Krista Bekkema obtained her BSc degree in Chemistry from the University of Applied Sciences NHL Stenden in Leeuwarden, the Netherlands. Her thesis focused on the development of UV wood coatings for interior and exterior purposes. Subsequently, she began her studies at the University of Groningen to pursue an MSc in Chemistry. For her Master’s thesis, she researched complex coacervate coatings designed to function as lubricants at room temperature and become adhesive after insertion into the urethra, aiming to create a balloon-free catheter design. For her second research project, she joined the Lerch group to investigate amorphous peptide-based adhesives. In this project, she focused on the synthesis and characterization of peptide-inspired sequences.
Lerch Lab 