Polysaccharide-research in the Sunshine State Florida

Our former PhD Cătălin Voiniciuc becomes associate professor at the renowned University of Florida

Cătălin Voiniciuc was awarded the Jülich Excellence Prize for young researchers from the Forschungszentrum Jülich which was an early step of his successful career in 2017.

Cătălin Voiniciuc was awarded his doctorate degree in 2017 with summa cum laude in the group of Prof. Björn Usadel at Forschungszentrum Jülich/RWTH Aachen. After 2,5 years as a scientist at Heinrich Heine University in Düsseldorf in the group of Prof. Marcus Pauly, he became leader of his junior group, the „Designer Glycans Lab“ at Leibniz-Institute of Plant Biochemistry in Halle (Saale). Here he investigates with his team, how plant cell walls and its components cellulose and hemicellulose are assembled and modified. Hemicellulose is composed of diverse polysaccharides. His research directs to the identification of enzymes and mechanisms involved in the modification of such polysaccharides, which then can be of further use for industrial purpose and for plant breeding.
Now, Cătălin will become an associate professor for synthetic biology at the renowned University of Florida, Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS). Congratulations, thanks for cooperation and good success in the sunshine state Florida!