We are proud to announce that Katarzyna Szafrańska, a doctoral student at the School of Medical and Health Sciences, won the January edition of the Student-Doctoral Scientific Salons. Ms. Katarzyna is a graduate of the Faculty of Chemistry at the Jagiellonian University and the Drug Discovery and Development program at the Faculty of Pharmacy at the Jagiellonian University Medical College. Since 2020, she has been associated with the Department of Drug Chemistry at the Department of Pharmaceutical Chemistry, where she works in the team of dr hab. Monika Marcinkowska. As part of her doctoral work, she conducts research on the synthesis of chemical molecules that may find application in innovative therapy for patients after ischemic stroke. She also supports the team in the search for innovative compounds potentially useful in the treatment of diseases associated with chronic inflammation. Her main area of interest is organic synthesis, but she is passionate about the entire process of discovering and creating new drugs. As the vice-chairman of the Youth Section of the Polish Chemical Society, Ms. Kasia actively promotes science and co-organizes one of the most important conferences for young scientists in the student and doctoral community. She also represents Poland in the European Young Chemists’ Network, operating within the European Chemical Society.

The Student-Doctoral Scientific Salons are a series of open seminars organized by the Jagiellonian University PhD Students Association, during which students and doctoral students present their research and interests. Participants compete for material and financial prizes, and the best ones advance to the final End-of-Year Salon.