Professor Paunov received his PhD in Physical Chemistry in 1997 from the University of Sofia. He spent 20 years as a Professor of Physical Chemistry and Advanced Materials at the University if Hull, UK. He is currently working as a professor and Chair of the Department of Chemistry at Nazarbayev University, Astana, Kazakstan. Prof Paunov does highly interdisciplinary research in nanoscience and bio-nanomaterials. His research interests include smart surfaces, stimulus triggered release of actives, directed cell assembly, tissue engineering, bioimprints and antimicrobial nanocarriers. He has published over 185 scientific papers with a current h-index of 59 and over 12500 citations.