Anna Aliberti

Anna Aliberti (A.A.) obtained her Master’s degree in Chemistry with full marks and honours (110/110 cum laude) from the University of Salerno in December 2006. In 2008, she completed a second-level postgraduate Master’s programme in “Drug Design and Synthesis” at the University of Siena, and in 2013, she earned her PhD in “Materials and Structural Engineering” from the University of Naples Federico II.

A.A. has developed a distinctive research career integrating engineering methods and technologies to address challenges in medicine and the life sciences. Her expertise specifically encompasses the design, development, and functional assessment of technologies and devices for biomedical applications.

She initially contributed to research on photocrosslinkable systems at the CNR Institute for Composite and Biomedical Materials. She subsequently joined the Italian Institute of Technology (IIT) in Naples, where she conducted cutting-edge research on encoded microgels for nucleic acid and protein detection, with particular emphasis on the development of multifunctional, multiplexed systems for molecular diagnostics.

Since 2013, she has continued her scientific career at the University of Sannio and the Regional Information and Communication Technology Centre (CeRICT), working within the Optoelectronics Group of the Department of Engineering. Here, she has further strengthened her expertise in the study, design, and validation of novel technologies and devices, including optical fibre biosensors integrated with smart, stimuli-responsive materials for diagnostic and therapeutic applications. This work reflects her extensive experience in integrating engineering technologies for biology and medicine. She has also actively contributed to the activities of the Centre for Nanophotonics and Optoelectronics for Human Health (CNOS), a key infrastructure for the advanced characterisation and validation of photonic materials and devices for biomedical applications.

Her main scientific contributions include:

• The design and fabrication of optical devices for the analysis of biological systems through highly sensitive detection of miRNAs, DNA, metal ions, and protein biomarkers in complex solutions.

• The integration of stimuli-responsive microgels with optical cavities on fibre tips to develop advanced technologies for diagnostics and controlled drug delivery.

• The development of patented bio-optical devices for targeted drug delivery through optical stimulation (PCT/IB2017052533, 2017).

Her scientific activity is supported by an extensive network of national and international collaborations and has resulted in numerous publications in high-impact indexed journals, including significant contributions as a co-corresponding author, as well as co-inventorship of patents. Her work is characterised by a strongly interdisciplinary approach that brings together chemistry, biotechnology, photonics, and materials engineering to investigate structure–property relationships in biomaterials and develop innovative solutions.