Dr. Sarah Chagri
Dr. Sarah Chagri studied Biomedical Chemistry (B.Sc. and M.Sc.) at the Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz as well as at the University of Toronto, Canada. During her PhD at the Max Planck Institute for Polymer Research, she worked on bioresponsive nanomaterials for controlled intracellular assembly and graduated in 2024 with highest distinction (summa cum laude).
She is currently Scientific Coordinator for Graduate Education at the Max Planck Institute for Polymer Research, where she leads the graduate program. In addition, she serves as coordinator of the Max Planck Graduate Center with the Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz (MPGC).
Alongside her coordinating role, she pursues her own research within the department of Tanja Weil at the Max Planck Institute for Polymer Research, where she supervises interdisciplinary work at the interface of chemistry, synthetic biology and cell biology. Her research focuses on the development of bioresponsive peptides that undergo intracellular self-assembly into synthetic nanostructures capable of modulating cellular behaviour and enhancing immune cell function.
Research Interests
Dr. Sarah Chagri’s research lies at the interface of chemical biology, supramolecular chemistry, and immunology, and addresses how cellular behavior can be controlled using synthetic molecular systems.
A central focus is the development of bioresponsive peptides that assemble into defined supramolecular nanostructures within living cells. Particular emphasis is placed on understanding structure-assembly-bioactivity relationships: how molecular design and supramolecular organization govern interactions with complex biological systems and determine functional outcomes.
These questions are explored especially in the context of immune cells, with the aim of identifying fundamental principles by which synthetic structures can influence intracellular processes, mechanical properties, and signaling pathways.
In the long term, this work aims to establish a rational design framework for functional, adaptive materials in biological systems and to enable new strategies for the targeted modulation of immune cell function.