Ortiz Receives Sloan Foundation Research Grant

Published:

June 29, 2023

Anika Jane Beamer ’22

A woman in a blue shirt and glasses smiles. She is in front of a dark grey blackdrop.

The seed grant will allow Ortiz to launch a new line of research and apply her expertise in nanoparticle synthesis to the creation of “nanozymes."

Corasi Ortiz, assistant professor of chemistry, has received a Seed Grant of $7,500 from the Social Science Research Council's Sloan Scholars Mentoring Network (SSMN), with funds provided by the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation. The grant will allow Ortiz to launch a new line of research and apply her expertise in nanoparticle synthesis to the creation of “nanozymes” — ultrafine particles that can be used to catalyze biochemical reactions in place of enzymes.

While a graduate student in chemistry at Purdue University, Ortiz was named a Sloan Scholar and invited to join the Sloan Minority Ph.D. Program, a scholarship program which supports the graduate education of underrepresented scholars in STEM disciplines. Upon their doctoral graduation, these scholars continue to receive support via the Sloan Scholars Mentoring Network.

As an active Sloan Scholar, Ortiz has access to leadership training, professional development, networking, mentoring, and competitive grant opportunities like the one funding her recent award. The SSMN grant provides seed funding to Ortiz’ laboratory, allowing her to expand her research from the synthesis of nanoparticles (extremely small particles) to their use as enzyme substitutes in biochemical reactions.

“Nanozymes can be used to catalyze reactions that are naturally mediated by enzymes,” Ortiz explains. As these particles are often easier to isolate and more stable than natural enzymes, they may be extremely useful across both basic and applied biochemistry research. A bioanalytical and biophysical chemist herself, Ortiz wants to develop nanozymes that can be used in essential techniques such as biosensing and immunoassays.

This summer, Ortiz and her MAP students, Luka Mikek ’24 and Eva Carchidi ’24, are synthesizing gold nanoparticles and testing their ability to mimic the glucose oxidase enzyme that is commonly used as a biosensor to measure glucose levels. Her research team is also studying whether silver nanoparticles function as a replacement for peroxidase, an enzyme that catalyzes the oxidation by hydrogen peroxide of various substrates and is used in a wide array of analytical techniques. This research, supported by funding from the Sloan grant, will enable Ortiz to obtain preliminary data that can be used to acquire future competitive awards for her work.

Congratulations, Corasi Ortiz!