My research explores how nature creates sophisticated functional structures and how their principles can inspire adaptive materials. I am currently a Postdoctoral Researcher in the Robotic Materials Department at the Max Planck Institute for Intelligent Systems in Stuttgart, Germany. Working at the intersection of functional morphology, biological photonics, and biomimetics, I build on my discoveries in blue shark structural coloration to develop adaptive photonic materials for sustainable displays and environmental sensing.

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Previously, at the City University of Hong Kong, I uncovered the structural basis of blue shark countershading, revealing a previously undescribed photonic architecture within the pulp cavities of dermal denticles, where the intricate arrangement of reflective and absorptive components produces the shark’s distinctive coloration.

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During my PhD at the Max Planck Institute for Intelligent Systems in Stuttgart, I combined 3D anatomical reconstruction, neuroethology, and biomechanical modelling to investigate the avian lumbosacral organ. My research explored its proposed mechanosensory function, testing whether this specialized structure could act as a biological accelerometer during locomotion.

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My academic journey began in my hometown of Odesa, Ukraine, where I earned an MSc in Natural Sciences, followed by an Erasmus Mundus Master's degree in Evolutionary Biology (MEME). At Uppsala University, I investigated the evolutionary transition from fins to limbs in the Devonian fish Hyneria, while at Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich, I explored the intricate anatomy of one of the world's smallest frogs.