Research Background:

During her undergraduate, Yunan mainly focused on protein self-assembled structures and the applications in functional foods, including the following highlights:

1. The construction of protein self-assembly delivery system: based on the interaction of zein and hydrophobic nutrient components and the self-assembly of nano- and micro-scale aggregated structures, such as nanoparticles and micro-emulsions, to achieve efficient transport and utilization of functional factors and evaluate their digestive properties and bioavailability.

2. The structural modification of polyphenol interface: based on the loading capacity and stability of the nutrient delivery systems, using the plant polyphenol-metal composite structure and the interface properties to modify the micro- or nanoparticles and achieve high loading of hydrophobic functional factors and long-term stability.

Current Research:

In Abbaspourrad Lab, Yunan is now exploring her new research directions on peptide design and nano-catalytic materials. She is conducting the research on peptide templated synthesis of metal nanocatalysts under the guidance of Dr. Imann Mosleh, hoping to use a combination of experiment and computational simulation, through natural peptide modification and even artificial design to realize the controllable adsorption, nucleation and growth of metal nanostructures on the peptide templates.

And by studying how peptide templates affect morphologies and catalytic activity of the metal nanomaterials, she finally hopes to synthesize precious metal nanocatalysts with favorable structures and high activities.