Mercedes Vila facts for kids

Mercedes Vila Juárez (born 1975) is a Spanish scientist. She studies and creates new materials. She is also the Chief Technology Officer (CTO) and a co-founder of BioTech Foods SL. As CTO, she leads the company's technology and research efforts.

Mercedes's Journey in Science

Mercedes Vila Juárez was born in Madrid, Spain in 1975. She went to the Autonomous University of Madrid. There, she earned her degree in Physics and later a special doctorate in Materials Physics in 2003.

After her studies, Mercedes spent five years working internationally. She focused on making special surfaces for biomaterials. These are materials designed to work inside the human body. She used different scientific methods to create these surfaces.

Helping Bones Grow Back

In 2008, Mercedes became a Ramón y Cajal Investigator. This is a special research position in Spain. She joined a top team at the faculty of Pharmacy at the Complutense University of Madrid. This team worked on nanomedicine and regenerative tissue engineering.

• Nanomedicine uses tiny particles to treat diseases.
• Tissue engineering helps grow new body parts or tissues.

During this time, Mercedes worked on materials to help people. She created materials that could help rebuild bone mass. This is important for patients with injuries or diseases. For example, it could help people with bone cancer or osteoporosis. Her work aimed to improve their quality of life.

Fighting Cancer with Nanoparticles

Mercedes's research also focused on how materials interact with cells. She designed and used nanoparticles. These are extremely tiny particles. She used nanoparticles made from graphene oxide. These were for something called cancer hyperthermia. This is a method that uses heat to destroy cancer cells.

Awards and New Ventures

In November 2010, Mercedes received a big award. It was the L'Oréal-UNESCO Awards for Women in Science. She shared this award with four other talented women scientists. The award gives money to support women under 40 in science. It helps them continue their important research.

In 2013, Mercedes became a main researcher at the University of Aveiro in Portugal. She led a lab that looked at how carbon could be used in nanomedicine. In 2015, she moved from university research to working in industry. She became the Scientific Director at Coating Technologies S.L.-CTECHnano.

In February 2017, Mercedes co-founded a company called BioTech Foods. She is the Chief Technology Officer (CTO) there.

Awards and Recognition

Mercedes Vila Juárez has received several important awards for her scientific work:

• 2006: Marie Curie IntraEuropean Fellowship from the European Commission.
• 2008: Marie Curie Reintegration Grant from the European Commission.
• 2010: Women in Science Award from the L'Oreal Foundation-UNESCO.
• 2017: Marie Curie Society & Enterprise from the European Commission.

See also

In Spanish: Mercedes Vila para niños

• List of female scientists in the 21st century
• List of Spanish inventors and discoverers