Professor Nikola Chmel

Prof Nikola Chmel

Professor of Chemistry, Head of Department

N.Chmel@warwick.ac.uk
+44 (0)24 765 23234
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About Me

Nikola is a Professor and Head of the Department of Chemistry. Nikola’s research focusses on method development in spectroscopy for applications in complex biomolecular systems; circular and linear dichroism; fluorescence; dynamic light scattering; and vibrational spectroscopy.

Groups at Warwick

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Affiliations

Head of Department, Department of Chemistry
CDT Management Board, Analytical Science Centre for Doctoral Training (MAS & AS CDT)
Deputy Chair of the Faculty of Science, Engineering and Medicine Education Committee (SEMEC)
Committee Member of the Analytical Biosciences Group of the Royal Society of Chemistry
Academic Representative to the Midlands Regional Steering Group of the Royal Society of Chemistry

Biography

2025-present Professor and Head of Department of Chemistry, University of Warwick
2019-2025 Associate Professor, Department of Chemistry, University of Warwick
2014-2019 Senior Teaching Fellow, Department of Chemistry, University of Warwick
2011-2014 Research Fellow, Molecular Organisation and Assembly in Cells (MOAC), University of Warwick
2010-2011 Warwick Knowledge Transfer Fellow, University of Warwick/Starna UK
2007-2010 PhD in Chemistry, Department of Chemistry, University of Warwick

Current Projects

I am working on the following projects at the moment:

Orientation of small molecules in membranes

The aim of this project is to develop protocols for determining orientation of small molecules in lipid membranes using a mixture of methods, including linear dichroism, Raman and FT/IR.
Spectral analysis in distribution monitoring for detection of chlorine derivatives.
The aim of this project is to develop spectroscopy based sensing techniques for application in waste water monitoring. This work is done in collaboration with ABB Group.
Approaches for Promoting Engagement in Undergraduate Teaching Labs (Sam Trouton)

The aim of this project is to explore the use of contextualization, inquiry-based learning, role-play, and gamification to enhance engagement in physical chemistry laboratory teaching.
Standards for circular dichroism spectroscopy
In collaboration with Starna UK Link opens in a new windowand Jasco UK Link opens in a new windowwe have developed new standards for circular dichroism spectroscopy. We are currently testing the prototype calibration kits.

Research interests Publications

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Recent Publications

Corujo M. P.; Michal P.; Ang D.; Lindo V.; Chmel N.; Rodger A.; Prediction of Secondary Structure Content of Proteins Using Raman Spectroscopy and Self-Organizing Maps. , 2025, Applied Spectroscopy, 00037028251335051
Corujo M. P.; Michal P.; Wesson R.; Amarasinghe D. P.; Rodger A.; Chmel N. P.; Reduction of Background Fluorescence from Impurities in Protein Samples for Raman Spectroscopy. Journal of Spectroscopy, 2022, 1, 19280910
Corujo M. P.; Olamoyesan, A.; Tukova, A.; Ang, D.; Goormaghtigh, E.; Peterson, J.; Sharov, V.; Chmel, N.; Rodger, A.; SOMSpec as a General Purpose Validated Self-Organising Map Tool for Rapid Protein Secondary Structure Prediction From Infrared Absorbance Data. Frontiers in Chemistry, 2022, 9, 784625
Corujo, M. P.; Lindo, V.; Chmel, N.; Rodger, A.; Exploring the Potential of Molecular Spectroscopy for the Detection of Post-translational Modifications of a Stressed Biopharmaceutical Protein. Current Protein & Peptide Science, 2021, 22, 11, 800-806
Hickman, A. M.; Chmel, N.; Cameron, N. R.; Keddie, D. J.; Schiller, T. L..; Influence of the tetraalkoxysilane crosslinker on the properties of polysiloxane-based elastomers prepared by the Lewis acid-catalysed Piers-Rubinsztajn reaction. Polymer Chemistry, 2021, 12, 4934-4941
Cespedes, S.; Hand, R. A.; Chmel, N.; Moad, G.; Keddie, D. J.; Schiller, T. L. Enhanced properties of well-defined polymer networks prepared by a sequential thiol-Michael - radical thiol-ene (STMRT) strategy. European Polymer Journal, 2022, 1, 1928081
Lizio, M.; Campana, M.; De Poli, et al. Insight into the Mechanism of Action and Peptide-Membrane Interactions of Aib-Rich Peptides: Multitechnique Experimental and Theoretical Analysis. Chembiochem, 2021, 22 (9), 1656-1667
Ayub, H.; Clare, M.; Milic, I.; Chmel, N. P.; et al. CD81 extracted in SMALP nanodiscs comprises two distinct protein populations within a lipid environment enriched with negatively charged headgroups. BBA – Biomembranes, 2020, 1862 (11), 183419
Rodger, A., Steel, M., Goodchild, S., Chmel, N., & Reason, A., Transformation of aqueous protein attenuated total reflectance infra-red absorbance spectroscopy to transmission. QRB Discovery, 2020, 1, E8. doi:10.1017/qrd.2020.11
Forshaw, S; Knighton, R. C.; Reber, et al. A strained alkyne-containing bipyridine reagent; synthesis, reactivity and fluorescence properties. RSC Adv., 2019, 62, 36154-36161
Irshad, Z.; Chmel, N.; Adya, R.; et al. Hepatic VLDL secretion: DGAT1 determines particle size but not particle number, which can be supported entirely by DGAT2. J. Lipid Res., 2019, 60, 111-120
Roth, D.; Fitton, B. P; Chmel, N. P. et al. Spatial positioning of EB family proteins at microtubule tips involves distinct nucleotide-dependent binding properties. J Cell Sci. 2019, 132: jcs.219550
Wemyss, A. M.; Razmkhah K; Chmel N. P.; et al. Fluorescence detected linear dichroism of small molecules oriented on polyethylene film. Analyst, 2018, 143, 5805-5811
Wemyss, A. M.; Chmel, N. P.; Lobo, D. P.; et al. Fluorescence detected linear dichroism spectroscopy: A selective and sensitive probe for fluorophores in flow-oriented systems. Chirality, 2018, 30 (3), 227-237
Corujo, M. P.; Sklepari, M.; Ang, D. L.; et al. Infrared absorbance spectroscopy of aqueous proteins: Comparison of transmission and ATR data collection and analysis for secondary structure fitting. Chirality, 2018, 30 (8), 957-965.
Morrison, K. A.; Akram, A.; Mathews, A.; et al. Membrane protein extraction and purification using styrene-maleic acid (SMA) copolymer: effect of variations in polymer structure. Biochemical Journal, 2016, 473, 4349-4360
Pages, B. J.; Sakoff, J.; Gilbert, J.; et al., Multifaceted Studies of the DNA Interactions and In Vitro Cytotoxicity of Anticancer Polyaromatic Platinum(II) Complexes. Chemistry-a European Journal 2016, 22, 26, 8943-8954
Betanzos-Lara, S.; Chmel, N. P.; Zimmerman, M. T.; Barron-Sosa, L. R.; Garino, C.; Salassa, L.; Rodger, A.; Brumaghim, J. L.; Gracia-Mora, I.; Barba-Behrens, N., Redox-active and DNA-binding coordination complexes of clotrimazole. Dalton Trans. 2015, 44, 3673-3685
Razmkhah, K., Chmel, N. P., Gibson, M. I., Rodger, A., Oxidized polyethylene films for orienting polar molecule for linear dichroism spectroscopy. Analyst 2014, 139, 1372-1382
Howson, S. E.; Chmel, N. P.; Clarkson, G. J.; Deeth, R. J.; Simpson, D. H.; Scott, P., Jahn-Teller effects on [small pi]-stacking and stereoselectivity in the phenylethaniminopyridine tris-chelates Cu(NN’)32+. Dalton Trans. 2012, 41 (15), 4477-4483.
Chmel, N. P.; Scott, P.; Rodger, A., Considerations of Noise and Measurement Reproducibility of Circular Dichroism Measurements Using Na[CoIII(EDDS)]. Chirality 2012, 24, 699-705.
Chmel, N. P.; Clarkson, G. J.; Troisi, A.; Turner, S. S.; Scott, P., Chiral Semiconductor Phases: The Optically Pure D3[MIII(S,S-EDDS)]2 (D = TTF, TSF) Family. Inorg. Chem. 2011, 50 (9), 4039-4046.
Chmel, N. P.; Allan, L. E.; Becker, J. M.; Clarkson, G. J.; Turner, S. S.; Scott, P., TTF salts of optically pure cobalt pyridine amidates; detection of soluble assemblies with stoichiometry corresponding to the solid state. Dalton Trans. 2011, 40, 1722-1731.
Chmel, N. P.; Howson, S. E.; Allan, L. E. N.; Barker, J.; Clarkson, G. J.; Turner, S. S.; Scott, P., Organic-soluble optically pure anionic metal complexes PPh4[MIII(S,S-EDDS)]·2H2O (M = Fe, Co, Cr). Dalton Trans. 2010, 39 (11), 2919-2927.
Howson, S. E.; Allan, L. E. N.; Chmel, N. P.; Clarkson, G. J.; van Gorkum, R.; Scott, P., Self-assembling optically pure Fe(A-B)3 chelates. Chem Commun 2009, (13), 1727-1729.
Podgajny, R.; Chmel, N. P.; Balanda, M.; Tracz, P.; Gawel, B.; Zajac, D.; Sikora, M.; Kapusta, C.; Lasocha, W.; Wasiutynski, T.; Sieklucka, B., Exploring the formation of 3D ferromagnetic cyano-bridged CuII2+{CuII4[WV(CN)8]4-2[WIV(CN)8]2}·yH2O networks. J. Mater. Chem. 2007, 17 (31), 3308-3314.

Teaching and supervision

I teach the following modules:

Undergraduate:

CH155 Practical and Professional Chemistry Skills I
CH164 Atoms and Molecules (Tutorials)
CH165 Chemical Change (Tutorials)
CH222 Practical and Professional Chemistry Skills II
CH275 Molecular Structure and Spectroscopy (Tutorials)
CH3F2 Advanced Analytical Chemistry

Postgraduate:

CH911 Chromatography and Separation Science
CH913 Team Research Project: Real World Analysis
CH915 Techniques in Quantitative and Qualitative Analysis
CH921 Frontier Techniques in Analytical Science

Transferable Skills:

CH948 Warwick Interdisciplinary Transferable Skills
CH955 Decision-Making and Leadership
CH956 Scientific Research Skills I
CH994 Interdisciplinary Research Skills
ES9ZV Interdisciplinary Transferable Skills

I am currently supervising the following research students:

Sam Trouton (PhD), Game-based learning and promoting student engagement.
Ojeme Amurun (MScR), Spectral analysis in distribution monitoring for detection of chlorine derivatives.

At the moment I am unable to accept any further applications, but if you get in touch I'll see if a member of my team might be able to help.