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Department of Pharmacology

 


Dr Ioanna Mela - Group Leader

Assistant Professor

Email: im337 [at] cam.ac.uk

Telephone: +44 (0)1223 762924 / Ex: 34042

Keywords

DNA nanotechnology, aptamers, antimicrobial drug delivery, atomic force microscopy

 

Investigator Biography

Dr Ioanna Mela studied Chemical Engineering with a specialisation in Biotechnology at the National Technical University of Athens, Greece. During that time, she undertook a student placement at Unilever Corporate Research at Colworth, where she learned how to use Atomic Force Microscopy. This led to a PhD in the Department of Pharmacology at the University of Cambridge, with Professor Robert Henderson. While working towards her PhD and through a collaboration with Professor Hiroshi Sugiyama at Kyoto University, she was introduced to DNA nanotechnology, and how DNA can be used as a versatile building material. She worked on this area during a Research Associate appointment at the Department of Pharmacology, combining it with high-speed Atomic Force Microscopy. In 2018 she moved to the Department of Chemical Engineering and Biotechnology at the University of Cambridge as a Research Associate where she developed state-of-the-art correlative atomic force microscopy with super-resolution microscopy platforms, with a focus on visualising biological specimens. In parallel, she explored further her interest in DNA nanotechnology and specifically in DNA nanostructures that can specifically target bacteria. In 2022 she was awarded a Royal Society University Research Fellowship, to set up her own laboratory in the Department of Chemical Engineering and Biotechnology at the University of Cambridge and pursue her interests in DNA nanotechnology for drug delivery. The same year, she was appointed as a proleptic Assistant Professor at the Department of Pharmacology, University of Cambridge.

Dr Ioanna Mela is also interested in translational research. She was awarded a Proof of Concept grant from the National Biofilms Innovation Centre in 2020, to investigate the potential of DNA nanostructures as drug-delivery vehicles that can target and penetrate oral biofilms.

She is a founding shareholder and advisory consultant for Enfold Health Limited. Enfold Health was founded in 2022 and is building on Dr Mela’s work in drug delivery.