María Vallet-Regí facts for kids

Vallet-Regí in 2017

María Vallet-Regí is a famous Spanish scientist. She was born on April 19, 1946. She is an expert in inorganic chemistry, which is the study of materials that don't come from living things. Since 2012, she has led a special research group called "Smart Biomaterials" at the Universidad Complutense de Madrid in Spain.

Early Life and Education

María Vallet-Regí was born in Las Palmas, a city in Spain. She loved chemistry and decided to study it at the Universidad Complutense de Madrid. She worked very hard and earned her Ph.D. (a high-level university degree) there in 1974.

Her Work as a Scientist

María Vallet-Regí is a full professor of inorganic chemistry. This means she teaches and does research at the university. She leads the "Smart Biomaterials" research group in the Faculty of Pharmacy at Universidad Complutense de Madrid. Her team works on creating new materials that can help people.

She has written more than 600 articles for science journals and several books. These writings share her discoveries with other scientists around the world. She is one of the most-cited Spanish scientists in the field of Materials Science. This means many other scientists have used her work in their own research, showing how important her contributions are.

What She Researches

María Vallet-Regí and her team study many interesting things. They focus on materials that can be used in medicine.

• Materials for Bone Repair: They create special materials called Bioceramics. These are like tiny building blocks that can help bones heal. They can be used to fix broken bones or to help new bone grow.
• Smart Medicine Delivery: They make bioceramic systems that can release medicines slowly. Imagine a tiny container that gives out medicine over time, exactly when and where it's needed. This is very helpful for treating diseases.
• Tiny Particles for Health: Her team also works with nanoparticles. These are super tiny materials that can be used for many things in medicine. They can help deliver treatments or even find diseases in the body.
• Silica Materials: They use silica, a common material found in sand, to create special porous materials. These materials can hold medicines or even protect living cells. They are also exploring how these materials can help with gene therapy, which is a way to treat diseases by changing genes.

Awards and Recognitions

María Vallet-Regí has received many important awards for her amazing work. These awards show how much her discoveries have helped science and medicine.

She is a Fellow of Biomaterials Science and Engineering. This means she is recognized as a top expert in materials used in living systems. She is also a member of the Spanish Royal Academy of Engineering and the Royal National Academy of Pharmacy.

Some of her awards include:

• The Prix Franco-Espagnol in 2000.
• The Spanish Royal Society of Chemistry (RSEQ) award in Inorganic Chemistry in 2008.
• The Spanish National Research Award in Engineering in 2008.
• The FEIQUE Research award in 2011.
• The RSEQ Research Award and Gold Medal in 2011.

These awards celebrate her important contributions to chemistry and engineering.

See also

In Spanish: María Vallet Regí para niños