Read an exclusive interview with Natalia Wilke, the speaker of the ACS Sponsored Presentation from the recent BPS Thematic Meeting, and learn more about her work and career.
ACS Publications was proud to sponsor a presentation at the recent Biophysical Society Thematic Meeting, “Beyond Simple Models: The Consequences of Membrane Complexity in Living Systems” held in Copenhagen, Denmark July 7-10, 2025.
The ACS Sponsored Presentation was “The Selectivity of the Antimicrobial Peptide Mp1 Is Controlled by Multiple Membrane Factors” by Natalia Wilke of the National University of Córdoba, Argentina. As part of the sponsorship, she received funds to offset travel costs in order to present her exciting research. Congratulations to Dr. Wilke on an enlightening talk!
Read the Interview with Natalia Wilke
How would you describe your research to a layperson?
We study cell membranes, which are a thin layer composed of lipids and proteins that covers cells of all cell kingdoms—the cellular "skin." We are interested in understanding the differences and similarities between the membranes of different cell types. Studying them is challenging due to their great complexity and dynamism.
Different cell types have very different lipid compositions, but they share most physical properties. This leads us to the hypothesis that these properties are necessary for cell viability, and we seek to determine which of them can change and to what extent to maintain cell viability.
What inspired you to pursue the topic presented in your talk?
Membranes are self-aggregating structures with emergent properties. They exhibit highly varied compositions, with dynamic compositional patches of different sizes. This results in diverse local properties and great plasticity, making them exceptional structures in nature.
Membranes are a platform and common points for several molecules, including enzymes, signaling species and antibiotics. Therefore, understanding their behavior is key for understanding cell functioning.
Who are your mentors? How have they impacted your work so far?
My PhD supervisor, Dr. Ana Baruzzi, gave me the space I needed to take my first steps in science, letting me try different paths and freely explore my hypotheses. Dr. Bruno Maggio was my supervisor during my postdoctoral training. He was passionate about science and showed me that we should never lose our ability to doubt everything and to be intrigued by negative results. Dr. Thomas Fischer welcomed me as an experienced researcher (Von Humboldt Fellow). I learned from him to trust the research team and to look for what motivates each person we lead.
What advice would you give to anyone presenting a talk for the first time?
Keep in mind that no one knows more about your experiments than you do: show confidence when presenting your data. However, others will always see things differently: gaining a fresh perspective on your data is the best feedback. Don't worry if you missed something the audience mentioned. New perspectives always add value.
What do you think is the most important unsolved problem in your field right now?
The big question in the field of cell membranes is: Why do such a large number of different lipid species exist? Their existence requires a large number of enzymes to synthesize and degrade them. What is achieved with such a large number? What does this variability encode? What subtle regulation of life underlies the different lipid species?