A About the author | 211 About the author Katarína Ochodnická (née Mackovičová) was born on the 3rd of June 1986 in Bratislava, Slovakia (then Czechoslovakia). She pursued her undergraduate studies in Pharmacy at Comenius University in Bratislava. Alongside her studies, she actively engaged in various scientific student projects at the Faculty of Pharmacology and Toxicology, fostering a profound interest in research and innovation within pharmaceutical sciences. Driven by her passion, Katarína ventured to the Netherlands, where she obtained her Master of Science degree in Medical and Pharmaceutical Drug Innovation from the University of Groningen. During her master’s studies, she undertook two enriching internships. First, she worked in the lab of Professor van IJzendoorn at the Department of Cell Biology of University Medical Center Groningen (UMCG), focusing on 3D-organoid and C.elegans models to investigate the origin of Microvillus Inclusion Disease. Second, she conducted research in the lab of Professor Brundel at the Department of Clinical Pharmacology, UMCG, exploring the role of Heat Shock Proteins in Atrial Fibrillation using D. melanogaster as a model organism. Her contributions to various Bachelor’s and Master’s research projects at both universities were recognized in numerous scientific publications. Continuing her academic pursuits, Katarína conducted her doctoral research studies at the University of Amsterdam/ University Medical Center Amsterdam. Under the guidance of Professor Carel van Noesel and Dr. Jeroen Guikema at the Department of Pathology, she conducted fundamental research on the origin of genomic instability in B-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia (B-ALL), the culmination of which is presented in this thesis. Following the four productive years as a PhD candidate, Katarína transitioned into roles within the pharmaceutical industry, while continuing working on publishing her research and completing her thesis. She dedicated six years to various quality assurance positions, including Qualified Person, Responsible Person, and QA Manager at Nordic Pharma. Subsequently, she served as an EU-Qualified Person/Senior QA Manager at Bristol Myers Squibb (BMS) for nearly two years. However, balancing the career demands, and those of raising a young family, was structurally leaving insufficient time for thesis completion. Therefore, in the summer of 2023, she made the decision to temporarily step away from her paid job and concentrate full-time on finalizing her doctoral studies. As of May 2024, Katarína holds the position of Qualified Person for Advanced Therapy Medicinal Products (ATMP) at the Cell Therapy facility of the University Medical Center patient care.
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