Team Members

Marie Dannay

I hold a PhD in photobiology, during which I studied photoprotection in the green microalga Chlamydomonas reinhardtii. My current work now focuses on developing genetic switches to control the expression of valuable molecules in the chloroplast of Chlamydomonas. This research aims to enable precise and efficient bioengineering in algal systems in the future.

Vito Margaritondo

BBSRC PhD student - Italy

I'm an EASTBIO CASE PhD student at the University of Edinburgh, working in collaboration with Green Bioactives Ltd. My research focuses on engineering conifer cell cultures to sustainably produce high-value compounds like monoterpenoids, using Agrobacterium-based transformation and chemical treatments.

Cristina Ponce-Lilly

EASTBio PhD student - Ecuador

My PhD project (EASTBIO DTP) will be focused on the use of CRISPR as a tool for precision editing in Chlamydomonas reinhardtii and we will explore the underlying mechanisms related to DNA repair, epigenetics, and in the future, potentially apply this tool for metabolic engineering for biotechnological applications. 

Charlotte von Koppenfels 

iBiolC PhD student - Germany

Charlotte obtained her BSc in Biochemistry from Edinburgh University. For her PhD project in collaboration with ScotBio she is working to develop Chlamydomonas reinhardtii as an industrial chassis for the production of high value biochemicals.