Dr. Nikitia Mexia

Profile

As a pharmacist by education, I received my BSc, MSc and PhD Diplomas from the Department of Pharmacy of National and Kapodistrian University of Athens in Greece, with specialisation in the field of Natural Products Chemistry. My postgraduate research projects were focused on bioactive compounds produced by fungi belonging to the human skin microbiota and involved their isolation, structure elucidation, total synthesis and screening. As a postdoctoral researcher I engaged with the synthesis of natural products’ analogues that can act as anticancer agents or epigenetic modulators.

I joined the University of Leeds in 2017 and since then I have worked on projects funded by BBSRC, EPSRC, IUK and the Clothworkers’ Company. They involved the green synthesis of natural colourants with interest for food and cosmetics industries, textiles applications of natural pigments and smart textiles. I have also collaborated with Unilever on the design and testing of novel hair care products and in 2021 I was a recipient of the Michael Beverley Innovation Fellowship from the University of Leeds that allowed me to explore biocatalytic reactions in flow.

Through the Erasmus Programme I visited the Faculty of Pharmacy of the Paris Cité University in France and, via EU-funded projects, I was seconded in laboratories in Brazil (FIOCRUZ, Salvador, Bahia; Federal University of Santa Catarina, Florianopolis) and Bulgaria (Galen-N Ltd.; VenusRoses LabSolutions Ltd.; Bulgarian Academy of Sciences). Outcomes of my research have been presented in international conferences, and awarded for their academic excellence, and also published in peer-reviewed journals.

Research interests

My main research interest is the identification of useful natural products in plants and micro-organisms and the subsequent design and synthesis of analogues of them for further use in the food, cosmetics, textiles or pharmaceutical industries. I am also interested in the valorisation of industrial by-products, the development of eco-friendly extraction procedures and the investigation of green and sustainable reaction pathways for synthesis of the target compounds. Further to that, I find fascinating the study of the properties of natural dyes and the potential of natural materials for applications on smart textiles. These areas are indicative of my background and my experience and I am keen on broadening my knowledge fields with future collaborations.

<h4>Research projects</h4> <p>Any research projects I'm currently working on will be listed below. Our list of all <a href="https://ahc.leeds.ac.uk/dir/research-projects">research projects</a> allows you to view and search the full list of projects in the faculty.</p>

Qualifications

• BSc (DPharm) in Pharmacy, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens (NKUA)
• MSc in Synthesis and Isolation of Natural Products, Department of Pharmacy, NKUA
• PhD in Natural Products Chemistry, Department of Pharmacy, NKUA

Professional memberships

• Panhellenic Association of Pharmacists