Dr. Karin Y. Chumbimuni-Torres is an Associate Professor in the Chemistry Department at the University of Central Florida. A native of Peru, she earned her Master’s and Doctoral degrees at the University of Campinas, Brazil. After graduating, she was a postdoctoral researcher at Purdue University and at the University of California in San Diego. Her research interests focus on the understanding, characterization, and development of chemical sensors' biological applications. Analytes of interest are biological ions and biomolecules such as microRNAs, RNA, and DNA. Her group is also interested in studying the interactions at the interface of biomolecules and nanomaterials, the synthesis of nanoparticles, nanostructures, photoactive compounds, and the development of biocompatible materials for analytical devices. Her lab’s research interests have been extended to the creation of optical sensors that can be controlled using visible light for biomedical applications. Dr. Chumbimuni-Torres holds various honors and awards, such as the Outstanding Educator at a Research Institution Award from the American Chemical Society—Orlando section, as well as Excellence in Undergraduate Teaching at college and University level in 2017 and 2020, Teaching and Research Incentive Awards, the Life and faculty of excellence award for “Positively transforming the lives of students”, and Fulbright Scholarship, among others.