhattacharyya, High Performance Duckweed-derived Carbon Support to Anchor NiFe Electrocatalysts for Efficient Solar Energy Driven Water Splitting. J. Mater. Chem. A 2018, 6, 18948-18959.

Join us in welcoming Sayan to our Advisory Board!