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Novalix PhD Prize for Excellence in Chemistry in Life Sciences Research

Awardees Announced!

The "Novalix PhD Prize for Excellence in Chemistry in Life Sciences Research" is an EFMC-YSN Partner Prize given annually, with the aim to recognise outstanding research in medicinal chemistry and chemical biology, executed by early career researchers during their thesis work. 
 
The prizes will consist of a diploma and a money prize of 1000€ for the winner, 300€ for the runner-up and 200€ for the third place. The winner will also be invited to deliver an oral presentation at the EFMC Young Scientists’ Symposium (formerly EFMC-YMCS) and will receive support for registration and travel expenses (up to a maximum of 500€) necessary to receive the prize, present the prize lecture, and attend the Symposium.

Novalix PhD Prize for Excellence in Chemistry in Life Sciences Research 2026

The review committee is proud to announce the names of the awardee of the first edition.

  • Winner: Camilla Scarpellini (University of Antwerp, Belgium)
Camilla Scarpellini obtained her Master's degree in Pharmacy from the University of Bologna in 2017, following a thesis project in the research groups of Prof. Laufer and Prof. Koch at the University of Tübingen, Germany. In 2018, she joined the research group of Prof. Koen Augustyns at the University of Antwerp as a PhD student funded through the EU Horizon 2020 Marie Sk''.chr('322').''odowska-Curie Action IT-DED³ programme. Her doctoral research focused on the discovery and optimisation of novel small-molecule inhibitors of ferroptosis and necroptosis with improved pharmacokinetic properties. Throughout this period, she gained extensive international experience through research internships and secondments in academia and industry across Europe and the Middle East. After completing her PhD in 2023, she continued her research as a postdoctoral researcher in the Augustyns group, advancing ferroptosis inhibitors from lead optimisation towards preclinical development and translational applications. This work has led to the discovery and development of first-in-class ferroptosis inhibitors, resulting in high-impact publications, patent applications, and the establishment of the spin-off company FiriX Therapeutics.

  • Runner-up: Marc Panosetti (University of Oxford, United Kingdom)

Marc trained in molecular and organic chemistry at Université Côte d’Azur in Nice, where he first worked on RNA-targeting small molecules prepared via multicomponent reaction chemistry. He then completed a PhD in medicinal chemistry with Dr Maria Duca (Université Côte d’Azur, Nice), designing inhibitors of oncogenic microRNAs. During his PhD, he spent time at the Italian Institute of Technology in Genova with Dr Benedetto Grimaldi, gaining experience in molecular and cell biology and strengthening the chemistry–biology interface of his work. Marc is now a Postdoctoral research associate in Professor Angela Russell’s group at the University of Oxford, where he works on small-molecule utrophin modulators for Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy. Alongside his research, he is involved in early-career scientific networks as a founding member of the Young French Chemical Biologists (YFCB) Network and as communication officer for the EFMC Young Scientists Network.

  • Third Place: Ainoa Guinart Planellas (ETH Zürich, Switzerland)

Ainoa obtained her BSc in Nanotechnology from the Autonomous University of Barcelona. During her early research training, she carried out internships at the Catalan Photonics Institute (ICFO) in Barcelona and the iNANO Center in Denmark, where she worked on plasmonic gold nanoparticles for lab-on-a-chip cancer detection applications. She subsequently moved to the UK to pursue an MSc in Nanomedicine at Imperial College London. She later joined the group of Nobel Laureate Prof. Ben Feringa in the Netherlands, where she completed her PhD in February 2025. Her doctoral research focused on the development and mechanistic study of molecular motors and photoswitches in confined biological systems, bridging supramolecular chemistry, nanotechnology, and biophysics. Since April 2026, Ainoa has been an EMBO Postdoctoral Fellow in the Complex Materials group at ETH Zurich, where her current research focuses on the development of light-responsive adaptive materials and dynamic bioinspired systems.


This Prize is supported by:

     
       

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