Orla Benson Postgraduate Research Scholarship 2021/2022

The 2021/2020 recipient of the Orla Benson Postgraduate Scholarship is Mr. Yongda Li. 

In 1996, the family and friends of Orla Benson founded the Orla Benson Memorial Scholarship in memory of Orla; a graduate of the class of 1995 from the Biotechnology degree programme who sadly passed away in the summer months before her graduation. The memorial scholarship offered by the Benson family is awarded on an annual basis to a student demonstrating outstanding potential in the field of Biotechnology. Since its inception, this generous award has been instrumental in forging collaborations, disseminating research, and ultimately making breakthroughs across the various fields of the recipients.

Yongda is part of the Laboratory of Biochemistry, headed by Assistant Professor Konstantinos Grintzalis in the School of Biotechnology at DCU. Funded by the Irish Research Council, Yongda's research aims to transform the search of life and future planetary exploration with the development of novel biochemical conclusive assays. Proteins, nucleic acids, metabolites and other biosignatures are explored as potential markers to identify traces of life in Martian soil simulants. Taking into account that current planetary missions have high cost and increased risk of failure, the development of simple miniaturised approaches to assess the existence of these biosignatures will be pivotal for future missions. Yongda intends to use the award to visit collaborating laboratories in Leipzig and Greece, where he will employ hyphenated techniques and mass spectrometry for the ultra sensitive detection of the aforementioned signatures. In addition, this unique opportunity will allow him to answer questions on the role of UV radiation as a potential stress and degradation impact on these signature on Martian soil surface. Yongda, also hopes to use the award to take part in the international conferences and workshops in France and the UK, where he will disseminate his research findings in a wider audience and connect with research pioneers in his field.