Hello everyone and welcome to my WCAS ASMIT portfolio. My name is Alaina Emmanuel and I am currently an ASMIT master’s student, here at the University of Warwick.

A little bit about me…

I was born in Lund, Sweden and moved to England in 1998, where I completed my undergraduate BSc in Chemistry with management at the University of Warwick (2010). Soon after I applied for the Analytical Science: Methods and Instrumental Techniques (ASMIT), and as part of the course I am currently undertaking my research project in the Dave Haddleton group.

As a student at Warwick I have been privileged to serve as a member of the Student Staff Liaison Committee, ASMIT Class Representative and a member of the One World Week Media Team. During my stay here I have also participated in Macro group YRM poster presentations and the Student Associate Scheme (which is a science led Teach Gov. initiative).

I currently reside in Coventry and besides my work I enjoy a variety of sports, martial arts, learning new languages and creating designs. I have so enjoyed my time here at Warwick that I’ll be returning for my PhD starting October 2011.

My MSc research

My research focuses on the acquisition of binding data of glycoproteins interactions using Quartz Crystal Microbalance (with Dissonance monitoring). Glycopolymers are naturally abundant on cell surfaces, but these are more commonly known as polysaccharides and polyglycolipids. Recently, synthetic glycopolymers have become increasingly popular because of their biocompatible properties and so there has been increasing research into their use in drug releasing systems and tissue engineering^[i]. They are also widely used for investigating glycopolymer—lectin interactions^[ii]. A frequently explored example is the battle against infectious diseases like HIV and Cholera via competitive inhibition.