Cum Laude PhD Defense – Dr. Siyu Fan

Cum Laude PhD Defense – Dr. Siyu Fan

‘Fluorescent Nanodiamond Quantum Sensing: From Cell to Organism’
 

 

The Department of Biomaterials and Biomedical Technology at the University Medical Center Groningen proudly announces that Dr. Siyu Fan has successfully defended her PhD thesis Cum Laude, a distinction reserved for the most exceptional dissertations. Her research, entitled “Fluorescent Nanodiamond Quantum Sensing: From Cell to Organism,” marks a significant advance in biomedical nanotechnology and quantum sensing.

Siyu’s thesis focused on developing and applying nanodiamond-based quantum sensing technologies to explore biological processes in living cells and organisms. Her pioneering work not only introduced new methods but also answered fundamental biomedical questions.
Key achievements of her thesis include:

• Real-time detection of free radicals in cardiac cells under hypoxia—a condition mimicking heart attack—demonstrating when and where damaging radicals form.
• Insights into atherosclerosis, identifying free radical generation in cardiovascular disease progression.
• Novel approaches to skin biology, studying stress responses in skin cells exposed to UV light and inventing a patented microneedle-based method to deliver nanodiamonds into skin tissue.
• Breakthroughs in neurodegeneration research, measuring free radical formation at the sites of huntingtin aggregation in Huntington’s disease models.
• First-ever in vivo quantum sensing using nanodiamonds, extending studies to C. elegans, establishing a foundation for organism-level applications.

These achievements combine cutting-edge physics, nanotechnology, and biomedicine, positioning Siyu’s work at the forefront of translational quantum sensing. 

Details of the PhD thesis can be found in here:
https://research.rug.nl/en/publications/fluorescent-nanodiamond-quantum-sensing-from-cell-to-organism 

About Siyu Fan
Siyu Fan joined the Department of Biomaterials and Biomedical Technology for her doctoral research under the supervision of Prof. Romana Schirhagl, quickly establishing herself as an exceptional scientist. With her interdisciplinary expertise, Siyu has contributed not only to fundamental science but also to clinically relevant innovations, underscored by her patent on nanodiamond microneedle delivery.
Siyu’s Cum Laude distinction highlights her outstanding dedication, creativity, and scientific impact. 

The Department congratulates her warmly and looks forward to seeing the continued influence of her work in biomedical research and innovation in her future endeavors.