In the natural sciences category of the 31st edition of the Bolzano Award competition, the winning work was that of Martin Volek, Ph.D., a graduate of the doctoral study programme (DSP) Molecular and Cellular Biology, Genetics, and Virology.
Throughout his doctoral studies at the Faculty of Science, Charles University, Martin Volek diligently fulfilled all his academic obligations and demonstrated immense dedication to scientific research. His doctoral project, titled "Development and use of deoxyribozymes that generate color and fluorescence" successfully integrated chemistry and molecular biology, yielding results that not only led to the publication of three first-author articles in the highly prestigious scientific journal Nucleic Acids Research in the field of molecular biology and chemistry (Volek et al. (2024): Aurora: a fluorescent deoxyribozyme for high-throughput screening; Volek et al. (2024): Apollon: a deoxyribozyme that generates a yellow product; Volek et al. (2021): Overlapping but distinct: a new model for G-quadruplex biochemical specificity), but also hold promising practical applications in early and reliable diagnostics and the rapid discovery of effective drugs for emerging diseases - an issue of high relevance today.
In his doctoral project, Martin Volek employed in vitro selection to design and develop two functional DNA molecules (deoxyribozymes) capable of generating robust fluorogenic or chromogenic signals, which he named Aurora and Apollon. These molecules offer several advantages over fluorescent RNAs (as they are less prone to degradation) and fluorescent proteins, which are costly and complex to synthesize. He thoroughly characterized the reaction conditions of these deoxyribozymes, including the effects of various ions, buffers, molecular crowding agents, and pH, as well as different concentrations of substrates and deoxyribozymes. Additionally, he devised several strategies to convert Aurora and Apollon into allosterically regulated sensors. A modified version of Aurora can detect picomolar concentrations of ribonucleases and has already been used for the rapid identification of novel low-molecular-weight inhibitors of the SARS-CoV-2 ribonuclease Nsp15 in high-throughput screening.
Martin Volek's doctoral thesis is written in a highly engaging manner, and both its reviewers and the members of the defense committee independently agreed that its theoretical introduction would deserve to be published as a standalone review article or could serve as an educational text for students interested in DNA research. The thesis defense unequivocally demonstrated his exceptional ability to present scientific research findings in an engaging manner, making him a potential outstanding science communicator. During his doctoral studies, Martin Volek, actively presented his research findings at international scientific conferences, where his presentations were always well received and attracted the interest of the scientific community. He participated in multiple research projects at his mentor’s institution (including his own project funded by the Charles University Grant Agency), where his problem-solving skills, passion for scientific work, and innovative approaches were crucial to their successful completion. He is currently employed as a postdoc as Julius Maximillians Universität Würzburg in Germany.
The award was presented on March 31, 2025, in the Patriotic Hall of Karolinum.