**About the Editors**

#### **Christian Demitri**

Christian Demitri is an associate professor of Industrial Bioengineering, specializing in the synthesis and characterization of hydrogel polymers based on natural and synthetic polymers for biomedical applications. In particular, these materials have been applied in the field of regenerative medicine as cartilage substitutes or as devices for the treatment of metabolic diseases such as obesity. They have also been applied in agriculture as vehicles for the controlled release of moisture in arid soils. Demitri has conducted research at Italian and foreign institutions on the synthesis and characterization of natural polymers for several applications. During this research, he explored techniques for detecting DNA using analytical techniques such as mass spectrometry, HPLC, fluorescence microscopy, and electron microscopy (TEM and SEM). Over the years, he has also been involved in evaluating the cytotoxicity of materials using cell assays to identify specific markers. The research activities focus on the property-structure relationships of biomaterials, with a specific focus on the cell recognition processes of natural polymer-based scaffolds. He continues to work on the development and industrialization of research results concerning hydrogels and biodegradable polymers in the fields of metabolic disease treatment, regenerative medicine, and biotechnology, through collaboration with various companies in the sector.

#### **Lorenzo Bonetti**

Lorenzo Bonetti is a Post-doctoral Research Fellow at the Department of Chemistry, Materials and Chemical Engineering "G. Natta", Politecnico di Milano (Milan, Italy). After a M.Eng. degree cum laude in Biomedical Engineering (2017), he obtained a Ph.D. in Materials Engineering (2021) with the highest grade from Politecnico di Milano. While completing his Ph.D., he had experience as a Visiting Researcher (2019) at the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering at Ottawa University (ON, CA). He is currently a Post-doctoral Research Fellow at Politecnico di Milano and his research is focused on the design and characterization of stimuli-responsive hydrogels, based on natural polymers, for tissue engineering and regenerative medicine. In this framework, he developed innovative responsive hydrogels, based on methylcellulose and chitosan, as advanced platforms for drug delivery, cell sheet engineering, and 3D bioprinting. Dr. Bonetti received the Julia Polak European Doctorate Award in 2022 from the European Society for Biomaterials (ESB), as a recognition for his outstanding doctoral track record. He currently serves as a Guest Editor for *Gels* and is a member of the Topical Advisory Panel of the same journal. With an H-index of 8, he is co-author of 15 research articles.

#### **Laura Riva**

Laura Riva graduated in 2018 in Medicinal Chemistry and Pharmaceutical Technology cum laude at the University of Milan, and in 2021, she obtained a Ph.D. in Industrial Chemistry and Chemical Engineering with the highest grade at Politecnico di Milano. Since March 2023, she is a junior researcher (RTD-A) in the Department of Chemistry, Materials and Chemical Engineering, Politecnico di Milano. During her Ph.D., conducted in collaboration with Innovhub Stazioni Sperimentali per l'Industria – area Carta e Cartone and focused on the production and applications of high value-added nanodimensional materials from cellulose-containing sources, she did part of her research in France, at the INP PAGORA GRENOBLE - LGP2 LABORATORY (Laboratory of Pulp and Paper Science). Co-author of 12 scientific papers, one book chapter and one patent application, her research activities mainly focus on production, characterization and applications of nanocellulose obtained from virgin and waste sources, combined with the synthesis of cellulose-based nanostructured organic materials used in environmental decontamination (water treatment for removal of dyes, heavy metals and pesticides), in the field of sensing and heterogeneous catalysis. The focus of her research is also on the environmental sustainability of the materials produced and the processes used to produce them, studied through Life Cycle Assessment analyses conducted in collaboration with other groups at the Politecnico di Milano, with a focus also on the eco-safety of materials, developed in collaboration with the faculty of eco-toxicology at the University of Siena. She has numerous collaborations with various national and international research groups, with which she is currently conducting scientific research in all the areas previously described.
