Alejandro Díaz Moscoso

Group: Bioorganic and Supramolecular Chemistry of Carbohydrates

Position: Tenured Scientist

Contact

Tel. ext: 446266

Laboratory: L 208

Office: D 220

Email:

ORCID: 0000-0001-8750-6415

🌐 AdMOSC Research

Biography

My research interests focuses on the design, development and study of molecular systems with applications in biotechnology, materials science and related fields. I work mainly in organic and supramolecular chemistry, using macrocyclic platforms as core structures. During my MSc and PhD at the Institute for Chemical Research (IIQ, CSIC-University of Seville), I developed solid-phase assisted strategies for the cyclodextrin functionalisation aimed at targeted drug delivery. I also reported a new family of amphiphilic cyclodextrins capable of self-organising into nanoparticles around plasmid DNA, enabling targeted gene delivery to specific cells as well as acting as Anthrax antitoxins through the recognition and inhibition of cell membrane channels. During this stage, I worked in a biotechnology lab and in a nanoparticle characterisation institute.

Later I carried out several post-doctoral projects with two main research stages. As a Marie Skłodowska-Curie Individual Fellow at the University of East Anglia (UEA), I developed a straightforward synthesis of porphyrin-phthalocyanine hybrids that combine the synthetic versatility of porphyrins with the electrochemical behaviour of phthalocyanines for the development of new materials functionalised with multi-electrochemical systems. Later, as a Juan de la Cierva Fellow at the Institute of Chemical Research of Catalonia (ICIQ), I established new strategies for the synthesis of unprecedented calix[4]pyrroles with double functionalisation and studied their behaviour as molecular receptors for the recognition of bioactive molecules in water, as well as their use in photoactive molecular capsules.

After this period, I joined the Andalusian Centre for Developmental Biology (CABD) as a permanent specialised technician in the Proteomics and Biochemistry Platform, where I designed, expressed, purified, characterised and studied recombinant proteins, mainly those interacting with nucleic acids. Since 2024, I hold an independent Tenured Scientist position at the Institute for Chemical Research (IIQ) of Spanish National Research Council (CSIC), where I lead research lines in macrocyclic organic and supramolecular chemistry, with a particular focus on systems for nucleic acid delivery.

Research interests

Macrocyclic Organic and Supramolecular Chemistry

Selected publications

• Synthesis of meso-Substituted Tetrabenzotriazaporphyrins: Easy Access to Hybrid Macrocycles ANGEWANDTE CHEMIE-INTERNATIONAL EDITION 2013 | Journal article DOI: 10.1002/ANIE.201306151
• Enhanced RNA-targeting CRISPR-Cas technology in zebrafish Nature Communications 2025 | Journal article DOI: 10.1038/s41467-025-57792-9
• Complementary Syntheses Giving Access to a Full Suite of Differentially Substituted Phthalocyanine-Porphyrin Hybrids Angewandte Chemie – International Edition 2021 | Journal article DOI: 10.1002/anie.202016596
• Light-responsive molecular containers Chemical Communications 2017 | Journal article DOI: 10.1039/c7cc01568b
• Mannosyl-coated nanocomplexes from amphiphilic cyclodextrins and pDNA for site-specific gene delivery BIOMATERIALS 2011 | Journal article DOI: 10.1016/J.BIOMATERIALS.2011.06.025