On December 16th, our PhD researcher Lucía Mato defended very successfully her PhD Thesis entitled «Synthesis, characterization and biological behavior of hydrazones derived from pyridoxal and their vanadium complexes” at CICA – Interdisciplinary Center of Chemistry and Biology (University of A Coruña).
The Committee Members in charge of the examination were Prof. María Delfina Couce (University of Vigo, Spain), Prof. Miguel A. Maestro (University of A Coruña, Spain), and Prof. Maria Isabel Rodrigues Correia (Instituto Superior Técnico, University of Lisboa, Portugal).
We sincerely appreciate their work and dedication that day. In her thesis, Lucía, currently, Dr. Mato, presents the search of stable, low-toxicity vanadium metallopharmaceuticals. In particular, four hydrazone ligands derived from pyridoxal and their corresponding vanadium complexes were synthesized and characterized by different approaches, including elemental analysis, mass spectrometry, and infrared spectroscopy, to confirm the coordination of the metal to the ligands and the varied chemical speciation of vanadium in solution. Biological studies on lung cells and zebrafish organisms were also carried out to evaluate the biocompatibility of the new compounds.
Congratulations Lucía and best wishes for your future!