professor of chemical sciences
prioryty research area: MoleculeTech
Scientific achievements
Professor Maria Koziołkiewicz from the Faculty of Biotechnology and Food Sciences at Lodz University of Technology is a specialist in bioorganic chemistry, nucleotide and oligonucleotide biochemistry, nutrigenomics, and molecular mechanisms of action of bioactive compounds. Her scientific output includes 78 publications listed in the JCR. A significant part of her scientific career was devoted to the synthesis and mechanisms of action of thiophosphate oligonucleotide analogues, and later to the development of research at Lodz University of Technology on the biological activity of natural and synthetic compounds in the prevention of metabolic diseases and cancer.
Research profile and research directions
Her scientific interests focus on bioactive dietary components as regulators of gene expression and ligands of membrane receptors. Professor Koziołkiewicz studies the mechanisms of action of polyphenols, phytocompounds, isothiocyanates, lysophospholipids, nucleotides, and other signalling metabolites in the context of type 2 diabetes, obesity, and cancer. A key area of her research involves GPCR receptors activated by fatty acids, phospholipids, nucleotides, and other signalling molecules.
Among her most important recent achievements is the development of research on the regulation of the SLC2A5 gene, which encodes the GLUT5 fructose transporter. These studies demonstrated the role of selected bioactive phytocompounds, including apigenin, chrysin, quercetin, and ursolic acid, as well as the transcription factors SNAIL1 and SNAIL2, in the regulation of this transporter’s expression. These findings are important for understanding the relationship between fructose metabolism and the development of metabolic, cancer, and neurodegenerative diseases.
Honours and recognition from the scientific community
Professor Koziołkiewicz has been involved in numerous research projects funded by the National Science Centre, the Ministry of Science and Higher Education, the National Centre for Research and Development, and European Union funds. These projects concerned, among others, polyphenol activity, PPAR receptors, lysophospholipids, lipid metabolism and adipogenesis, and dairy products supporting the prevention of type 2 diabetes. She is a co-author of patents concerning the use of defatted spent hop extract in the prevention and treatment of disorders related to vascular endothelial activity, diabetes, and antiplatelet effects, as well as a European patent concerning a polyphenolic formulation.
She has held numerous scientific and expert roles. She was a member of Section V of the Central Commission for Degrees and Titles, a member of the Biotechnology Committee of the Polish Academy of Sciences, a member of the Scientific Council of the Centre of Molecular and Macromolecular Studies of the Polish Academy of Sciences, and an expert of the Accreditation Commission of Universities of Technology in the field of biotechnology. Since 2023, she has been a member of the Scientific Council of the Institute of Animal Reproduction and Food Research of the Polish Academy of Sciences in Olsztyn.