About
Aitor Manteca is a Research Associate at the Biomolecular Nanotechnology Lab, CIC biomaGUNE, since 2021, funded by the Gipuzkoa Fellow Grant. He has authored 8 peer-reviewed articles (as first, second, or corresponding author) and contributed to the creation of two start-ups. Dr. Manteca has delivered over 10 keynote, invited, and selected talks at international events. He holds dual B.Eng degrees in Industrial Chemistry and Material Science, with research stays in The Netherlands and Spain. In 2009, he earned the Iñaki Goenaga scholarship to study magnetoresistive properties, resulting in a first-author publication in Biosensors and Bioelectronics. He later worked in R&D at ITW-Krafft, integrating nanomaterials into polymers and completing an M.Eng in Renewable Materials. From 2013–2017, he pursued a PhD at CIC nanoGUNE, studying titin's nanoscale properties under Raul Pérez-Jimenez and David de Sancho. His research yielded a European PhD with Cum Laude, publications in JBC and Nature Structural & Molecular Biology, and the spin-off Evolgene Genomics. A secondment in Germany, funded by EBSA, expanded his expertise in molecular cardiology. His postdoctoral research (2017–2021) with Dr. Axel Innis (INSERM) and Prof. JC Baret (CNRS) focused on peptide-based bacterial ribosome inhibitors using droplet microfluidics, supported by an EMBO Grant. He published in ACS Synthetic Biology and Biochemistry. At CIC biomaGUNE, Dr. Manteca has secured over €500,000 in funding for protein engineering, quantum-inspired algorithms, and immunotherapy. His collaborations include CRG, NavarraBiomed, CNRS, and Pasteur Institute, alongside industrial partners like ACX Instruments and Multiverse Computing. He co-leads outreach programs such as Pint of Science and Biophysics Day. He has supervised and advised multiple PhD and graduate students and developed innovative technologies, including a droplet sorter and quantum-based epitope analysis tools, with patents underway.
Joined
February 2025
