Professor Maria Cruz Moreno Bondi served as the Spanish Society for Analytical Chemistry (SEQA) representative among the editors of Analytical and Bioanalytical Chemistry (ABC) until last June 2022 when she, sadly, passed away. Although the fight against disease was going on for some years, the feeling of an unexpected loss invaded all of the analytical community in Spain (Fig. 1).

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Maria Cruz Moreno Bondi

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As representatives of the Spanish analytical community, we want to highlight some aspects of Prof. Bondi’s professional career. First is her dedication to science even when health was not always on her side. We want to think that her family together with her passion for the discipline helped her out of some cumbersome moments. In addition, she was highly motivated in her role as an editor of ABC during these last years, and she got involved from the very first minute to continue on the bright path set by Prof. Alfredo Sanz-Medel’s efforts.

Prof. Bondi, Mari Cruz, as most of us knew her, did her PhD at the Universidad Complutense of Madrid under the supervision of Prof. Carmen Cámara from the Department of Analytical Chemistry on research focused on the design, development, and application of fiber-optic chemical sensors for pH, Fe (II), oxygen, and glucose monitoring. She became Full Professor in 2008 and was deeply involved in research, co-leading the Chemical Optosensors and Applied Photochemistry Group (GSOLFA) and the Presidency of the Spanish Society of Applied Spectroscopy for some years. Latterly, she was also a member of the governing board of the Spanish Royal Society of Chemistry (RSEQ). In addition, she undertook important administrative positions, like the departmental chair of the Analytical Chemistry Department at Complutense University of Madrid.

From a scientific perspective, Mari Cruz made groundbreaking contributions to the field of optical chemical sensing. Along the way, she has played a significant role in the introduction of innovative concepts (e.g., molecularly imprinted polymers, nanomaterials, recombinant antibodies, etc.) in the development of biosensors designed for quantification of biomolecules directly in real samples of interest in clinical, environmental, and food safety applications.

Beyond the impact of her research work, we cannot forget here her dedication to the teaching of analytical chemistry at the university. Mari Cruz was admired and highly appreciated by her students. She prepared her classes with dedication and tried to get involved in a multitude of teaching innovation activities, seeking to give an excellent character to her teaching in analytical chemistry. Mari Cruz personally trained many graduate students and postdoctoral fellows in her lab. Witnessing her passion for science, rigor in conducting research, diligence in mentoring students, and devotion to scholarship was a powerful experience that has left a lasting impression and influence on their careers. Her job, as mentor of many PhD students, and her involvement in active research resulted in a fruitful career with almost 200 papers published, patents, and funded research projects. Some other relevant features of Mari Cruz’s personality include her capabilities to collaborate with a wide net of multidisciplinary international research teams and the significant number of collaborations with private companies, pursuing the objective of technology transfer from the university to the company. It is also noteworthy that the Spanish Society for Analytical Chemistry and the Spanish Royal Society of Chemistry awarded her research contributions.

She was a good person, a good scientist, and very hardworking, always fighting to contribute to the advancements of (bio)analytical chemistry. Those of us who were fortunate to get to know her and work with Mari Cruz admire her dedication, professionalism, and rectitude. We will all miss her.