Derick Nzogoa Ateacha, M. Sc.

Contact Information:

University of Siegen
Department of Chemistry and Biology
Adolf-Reichwein-Str. 2
D-57068 Siegen
Germany

Office: AR-F 212
Phone: +49 (0)271 740-4239
Fax: +49 (0)271 740-2041
E-Mail: derick.ateacha at student.uni-siegen dot de

06/2003

Advance Level (Abitur), Saint Joseph’s College (SJC) Sasse-Buea, Cameroon

10/2003 - 08/2007

Bachelor of Science in Chemistry (University of Buea)
Major: Chemistry
Minor: Material Science

10/2008 - 02/2011

Master of Science in Chemistry (University of Siegen)
Thesis: "Hot Water Reversed-Phase HPLC with Silica-C18 and Subsequent Coupling to ICP-OES"

03/2011 - present

Research assistant in the Department Chemistry and Biology at the University of Siegen

My research interest is development and optimization of mass spectrometric (MS) techniques for the analysis of organic pharmaceuticals. The research is subdivided into two main parts. In the first part, separation-based MS technique including high temperature (HT) high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) coupled to MS is developed and optimized for the analysis of antimalarial pharmaceuticals. In the second part, direct MS-based approaches including time-of-flight secondary ion mass spectrometry (ToF-SIMS), a surface-based MS technique and low-temperature plasma MS (LTP-MS), an ambient desorption/ionization MS (ADI-MS) technique are developed and optimized for the fast screening of active pharmaceutical ingredients in drugs.
Besides my research interest, I have had the opportunity to work in an Analytical Chemistry Lab, HuK Umweltlabor GmbH, Hünsborn, where amongst other activities, I focused on fundamental studies of ICP-MS and application for the analysis of elemental compositions of inorganic compounds.

Part time worker as Analytical Chemist at HuK Umweltlabor GmbH, Hünsborn, Germany 

Peer-reviewed Publications:

D. N. Ateacha, U. Koch, C. Engelhard:
Direct Analysis of Alkaloids in Natural Cinchona Bark and Commercial Extracts using Time-of-Flight Secondary Ion Mass Spectrometry,
Analytical Methods, 2018, 10, 950 - 958, (DOI: 10.1039/C7AY02822A).
Featured by Analytical Methods on the Inside Front Cover, of Issue 9.

D. N. Ateacha, C. Engelhard:
Optimisation and Application of High-Temperature High Performance Liquid Chromatography Mass Spectrometry for the Analysis of Cinchona Alkaloids, (submitted for publication).

D. N. Ateacha, C. Engelhard:
Analysis of Artemisinin-Based Antimalarial Pharmaceuticals by High-Temperature High Performance Liquid Chromatography Mass Spectrometry, (submitted for publication).

D. N. Ateacha, C. Kuhlmann, C. Engelhard:
Rapid Qualitative Screening of Antimalarials Using Low-Temperature Plasma Desorption/Ionisation Orbitrap Mass Spectrometry, (Submitted for publication).

Oral Presentations:

12th Interdisciplinary Doctoral Meeting 2018 (Berlin, Germany):
"Development and Optimization of Direct Mass Spectrometric-Based Approaches fort the Analysis of Antimalarials"

26th Doctoral Seminar of the Workgroup Separation Scinece of the GDCh 2016 (Hohenroda, Germany):
"Development and Optimisation of Analytical Methods for the Separation and Identification Antimalarial Agents" 

GDCh & JCF Colloquium of the local section Siegen 2014 (Siegen, Germany):
"High Temperature RPLC/MS ‐ Application to Pharmaceuticals"

Poster Presentations:

ANAKON 2015 (Graz, Austria):
"High Temperature Liquid Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry (HTLC-MS) Analysis of Quinine and Derivatives"

6th Interdisciplinary Doctoral Meeting 2012 (Berlin, Germany):
"Hot water reversed-phase HPLC with silica-C18 and subsequent coupling to ICP-OES"

Scholarships:

01/2015: Seminar and travel grant by the German Chemical Scociety (GDCh)

03/2015: Conference travel grant by the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD)

2010: End-of-degree scholarship (Studienabschlussstipendium) by the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) 

2009: One year scholarship by Studienförderfonds Siegen e.V.