Lithuanian Scientist Among the World’s Top Eight: FTMC PhD Student Kamilė Kasperavičiūtė Receives Award at a Prestigious Conference in the United States

Kamilė Kasperavičiūtė, a PhD student in the FTMC Department of Functional Materials and Electronics, has been recognised at the international conference Microphysiological Systems World Summit 2026, held in Washington, D.C. The chemist received a Student and Postdoctoral Researcher Travel Award. In total, eight participants were honoured: four early-career researchers from the United States and one each from Lithuania, Taiwan, the Netherlands, and Germany.

“This is a global conference, so there were many applicants from different countries competing for the award. To be considered, candidates had to submit several short-written pieces (including a motivation letter) about their research. The winners each received one thousand US dollars to cover travel and participation expenses.

I truly did not expect to win, so I am very pleased that my work was recognised and that I had the opportunity to interact with leading scientists in the field,” shares Kasperavičiūtė.

At FTMC, she is developing so-called organ-on-a-chip technology – creating artificial models of human organs on microchips using living cells. These chips make it possible to observe how cells that mimic organ functions respond to drugs, diseases, or various substances. This technology enables more precise studies of the human body and reduces the need for animal testing.

“In my submitted work, I presented and compared chemical and biological modifications that help cells grow more effectively on different surfaces.

I also presented the results obtained using various research methods, including atomic force microscopy and Fourier-transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy.

The aim of the study was to demonstrate that the chemical method I use is more effective than biological approaches. In the future, we plan to apply these solutions to organ-on-a-chip technologies to improve cell growth on microchips,” explains the FTMC PhD student.

The international conference Microphysiological Systems World Summit focuses on microphysiological systems, organ-on-a-chip technologies, and advanced human tissue models. It is one of the most important events of its kind worldwide, bringing together leading scientists, including this year Dr Lisa Carnell, Director of the Biological and Physical Sciences Division at NASA, who leads space research and life sciences initiatives.

Source: FTMC