Silvia Radenkovic on Building Connections in the Scientific Community

Recently, we spoke with various members of Females in Mass Spectrometry (FeMS) about their work within the group and what Women’s History Month, which was in March, means to them (1). As part of our coverage, we sat with each interviewee to learn more about their careers on a more personal level (2,3).

In this two-part interview, we spoke with Silvia Radenkovic, who is a biochemical genetics fellow at UMC Utrecht. Earning her PhD from KU Leuven (Belgium) and Mayo Clinic (USA), Silvia’s scientific interests include inborn metabolic disorders (IMD), like congenital disorders of glycosylation (CDG), omics techniques such as tracer metabolomics, and different disease models (e.g. fibroblasts, organoids, iPSC). In this first part of our interview, we spoke with Silvia about her research in using metabolomics for diagnosis and management of IMDs.

Tell us about the FeMS empowerment awards and other awards that FeMS offers. What advice would you give to other women looking to get involved in FeMS or apply for a FeMS award?

I'm currently a co-chair for the FeMS awards. One of the awards that we give out four times a year is empowerment awards. They are meant to support underrepresented scientists, mostly women. The application criteria are really broad, and we get a lot of different requests. It's not a big amount of money, but even with a small amount of money, we see that it makes a big difference in people's lives. So, we would sponsor, for example, people going to the conferences, people going for courses that would help them in their career. We sponsored small projects, because we have students that do not have enough funds for their project, or the costs of printing out the thesis. The awards is supposed to the applicants achieve their goals, even though they come from under privileged backgrounds.

At the beginning, I didn't realize how much of an impact this has. Since we ask all of our awardees to send us reports and let us know how they use their money or what it means to them, it made me realize that even what we consider a small support can make a big impact. And every time we have a new cycle, and I get to read all of those emails and reports, I realize how just a little bit of support can mean a mean a world to people. I learned how little it takes to make a big improvement, and I think we should always remember that.

In addition to FeMS, you are part of the EMN Metabolomics Society and the Biochemical Society. What drew you to leadership in these organizations, and why is it important to diversify one's scientific interests?

I got involved in a lot of different societies because of COVID. I'm a very sociable person, and I missed human contact and going to the conferences. I had to move from the States to Belgium during this time, because of COVID, and I just felt like I was missing out on scientific interactions and just interactions with people in general. So, joining societies was a good way to connect with other scientists . And of course, there is a benefit to one’s career as well. EMN is a part of the Early-Career Members Network Metabolomics Society, and there I serve as a chair, and I coordinate a group of 14 young scientists in metabolomics. We prepare a lot of different things for early career members, such as webinars, conference workshops, networking events, throughout the year. We work to improve personal and professional development of ECRs in metabolomics. It's a bit different than being in FeMS because the intended group is a different, but I think they really complement each other, and I can use what I learned from one committee on the other one. With the Biochemical Society, I serve as early-career representatives on an awards committee. Through these experiences I have learned that it is important to have early-career members on these types of committees, as we can make a difference and point out the things that are important for the new generation.

References

(1) Acevedo, A. FeMS Members Reflect on the Meaning of Women’s History Month. LCGC International 2025. https://www.chromatographyonline.com/view/fems-members-reflect-on-the-meaning-of-women-s-history-month (accessed 2025-4-3)

(2) Acevedo, A. Changing Lives Through Vaccine Development: An Interview with Ezgi Gürler of FeMS. LCGC International 2025. https://www.chromatographyonline.com/view/changing-lives-through-vaccine-development-an-interview-with-ezgi-g-rler-of-fems (accessed 2025-4-3)

(3) Acevedo, A. Iulia Macavei of Evosep Discusses Her PhD Research and Her Role in Organizing FeMS Events. LCGC International 2025. https://www.chromatographyonline.com/view/iulia-macavei-of-evosep-discusses-her-phd-research-and-her-role-in-organizing-fems-events (accessed 2025-4-3)