Mahesh Pol

Dr. Mahesh Pol is a Research Fellow at the Cluster of Excellence livMatS (Freiburg Center for Interactive Materials and Bioinspired Technologies) within the University of Freiburg. His work focuses on abiotic systems, particularly the formation and hydrolysis of amide bonds in water, leveraging aminoacyl phosphate esters to drive peptide elongation and self-assembly processes. His research bridges organic chemistry, supramolecular chemistry, and material science, with applications in adaptive and active materials.

Key projects include investigating how structural changes in amino acids influence reactivity and oligomerization under aqueous conditions. His findings reveal the role of side-chain properties (aliphatic vs. aromatic) in supramolecular assembly and phase-dependent chemistry. Currently a postdoctoral fellow at the University of Geneva (Winssinger's Lab), Pol continues exploring transient peptide assemblies and phase-driven chemical cascades.

Pol’s publications emphasize interdisciplinary approaches, with recent works published in JACS and Angewandte Chemie. His research highlights the potential of abiotic systems to mimic biological processes, offering insights into prebiotic chemistry and synthetic material design.