At his science-focused high school in Indonesia, Ryan Febryanto was fascinated by ambiguous, open questions. The field where many of those questions could be found? Biology.
“It’s somewhat surprising, biology feels close to us and intuitive, but there are still so many things we don’t know about, like how exactly all of these molecular components work together as a complete biological system,” Febryanto said.
At his undergraduate program in marine biology at Tohoku University in Japan, Febryanto discovered that his interests lie closer to intersections with other fields than to pure biology itself. He found research opportunities in various labs, each focusing on a different topic like molecular biology, computational biology, or nanotechnology.
“I was floating between different fields and I knew I wanted to keep doing so and be the bridge, so I knew I wanted to find a PhD program that was interdisciplinary,” he said.
He found it at the University of Chicago Pritzker School of Molecular Engineering (UChicago PME), where he is now part of the labs of Asst. Profs. Allison Squires and Samantha Riesenfeld.
Since arriving in 2024, he has used DNA nanotechnology and single-molecule fluorescence spectroscopy to engineer fluorescent labels that can label biological molecules for applications in biomarker sensing and super-resolution microscopy. He designs these constructs to generate distinct spectroscopic “fingerprints” through tuning the efficiency of molecular energy transfer. That allows him to detect multiple targets without needing additional color channels, a challenging problem that has limited fluorescence multiplexing in these regimes.
Harnessing the power of this tool has implications for basic science, since it could allow researchers to detect multiple proteins, even if they exist at extremely low abundances, and how their interactions lead to the state of that biological system. Aside from having high sensitivity, because this technique allows for distinguishing many molecular species simultaneously, it could be used to detect several disease biomarkers in the blood—a useful tool for early diagnosis of complex diseases like Alzheimer’s and cancers, which often involve many different biomarkers.
“Right now, when we detect cancer biomarkers in the blood, it often means that the disease has already progressed too far for intervention,” Febryanto said. “But if you can detect single molecules of a panel of, say, thirty biomarkers, you can detect the disease at a much earlier stage and have abundant information that might predict disease progression or treatment response.”
At UChicago PME, Febryanto has found a supportive environment of open connection between labs. “When I’m trying to do something new, I can just call someone up in another lab for help,” he said. “Both of my labs are interdisciplinary, and we’re all working on different things, but we have a really nice exchange of ideas to help each other.”
Outside of the lab, he either participates in organizing events for UChicago’s Indonesian Student Association, plays sports with his friends and lab mates, or tries out different recipes at home. On the weekends, he explores the city, trying out new restaurants or going to concerts. “Chicago is a large city, but it’s not too hectic,” he said. “It’s a nice balance of having everything you need while still being livable without tiring you out.”
Febryanto is still split on his plans after graduation. He is drawn to academia, though he hasn’t ruled out a career in industry or management consulting.
“My experience is that most other schools around the world aren’t as interdisciplinary as UChicago PME,” he said. “The nice thing here is that if I have some crazy idea, then chances are I could probably find someone to help me figure it out. I want a career that has that interdisciplinary nature.”