Who we are

The members of the BiotechClub board are current or former doctoral candidates from the University of Helsinki. They all share a common interest for the scientific environment in and outside of their institute and the curiosity to learn more by actively pursuing their goals and interests.

Co-Chairs

Darshan Kumar

Darshan is doing his PhD studies in the field of imaging. His main focus is imaging biology at the electron microscopy level. From the time of his Master's in the Netherlands, he has been off and on taking business and bio-business related courses. Performing activities from different walks of life, ranging from research to event management, excites him a lot. Being a part of the BiotechClub has boosted his interest not only in connecting companies to academics, but also his own research.

Since 2017

Larisa does her PhD in the fields of Biochemistry and Immunology with a focus on adhesion regulation in leukocytes. She has an experience in interactive teaching and holds a specialist degree in Biotechnology (microbial drug substance manufacturing) from Saint Petersburg Chemical-Pharmaceutical Academy. She has an open-minded attitude, understanding the value of networking , especially between Academia and Industry. Her initiative to experience being part of biobuisness made her a Biotechclub board member.

Maria Sanz Navarro

Since 2015

Maria is a biotechnologist interested in both research and communication. During her PhD studies in the University of Helsinki she developed a number of skills that gave her the ability to adjust herself to new situations and challenges. Currently, she is studying a degree in International Business.
She loves traveling to exotic destinations and spending time with her dear ones. She is also an enthusiastic reader.

Riikka Karjalainen

Since 2015

Riikka is a graduate student in the Faculty of Medicine at the University of Helsinki. She has been conducting her PhD studies with the Personalized Medicine research group at the Institute for Molecular Medicine Finland (FIMM) since 2011. Her primary field of research is acute myeloid leukemia (AML) and understanding the role of the bone marrow microenvironment and its factors on AML drug resistance. Riikka holds a MSc degree in biochemistry from the University of Oulu.

Gergana Gateva

Since 2012

Gergana is passionate about the mechanisms governing contractile actin structure generation and cancer cell migration. She has very strong methodological and theoretical background in the fields of cell biology, microscopy, and biochemistry gathered not only at her current working place, Institute of Biotechnology in Helsinki, but also at various laboratories at her alma mater: Ludwig Maximilians University Munich, Germany. Through her engagement in event management at different organizations, including BiotechClub, she has greatly developed her organizational and social skills.

Liliia Andriichuk

Since 2018

Liliia is doing her PhD in the area of Developmental Neuroscience. Her PhD project is devoted to studying activity-dependent mechanisms that affect neuronal migration in the developing mammalian cortex. She enjoys establishing new techniques in her hosting lab as well as exploring new fields in Biosciences. Her experience includes research in areas of Molecular biology and Biophysics. In addition, she worked as a biochemist in a hospital intensive care unit for 2 years. Liliia decided to join Biotech club because she wants to organize exciting networking events with the possibility to explore the world outside Academia.

Mridul Johari

Since 2016

Mridul is currently working on the analysis of NGS data for rare Neuromuscular disorders. He has a MSc degree in Molecular Biosciences and an engineering degree in Biotechnology at bachelors level. He is ambitious for a career outside academia and has been involved in event planning and management both at his institute (Folkhälsan Research Center) and the University level.

Mona Christensen

Since 2018

Mona is working on her PhD in the field of evolutionary developmental biology, with a specific focus on organ size and scaling during evolution and development. Mona uses the mammalian molar tooth as a model, and combines comparative, molecular and computational methods to shed light on how different sized organs are actually made during development. Mona joined the Biotech club because she finds developing new methods and technical problem solving extremely interesting in her own work, and would love to get to know this process outside the Academia as well.