Shima Shahrad is a promising researcher specializing in biomaterials, nanomedicine and targeted drug delivery systems. Her academic journey began with a focus on synthesizing spherical mesoporous silica nanoparticles (MSNs) using the sol-gel method, exploring their potential in drug delivery. This foundational work sparked her interest in nanotechnology applications for cancer treatment. During her master's research at Noshirvani University of Technology, Shahrad developed MUC1 aptamer-functionalized PLA-PEG nanocarriers to target lung cancer cells specifically. This innovative project demonstrated enhanced cellular uptake and cytotoxicity in MUC1-positive lung cancer cells, showcasing her ability to design advanced targeted drug delivery systems. Notably, her work in this area resulted in a publication in a prestigious Nature journal, highlighting the significance of her contributions to the field. Shahrad is a research fellow at the University of Tehran and a research scientist at i3S in Porto, Portugal. She is developing her project on miRNA delivery systems for treating skin fibrosis, focusing on therapeutic microRNA approaches to manage fibrotic skin diseases using nanoparticle-based carriers. Her diverse research experiences and commitment to advancing nanomedicine make her a promising candidate for impactful contributions to experimental molecular and regenerative medicine.

• Skilled in cell culture methods, MTT assay, and various other cell and molecular biology techniques • Skilled in the design, synthesis, and characterization of nanoparticles and nanomaterials, such as silica nanoparticles, and polymeric nanostructures etc. • Skilled in synthesis methods, namely in ring-opening polymerization, melt condensation polymerization, single/double emulsion, and sol-gel method • Skilled in the analysis of results of FESEM, TEM, FTIR, H-NMR, N2 adsorption-desorption • Skilled in laboratory types of equipment operation, such as rotary evaporator(rotavap), zeta sizer(DLS), and UV-vis spectrophotometer • Excellent oral and written communication skills in English and Farsi

https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7532-0637