Juan M. Benito Hernández
Group: Bioorganic and Supramolecular Chemistry of Carbohydrates
Position: Tenured Scientist
Contact
Tel. ext: 446204
Laboratory: L 209
Office: D 224
Email:
ORCID: 0000-0002-9788-1507
Biography
Juan M. Benito holds a PhD degree in Chemistry (University of Sevilla, 2001). Between 2002 and 2004 he worked at Carlsberg Laboratory (Copenhagen, Denmark), under the supervision of 2022 Chemistry Nobel Prize Prof. Morten Meldal as MSCA Fellow. At the fall of 2004 he enrolled the Institute for Chemical Research (Univ. Sevilla – CSIC) as “Ramón y Cajal” research fellow and, in 2006, he was promoted as Tenured Scientist. In 2007 he was distinguished with the “Premio de Investigador Joven” from the “Real Maestranza de Caballería de Sevilla”.
Research interests
His research is focused at the study of the supramolecular interactions mostly involving carbohydrates in the broader sense, from the implementation of fundamental tools (from organic synthesis of molecularly well-defined structures to the biophysical and biochemical characterization of their supramolecular assemblies) to the development of applications (tailoring supramolecular recognition and self-assembling abilities into purpose-conceived nano- and biotechnological devices). The two fundamental axes underlining his scientific activity in the context of this proposal are the following:
• The development of molecular systems for the targeted delivery of specific therapeutic agents (from small molecular drugs to macromolecular nucleic acids).
• The insight into the mechanisms ruling supramolecular recognition and self-assembling phenomena of carbohydrate-based materials in biological and artificial systems.
As a consequence of such activity, Juan M Benito has already produced over 80 scientific publications (64 Q1 and 24 D1 accordingly to ISI WoK) and book chapters, as well as several licenced patents. Among the most important achievements, it is worth mentioning the design of a new type of therapeutic agent carrier based on molecularly well-defined amphiphilic cyclodextrins and other carbohydrate-based scaffolds. The functional capabilities of these carriers can be manipulated and programmed ad hoc by means chemical synthesis to tailor their delivery and environmental interaction capabilities to particular types of payloads and biological media, which has attracted the biopharmaceutical industry interest. Indeed, Juan M. Benito has been actively involved in collaborative academic and industrial consortiums aimed at bringing up a novel nucleic acid delivery platform in the context of mRNA-based vaccines, already producing an extensive intellectual property portfolio.
Selected publications
- G. Rivero-Barbarroja et al. β-Cyclodextrin-based geometrically frustrated amphiphiles as one-component, cell-specific and organ-specific nucleic acid delivery systems. Carbohydr. Polym. 2025, 347, 122776. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.carbpol.2024.122776
- A. I. Carbajo-Gordillo et al. Enhanced gene delivery triggered by dual pH/redox responsive host-guest dimerization of cyclooligosaccharide star polycations. Macromol. Rapid Commun. 2022, 43, 2200145. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/marc.202200145
- A. I. Carbajo-Gordillo et al. Click synthesis of size and shape-tunable star polymers with functional macrocyclic cores for synergistic DNA complexation and delivery. Biomacromolecules 2020, 21, 5173. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.biomac.0c01283
- A. I. Carbajo-Gordillo et al. Trehalose-based siamese twin amphiphiles with tunable self-assembling, DNA nanocomplexing and gene delivery properties. Chem. Commun. 2019, 55, 8227. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1039/C9CC04489B
- S. Unal et al. Cyclodextrin nanoparticle bound oral camptothecin for colorectal cancer: Formulation development and optimization, Int. J. Pharm. 2020, 584, 119468. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijpharm.2020.119468