About

Dr. Cristiana Boi is an associate research professor of chemical engineering at the University of Bologna, Italy, and an adjunct assistant professor of chemical and biomolecular engineering at NC State University. Her research activity deals with difficult separations and focuses on the fundamental aspects of the different processes considered and on their possible applications. In recent years, her interest has shifted towards separations for bioprocessing and biomedical applications using membranes and chromatographic processes to purify biological molecules of therapeutic interest or to remove toxins and small molecules from blood and water streams. Since February 2017, she has been the president of the European Membrane Society (EMS).

Research topics

• Computer Science
• Chemistry
• Engineering
• Biology
• Chromatography
• Biotechnology
• Biochemistry
• Polymer chemistry
• Nanotechnology
• Process engineering
• Biomedical engineering
• Materials science
• Organic chemistry
• Biochemical engineering

Selected publications

• Non‐Functionalized Graphene as an Electrical Sensing Surface for Bacterial Detection

  Advanced Materials Interfaces · 2026-02-13

  articleOpen accessCorresponding

  ABSTRACT Early detection of bacteria in food products is crucial for protecting human health and reducing economic losses. Although conventional methods, such as culture‐based techniques, nucleic acid sequence‐based detection, and immunoassays, are generally accurate, they are often time‐consuming, labor‐intensive, and require specialized equipment. In response to these limitations, sensing technologies emerge as simple, rapid, and cost‐effective alternatives. Among these technologies, graphene gains significant attention due to its unique electrical properties and biocompatibility, making it a promising material for bacterial detection. While most efforts focus on functionalizing sensors for specific targets, recent studies demonstrate that non‐functionalized graphene can effectively detect bacteria, enabling simpler and more affordable sensor design. This review provides a comprehensive analysis of non‐functionalized electrical graphene‐based bacterial sensors developed thus far. It evaluates and discusses the influence of graphene properties, bacterial activity, sensor design, and operational conditions on sensor performance. Additionally, the review emphasizes the need for further research to improve the reproducibility and scalability of reliable sensors and to develop sensitive, selective, and physiochemically stable devices.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Microfluidic loading of verteporfin into extracellular vesicles for neuroblastoma therapy

  Lab on a Chip · 2025-01-01 · 10 citations

  articleOpen access

  Despite contributing to cancer progression, extracellular vesicles (EVs) could serve as potential drug delivery systems in cancer treatment, having the ability to dissolve water-insoluble drugs and facilitate targeted delivery. However, the clinical translation of EVs is still in its infancy. While traditional methods for EV modifications will remain relevant, microfluidic approaches are expected to replace benchtop methods. Taking advantage of lab-on-chip devices, passive cargo loading through microfluidic mixing and incubation may be an important strategy to produce functional engineered EVs. This study focuses on developing a microfluidic device to generate EVs loaded with verteporfin (VP), a hydrophobic porphyrin with potential applications in neuroblastoma (NB) therapy, aiming to enhance its therapeutic effectiveness. The platform ensures perfect mixing and tunable incubation time for mesenchymal stem cell-derived EVs and VP, demonstrating a significantly higher loading efficiency than traditional methods, while operating under gentle conditions that preserve EV integrity and functionality, unlike other microfluidic techniques that involve harsh mechanical or chemical treatments. The VP-loaded EVs (VP-EVs) can then be easily recovered, making them available for subsequent analysis and use. MTT assay confirmed that VP-EVs are more efficient than free VP in reducing the viability of a NB cell line. Finally, immunofluorescence assay and western blot demonstrated a greater reduction in YAP expression after treatment with VP-EVs in an NB cell line when compared to free VP. Being both non-destructive and straightforward, this microfluidic loading technique facilitates its adaptability to a wide spectrum of therapeutic compounds. As a versatile tool, microfluidic technology will help to fully unlock the potential of EVs for speeding up precision medicine and disease treatment.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• High-capacity nonwoven increases productivity of mAb purification in an all-membrane process

  Separation and Purification Technology · 2025-03-19 · 1 citations

  articleOpen accessCorresponding

  • A new multimodal anion exchange (MMA) nonwoven membrane was developed. • The MMA membrane exhibited a higher binding capacity than the counterpart resin. • The MMA membrane was used for capture of a mAb from CHO supernatant. • An all-nonwoven membrane chromatography process was developed for mAb purification. • The all-membrane process exhibited a higher production efficiency than the platform resin process. There is significant interest in alternative manufacturing processes for monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) to improve productivity and reduce cost. To identify a cost-effective and high-productivity alternative to the conventional Protein A-based mAb capture step, this study presents the development of a high-performance multimodal anion exchange (MMA) membrane utilizing N-Benzyl-N-methylethanolamine (BMEA) as the ligand which was covalently coupled to a polyglycidyl methacrylate (pGMA) UV-grafted polybutylene terephthalate (PBT) nonwoven. The DBC 10% of the MMA membrane for IgG ranged from 32.8-42.4 mg/mL at 0.5 to 5 min residence time. The membrane exhibited an excellent salt tolerance in protein binding near physiological conditions, high flow permeability and good reusability. The MMA membrane also showed a DBC 10% of 59.2 mg/mL for direct capture of a mAb from a CHO supernatant without the need for pH or conductivity adjustments, along with a recovery of 94.3%, a 1.0 log reduction value (LRV) of host cell proteins (HCPs), a 1.8 LRV for DNA, and a reduction of aggregates from 5.4% to 0.9%. This capture step was implemented in an all-membrane mAb purification process that included a viral inactivation step and two polishing steps using an anion exchange nonwoven (AEX-TEA) and a multimodal cation exchange nonwoven (MMC-MPCA). A side-by-side comparison with a platform mAb purification process using Protein A resin and two ion exchange resins showed that the all-membrane process exhibited similar impurity clearance, higher overall recovery (88.3% vs. 77.5%) and significantly reduced processing time (3.8 h vs. 13.1 h) with fewer steps as it eliminates the need for diafiltration for buffer exchange.

  PublisherDOI

• Modernizing the platform process of antibody purification for enhanced impurity clearance

  SSRN Electronic Journal · 2025-01-01

  preprintOpen access
  PublisherDOI

• Modernizing the platform process of antibody purification for enhanced impurity clearance

  Separation and Purification Technology · 2025-11-20 · 2 citations

  articleOpen access

  The established platform for monoclonal antibody (mAb) purification, centered on Protein A affinity capture and subsequent polishing steps, has enabled large-scale manufacturing of therapeutic antibodies. However, persistent host cell proteins (HCPs), antibody aggregates, and product fragments remain challenging to clear, particularly as novel mAb formats and intensified upstream processes introduce higher impurity loads. In this study, we present transformative mAb purification platforms that combine novel multimodal resins operating in flow-through mode with conventional Protein A chromatography to address these limitations. Our new platform utilizes LigaGuard for the selective removal of high-risk and persistent HCPs, chromatin, and aggregates by flow-through affinity chromatography; and a size-exclusion-mixed-mode (SEMM) resin for the efficient removal of product-related low and high molecular weight impurities and residual process-related impurities. Several alternative process configurations were systematically assessed to maximize purification performance and robustness. A novel process configuration comprising an initial impurity-stripping step using LigaGuard followed by a capture step by Protein A chromatography and a polishing step using SEMM resin achieved global yields up to 86 %, with residual product-related impurities <1 %, HCPs <60 ppm, and hcDNA <10 ppb across diverse industrial feedstocks. The proteomic analyses of the polished streams confirmed the depletion of high-risk and persistent HCPs, including hydrolases and polysorbate-degrading enzymes. The use of two flow-through operations flanking a central affinity capture step enhances the performance of the Protein A resin alongside process productivity and robustness to feedstock variability. These results support a new paradigm for mAb purification, offering scalable and robust solutions for both legacy and emerging antibody modalities. • Integrating Protein A with LigaGuard and SEMM resins enhances impurity clearance. • The proposed process architectures robustly achieve up to 99.9 % monomer purity. • Proteomic analysis demonstrates reduction from >2600 to ~30 HCPs in the polished pools. • The combination of LigaGuard and Protein A resin remove cathepsins, chromatin, and lipases. • Platform met regulatory impurity thresholds while achieving high yield and productivity.

  PublisherDOI

• Scalable membrane-based processes to isolate extracellular vesicles from lemon juice

  Separation and Purification Technology · 2025-04-18 · 7 citations

  articleOpen accessSenior authorCorresponding

  • A continuous membrane UF/DF process for the isolation of EVs from lemons is presented. • The two-step membrane process is compared to UC and SEC for isolating lemon EVs. • The UF/DF process outperforms conventional purification methods. • Membranes provide a robust foundation for the industrial translation of plant EVs. Plant-derived extracellular vesicles (EVs) are attracting increasing interest for their potential as carriers of bioactive molecules for therapeutic applications. In this study, we focus on the isolation of EVs from Citrus limon juice using membrane-based separation techniques. After a pretreatment to obtain clarified lemon juice, we initially used a batch diafiltration approach (staged UF/DF) for preliminary membrane screening and EV purification, including a concentration step. The 200 kDa polyethersulfone (PES) membrane was identified as the best performing membrane, as determined by size exclusion chromatography (SEC) analysis of the diafiltration streams. However, due to limited EV recovery, we transitioned to a continuous tangential flow diafiltration (continuous UF/DF) process using 750 kDa PES hollow fiber modules. Although both staged and continuous UF/DF were effective in removing 99.7 % of impurities, staged UF/DF required longer processing times and resulted in lower EV recovery with respect to continuous UF/DF. The final process was also compared with traditional purification methods such as differential ultracentrifugation (UC) and preparative SEC. Continuous tangential flow diafiltration was found to be the most efficient method for removing impurities and recovering EVs, providing a scalable and effective alternative to traditional UC-based processes. This study highlights the potential of lemon juice as a sustainable and cost-effective source of EVs for therapeutic applications, coupled with scalable and efficient membrane-based purification, opening new opportunities for the use of plant-derived EVs in clinical and industrial settings.

  PublisherDOI

• Flow-Through Polishing of Protein a Eluates: Removal of High and Low Molecular Weight Impurities by Size-Exclusion-Mixed-Mode Chromatography

  SSRN Electronic Journal · 2025-01-01

  preprintOpen access
  PublisherDOI

• Continuous Tangential Flow Filtration to Isolate Extracellular Vesicles from Dairy By-Products

  Industrial & Engineering Chemistry Research · 2025-07-30 · 7 citations

  articleOpen accessSenior authorCorresponding

  Extracellular vesicles (EVs) are nanoparticles with high diagnostic and therapeutic potential, but their large-scale application remains hampered by challenges related to the availability of suitable sources and isolation techniques. In this study, we investigated sweet whey, the main byproduct of the dairy industry, as an innovative source of EVs. Whey was pretreated by centrifugation, followed by purification and concentration using a two-stage tangential flow filtration (TFF) process, the first operating in diafiltration mode and the second in concentration mode. Two TFF hollow fiber membrane modules were tested: a microfiltration membrane with a pore size of 0.15 μm and an ultrafiltration membrane with a molecular weight cutoff of 750 kDa. Process performance was evaluated using several analytical techniques and parameters, with impurity removal, EV loss, and relative EV content in the final product calculated from HPLC size exclusion chromatography results as the primary metrics. TFF performance was compared with a standard ultracentrifugation protocol. TFF microfiltration outperformed ultracentrifugation in terms of both final product purity (>99%), relative EV content (>57%), EV loss (<6%), and process throughput. However, TFF ultrafiltration completely prevented EV loss (0.04%), but it was not as efficient at removing impurities (<98%) when compared to microfiltration. This study demonstrates for the first time that sweet whey is a low-cost, sustainable, and widely available source of EVs. By combining these properties with a highly efficient, continuous, and easily scalable TFF process, we have addressed the barriers that limit the industrial-scale therapeutic application of EVs, further capitalizing on the use of a byproduct rather than consuming a primary resource.

  PublisherDOI

• Nanofiltration efficiency in the purification of lactose from ultrafiltered acid whey

  Journal of Food Engineering · 2025-10-29 · 3 citations

  articleOpen access
  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Graphene Oxide-Activated Cellular Ceramic Composite Monoliths for Protein Purification

  Industrial & Engineering Chemistry Research · 2025-09-08

  articleOpen accessSenior authorCorresponding

  composite ceramic monoliths were prepared and tested as a potential stationary phase for process chromatography. The material was characterized by measuring the pore size distribution and hydraulic permeability. The interstitial porosity, the axial dispersion coefficient, and the height equivalent to a theoretical plate were calculated by pulse tests under nonbinding conditions. The surface of the ceramic material was activated with graphene oxide and then functionalized with Cibacron Blue F3GA. The dynamic binding capacity of the functionalized columns was measured in chromatographic cycles by using bovine serum albumin (BSA) as the target molecule. The experiments showed that the proposed monoliths have a well-defined porous structure, leading to particularly interesting flow properties for chromatographic bioseparations, such as very high permeability and convection, as the main mass transport phenomenon. These results are encouraging for a possible future optimization of the functionalization procedure toward the development of efficient convective media for protein purification.

  PublisherDOI

Frequent coauthors

• Giulio C. Sarti

  47 shared

• Ruben G. Carbonell

  North Carolina State University

  36 shared

• Simone Dimartino

  University of Edinburgh

  25 shared

• Jinxin Fan

  North Carolina State University

  16 shared

• Eleonora Lalli

  University of Bologna

  13 shared

• Joseph Lavoie

  12 shared

• Behnam Pourdeyhimi

  12 shared

• Stefano Menegatti

  North Carolina State University

  11 shared

Education

• Ph.D., Chemical Engineering

  University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

  2006

• M.S., Chemical Engineering

  University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

  2002

• B.S., Chemical Engineering

  University of Bucharest

  1999