Ardena Oss

María Jesús Martín is Senior Scientist and Group Leader in the Solid-State Department at Ardena Oss. She combines scientific expertise in solid-state science with project management experience across pharmaceutical development environments. Before joining Ardena in 2022, María Jesús began her career in solid-state science at Pharmorphix in Cambridge and later moved into project management roles within the pharmaceutical industry. At Ardena, she combines her scientific and project management background to support Solid-State Department activities and customer projects. María Jesús studied Chemistry in Zaragoza, Spain, and completed her MChem studies in Edinburgh, United Kingdom.

Giovanna Brancatelli is Principal Scientist and Scientific Director at Ardena Solid State Research in Oss. She supervises R&D projects focused on polymorph, salt, and co-crystal screening, as well as preformulation studies supporting pharmaceutical development programs. Giovanna joined Ardena in 2015 from the Department of Chemistry at the University of Trieste, where she conducted postdoctoral research on the molecular recognition of biogenic amines in the solid state. Her expertise includes polymorphism, crystallization, organic and inorganic chemistry, supramolecular chemistry, and X-ray crystallography. Giovanna earned her MSc degree and PhD in Chemical Sciences from the University of Messina.

Rob van der Weegen is Principal Scientist and Group Lead at Ardena. He specializes in GMP-compliant process development and scale-up of complex nanoscale therapeutic modalities supporting clinical studies and future commercial manufacturing. Rob joined Ardena in 2018 as a Process Development Scientist in the field of Nanomedicines. Since then, he has focused on supporting process development and manufacturing scale-up activities for advanced therapeutic programs within GMP-regulated environments. Prior to joining Ardena, he completed a two-year postdoctoral position in Paris specializing in polymer and materials sciences. Rob obtained his PhD in Supramolecular Chemistry from Eindhoven University of Technology in 2015.

Moniek van der Eem is Director Analytical Sciences at Ardena. She is an experienced analytical chemist with more than 20 years of experience in the pharmaceutical industry, specializing in CMC development and analytical strategies supporting drug development programs. Throughout her career, Moniek has led analytical and quality strategies across complex pharmaceutical projects, supporting the advancement of development programs from early stages into the clinic. She has extensive experience delivering robust analytical data packages and supporting regulatory readiness across development activities. Moniek is recognized for her expertise in analytical sciences and her focus on supporting efficient and compliant pharmaceutical development programs.

Sjoerd Rijpkema is Senior Scientist and Group Lead at Ardena. He specializes in polymer chemistry and NMR, supporting R&D activities and customer projects within pharmaceutical development programs. Before joining Ardena, Sjoerd worked as a university lecturer, teaching polymer chemistry and NMR. Since joining Ardena, he first worked in laboratory-based roles before progressing into his current position as Group Lead in R&D, where he supports customer projects and team coordination activities. In addition to his work at Ardena, he is a columnist for the Royal Netherlands Chemical Society (KNCV) and is involved in the organization committee for the Future Leaders in Chemistry conference. Sjoerd studied Chemistry in Nijmegen, where he completed a Master’s degree in Organic Chemistry and NMR, followed by a PhD in Systems Chemistry.

Marco Jaspers is Principal Scientist and Senior Project Manager at Ardena. He brings more than 20 years of experience across the life sciences and pharmaceutical industry, specializing in leading complex multidisciplinary projects. Throughout his career, Marco has focused on supporting project teams and clients in delivering successful development outcomes across pharmaceutical programs. He is recognized for his results-driven mindset, pragmatic approach, and empathetic leadership style, supporting collaboration across cross-functional project environments. At Ardena, Marco works closely with project teams to help accelerate development programs and support the successful progression of products toward market readiness.

Silvie Meeuwissen is Director Process R&D and Manufacturing Nanomedicines at Ardena Oss. She specializes in nanomedicine process development and pharmaceutical manufacturing, supporting the development of innovative precision medicine-based therapies. Since joining Ardena in 2013, Silvie has played a key role in the establishment and growth of Ardena’s nanomedicine services. In 2023, she became Director Process R&D and Manufacturing Nanomedicines, leading the department’s efforts in process development and manufacturing activities supporting advanced therapeutic programs. Silvie studied Organic Chemistry and obtained her PhD in Bio-organic Chemistry from Radboud University.