People

The group currently consists of 1 Professor, 3 postdoctoral fellows, 3 PhD students, 4 Masters student and 1 administrative assistant.

Postdoctoral Fellows (3)

Quentin Dherbassy (PhD 2017, Strasbourg)

Quentin received his PhD in 2017 in the group of Prof. Françoise Colobert, working alongside Dr. Joanna Wencel-Delord (CNRS, Strasbourg, France). His doctoral studies focused on the control of axial chirality by sulfoxide‐directed C−H activation. He joined the Procter Group (University of Manchester, UK) as a PDRA in 2018, focusing on borylative copper‐catalyzed asymmetric multicomponent reactions. He then joined our group in December 2020, where he is working on the prebiotic origins and functions of biological cofactors. Outside of work and science, he likes music, enjoys playing the keyboard as well as listening and discovering new artists at live performances. He also practices rock climbing, as well as the occasional online game.

Noemi Nogal-Rodriguez (PhD 2024, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid)

Noemí received her PhD in Organic Chemistry in 2024 under the supervision of Prof. Andrés de la Escosura (UAM, Spain). Her PhD studies focused on the study of new prebiotic systems from which life could emerge in a primitive Earth context. During her thesis, she spent three months in the group of Prof. Mathieu Surin (UMONS, Belgium) which focused on the supramolecular study of self-assemblies of nucleobase-arylazopyrazole photoswitches along DNA templates. In June 2024 she joined the Moran group, where she works on the prebiotic origins of biological cofactors. Outside of work and science, she enjoys hiking and canoeing.

Anas Abu Raed (PhD 2024, Ben Gurion University)

Anas received his Ph.D. from Ben-Gurion University in the group of Anat Milo, where he investigated multicomponent carbonyl condensation reactions to uncover new reactivity patterns and explored asymmetric organocatalysis through the design and study of secondary-sphere-modified catalysts to enhance activity and stereoselectivity. He joined our group in December 2024 as a postdoctoral researcher studying the chemical origins of life through non-enzymatic metabolic networks. Outside the lab, Anas enjoys playing soccer, listening to music, and watching movies.

PhD Students (3)

Maciej Piejko (MSc 2021, Strasbourg)

Maciej was born in Créteil near Paris but spent most of his life in Poland where he obtained his bachelor’s degree in chemistry at the University of Warsaw. He then moved to Strasbourg to pursue a Masters in the CSC Graduate School and started his PhD in the Moran group in October 2021 on Vibrational Strong Coupling (VSC). Being himself half-Polish, half-French, he enjoys the multicultural environment and learning new languages. Outside of the lab he has many other passions including sailplanes, playing piano and cooking.

Shunjiro Sodei (MSc 2022, Tokyo Institute of Technology)

Shunjiro was born and raised in Miyagi, Japan. He obtained a BSc in Earth Science at Kyoto University in 2020, and then an MSc in Chemistry in 2022 at the Tokyo Institute of Technology’s Earth-Life Science Institute. In July 2022, he joined the team as a PhD student with a French Government Scholarship to work on prebiotic chemistry. In his spare time, he enjoys listening to music, playing jazz drums, and playing video games.

Sinan Bascil (MSc 2023, Strasbourg)

Sinan was born in Fontainebleau near Paris but spent most of his life in Turkey. After graduating from the French International School, he moved to Saint-Nazaire where he obtained a technical diploma in chemical engineering. Sinan then earned his Bachelor’s degree in Physical Chemistry and Master’s degree in Physical Chemistry and Materials from the University of Strasbourg. In October 2023, he started his PhD in the Moran lab in Strasbourg and will move to Ottawa in 2024. Outside the lab Sinan enjoys cooking, reading and hiking.

Masters Students (4)

Bora Basar (BSc 2024, Ottawa)

Bora was born and raised in Istanbul, Turkey. He moved to Canada in 2017 and spent his high school and university years here. He completed his BHSc in the University of Ottawa in 2024. He interned in the Moran Lab in the summer of 2023 during his bachelor’s degree, and is currently working towards his Master’s degree funded by an Ontario Graduate Scholarship. In his spare time, he enjoys working out, playing video games, and long-distance running.

Rosemary Karn (BSc 2024, University of Ottawa)

Rosemary was born and raised on the west coast of Newfoundland. She earned her Honours BSc in Biomedical Sciences Specializing in Medicinal Chemistry from the University of Ottawa in 2023. In the fall of 2025, she began her MSc in the Moran Lab, where she is currently researching prebiotic chemistry. When she is not in the lab, Rosemary enjoys crocheting, reading, and biking.

Marcus Vaillancourt (BSc 2025, Acadia University)

Marcus is from Quispamsis, New Brunswick. He studied at Acadia University, earning a BSc and completing an honours project in physical organic photochemistry. Taking an interest in prebiotic chemistry, he joined the Moran lab in September 2025 as a Masters student studying a nonenzymatic rTCA cycle. Outside the lab Marcus enjoys playing ultimate frisbee, reading, and hiking.

Jack Cottingham (BSc 2025, Carleton University)

Jack was born and raised in Ottawa. He received an Honours BSc in Chemistry from Carleton University in February 2025. In May 2025, he joined the Moran lab at the University of Ottawa as an MSc student and is currently working on prebiotic chemistry. Apart from the lab, some of his interests include aviation, hiking, traveling, and amateur geology.

Administrative Assistant (Strasbourg)

Annia Bertrand

Former CNRS Research Scientists (Assistant or Associate Professors)

Kamila Muchowska (2019-2022). Current: Associate in integrative consulting, McKinsey, London, UK.

David Leboeuf (2019-2024). Current position: Group leader, LIMA, University of Strasbourg, France. Check out his personal website.

Former Postdoctoral Fellows

Florian Falk (2012-2013). French Embassy fellow. After: BaChem, Basel, Switzerland Current position: Technical Outsourcing Leader, Roche, Basel Switzerland.

Malik Hellal (2012-2015). Marie Curie fellow. Current position: Director of Chemistry R&D, PolyPlus-Transfection, Illkirch, France.

Leandro Cotos-Muñoz (2014-2015). Current position: BNF Programme, ETH Zurich.

Edward Richmond (2014-2018). Leverhulme Trust fellow. Current position: Laboratory leader, BASF, Ludwigshafen, Germany.

Jan N. Gorges (2018-2019). Current position: Laboratory leader, BASF, Ludwigshafen, Germany.

Kamila Muchowska (2016-2019). After: CNRS Research Scientist (Research Assistant Professor), Strasbourg, France (www.muchowska.com) (2019-2022).

Robin Isnard (2020). Current position: Chemical Engineer, Eurofins, Aix-en-Provence, France.

Abhijit Sau (2018-2020) Marie Curie postdoc VSC_Cat. Current position: Assistant professor, IIT Hyderabad, Hyderabad, India (group website).

Ankita Malik (2019-2021) Current position: Scientist, Tacalyx, Berlin, Germany.

Nicolas Zeidan (2020-2022) Marie Curie postdoc NonEnzymatic. Current position: Senior scientist, Roche, Basel, Switzerland.

Marie Vayer (2020-2022) Current position: CNRS Research Scientist (Research Assistant Professor), Paris-Saclay University, France (LinkedIn page).

Silvana Pinna (2022-2023). Current position: VP of R & D, Sparsec Spaceflight, Stockholm, Sweden.

Robert Mayer (DFG Postdoctoral Fellow, 2021-2023; Current position: Junior group leader, TU Munich (group website).

Weiqiang Chen (2022-2024).

Yannick Geiger (2024). Current position: Junior professor, University of Strasbourg, France (group website).

Max Van Hoof (2023-2024, with David Leboeuf). Current position: NovAliX, Braine l’Alleud, Belgium.

Former PhD Students

Eléna Wolf (2012-2015). MRT Fellow. After: Postdoc at BASF JONAS (2015-2017). Current position: Laboratory leader, BASF, Ludwigshafen, Germany.

Marian Dryzhakov (2012-2016). Région Alsace fellow. After: JSPS Postdoc at University of Tokyo, Japan (Prof. Makoto Fujita). Current position: Research Engineer, Elix, Tokyo, Japan.

Sreejith Varma (2015-2018). ERC PhD student. After: Postdoc at Charité Hospital, Berlin, Germany (Prof. Markus Ralser). Now: Assistant Professor, IISER Trivandrum, India.

Vuk Vukovic (2015-2019). MRT Fellow. Current position: European Directorate for the Quality of Medicines, Council of Europe, Strasbourg, France.

Lucas Lethuillier (2016-2019). ERC PhD student. After: Industrially-funded postdoc working on a collaboration between Moran/Ebbesen labs and Solvay. Current: Expressive E Software, Marseille, France.

Elodie Chevallot-Beroux (2016-2019). ERC PhD student. After: Research scientist, Inovame, Marlenheim, France. Current: FI Group, Lyon, France.

Florent Noel (2017-2020). Région Grand-Est PhD student. After: Postdoc, Dr. Géraldine Masson group, Paris, France. Current position: Development engineer, Sopria Steria, Villeneuve-d’Ascq, France.

Paul Chatelain (2017-2021). MRT Fellow. Current position: Senior Process Engineer, ASM International, Helsinki, Finland.

Shaofei Zhang (2017-2021). Chinese Scholarship Council PhD student. Current position: Scientist, GenScript, Nanjing, China.

Jing Yi (2018-2022). Chinese Scholarship Council PhD student. Current position: Vertavie (startup), China.

Harpreet Kaur (2019-2023). Current position: Postdoc with Sheref Mansy, University of Alberta, Canada.

Sophia Rauscher (2019-2023). Marie Skłodowska-Curie ITN PhD student. Current position: BaChem, Basel, Switzerland.

Cyprien Muller (2020-2024). CSC Graduate School Scholarship. Current position: ISTA Postdoc with Prof. Rafal Klajn, ISTA, Vienna, Austria.

Valentyn Pozhydaiev (2021-2024). CSC Graduate School Scholarship. Current position: Postdoc with Prof. Jean-Marie Lehn, University of Strasbourg.

Emilie Werner (2020-2024). ENS Fellowship. Current position: Postdoc with Prof. Igor Larrosa, University of Manchester, UK.

Joris Zimmermann (2020-2024). MRT Fellowship. Current position: Postdoc with Dr. Oliver Maguire, University of Birmingham, UK.

Former Visiting PhD Students

Andie Delaney (Annie Colebatch group, Australian National University, July-December 2023). Now: Senior researcher, Department of the House of Representatives, Australia.

Max Brabender (William F. Martin group, University of Dusseldorf, Germany, May 2023).

Anton Gudz (Gagné group, UNC Chapel Hill, USA, July 2018-February 2019). Now: Thermo-Fisher and top 25-ranked pickle ball player in the world.

Martina Preiner (William F. Martin group, University of Dusseldorf, Germany, 2017-2018). Now: Group leader at Max Planck Institute for Terrestrial Microbiology.

Stefania Musolino (Smith/Taylor groups, St Andrews, Scotland, August-October 2017). Now: R&D Manager, XyLynX Materials.

Kazuki Fuji (Suga group, Okayama University, Japan, March 2015)

Ismat Ullah Khan (Hassan group, Quaid-i-Azam University, Pakistan, Feb-Aug 2015; Current position: Assistant professor, University of Cent, Pakistan)

Junya Yamamoto (Suga group, Okayama University, Japan, Nov 2015)

Former Internal BSc Honours Project (Ottawa) or Masters Project (Strasbourg) Students

Sani Yahaya (M2, 2024) Sinan Basil (M2, 2023), Sergiu Bicic (M2, 2021), Tanguy Rieu (M2, 2021), Maciej Piejko (M2 Strasbourg, 2021), Edouard Voegtl (M2 Strasbourg, 2021), Andrei Golushko (M2, 2020), Valentyn Pozhydaiev (M1, 2020; M2 2021), Martin Power (M2, 2020), Joris Zimmermann (M2, 2020), Louis-Albin Gravillier (M2, 2020), Eugènie Pincemail (M1, 2020), Capucine Loth (M1, 2019), Subhradip Kundu (M2, 2018), Florent Noel (M2, 2017), Paul Chatelain (M2, 2017), Jing Yi (M1, 2016; M2, 2017), Guang Li (M1, 2015; M2, 2016), Nour Hussein (M1, 2015), Margot Combas (M2, 2014), Anaëlle Bolley (M1, 2014)