Sarah is a postdoc in Marta Bally’s group in the Department of Clinical Microbiology. She uses her expertise in atomic force microscopy to study the mechanics of cells during viral infection.
Sarah studied Research in Chemistry at Leiden University (Netherlands). During her master thesis on coiled coil peptide complexes to induce membrane fusion, she became interested in studying fundamental aspects of biological processes, that could be applied to medicine.
Then, she obtained a doctorate in biophysical chemistry from the University of Göttingen, Germany. Here, she studied the effects of arginine oligopeptides on the physical properties of model membrane systems, to elucidate fundamental aspects of arginine-rich cell-penetrating peptides. During this time, she became a specialist in advanced microscopy techniques, particularly atomic force microscopy.
In June 2022, Sarah joined Marta Bally lab as a postdoc and changed to the field of physical virology, moving closer to medical applications of her research, within the Department of Clinical Microbiology. She switched from model membrane systems to living cells, and currently uses her expertise in atomic force microscopy to study the mechanics of cells during viral infection.
