Biochemistry Major Bella Matusich ’26 Wins Prestigious National Research Award
By Maggie Junkins ’26
Biochemistry major and biology minor Bella Matusich ’25 recently earned national recognition for her research on gold nanospheres, winning Best Undergraduate Poster in the Division of Colloid and Surface Chemistry at the American Chemical Society (ACS) fall 2025 national meeting in Washington, D.C.
Matusich, a Santa Clara native, has been conducting research in the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry since her sophomore year under the mentorship of Amelia Fuller, John Nobili, S.J. professor of chemistry. As part of Fuller’s undergraduate research team, Matusich spent the past couple of years working on a project titled “Surface functionalization of gold nanospheres in biologically relevant solutions with diversely functionalized peptoids.”
“Bella has been working on these projects for nearly two years, including full time over two summers,” shared Professor Fuller. “In that time, she has really grown as a scientist and problem solver. She has a knack for considering many variables in a complex system and designing experiments. Bella is tenacious in working consistently to answer important questions. She’s evolved into an excellent communicator of her scientific work, as evidenced by her winning this poster award.”
At the ACS conference, Matusich presented her poster in a competitive session featuring both graduate and undergraduate researchers from across the country. “The opportunities that Santa Clara gave me to be on a research team and jump into a project that covered so many parts of science was really eye-opening,” she said. “Sharing my research—especially with graduate students, professors, and industry professionals who wanted to hear my ideas—was so exciting.”
Despite the challenge of presenting to such an experienced audience, Matusich embraced the opportunity to demonstrate her expertise. “Professor Fuller told me beforehand that graduate students and professionals would ask difficult, technical questions about my research, which was intimidating at first, but really gave me the opportunity to show off my knowledge,” she said. “Not only was I able to share my research with professionals, but I improved my communication skills surrounding research presentations, as well.”
Matusich’s incredible recognition comes at a pivotal time in her academic journey, as she is in the midst of applying to graduate programs. “In addition to presenting my research, I was happy to have the chance to talk to professors and graduate students about their experiences.” Matusich is particularly interested in contributing to research on neurodegenerative diseases and is applying to programs that offer research opportunities in biophysics, molecular biology, and chemical biology. She loves learning about the fundamentals of chemistry and hopes to continue to tap into that passion in her graduate studies.
Her award not only celebrates the success of her research but also reflects Santa Clara University’s commitment to providing undergraduates with meaningful, hands-on research opportunities. “Being recognized for delivering the research and sharing about my team’s successes within our project made me even more excited to go forward and make a career for myself in research,” Matusich said.
Later this fall, Matusich will continue to share her work through her first oral presentation at ACS’s 2025 Western Regional Meeting in San Jose, where she will represent the SCU Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry among a cohort of her peers.
