The ICREAs

ICREA Research Professors form a vibrant community of scientists and researchers in all areas of knowledge that contribute to the advancement of humankind by exploring, interpreting and questioning. Have a look and learn about their amazing discoveries and findings here:

Osuna Oliveras, Sílvia

Universitat de Girona (UdG)

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Osuna Oliveras, Sílvia
Research Professor at
Universitat de Girona (UdG)
Experimental Sciences & Mathematics
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Research interests

Sílvia’s research lies at the interface between computational chemistry and biology. Her research focuses on the study of biochemical processes mainly related to enzyme catalysis. Her lab is developing new computational tools for predicting which amino acid changes are required to the enzyme structure for allowing novel function, enhancing a promiscuous side reaction, or expanding its substrate scope. Her goal is to enable the routine computational design of proficient enzymes to boost their use in industry for the synthesis of pharmaceutically relevant targets. She also applies the developed methodologies to the study of the recognition and assembly process of biomolecules with carbon-based materials.

Key words
computational chemical biology, computational enzyme design, computational chemistry

ORCID
: 0000-0003-3657-6469

RESEARCHER ID
: B-6191-2009
Palomares, Emilio

Institut Català d'Investigació Química (ICIQ)

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Palomares, Emilio
Research Professor at
Institut Català d'Investigació Química (ICIQ)
Experimental Sciences & Mathematics
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Research interests

My research is focused on several aspects of light induced electron transfer reactions in supramolecular structures and nanostructured inorganic materials. Such research activity has evolved towards the control and improvement of the reactions that govern the efficiency on molecular and supramolecular optoelectronic devices such as molecular solar cells - strategy which holds the promise for the achievement of low cost light-to-energy conversion devices- and the creation of new hybrid nanomaterials for hydrogen production and molecular based sensing devices to detect toxic substance on the environment. I'm personally also involved in promoting science and education in our society through chemistry workshops for primary and secondary schools. Last but not least, during the last years our group has contributed with efforts towards the use of nanomaterials for biomedical applications in human rare diseases.

Key words
Photovoltaic, Solar Energy, Nanomaterials, polymers, dyes

ORCID
: 0000-0002-5092-9227
Pelaz Herrero, Soraya

Centre de Recerca en Agrigenòmica (CRAG)

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Pelaz Herrero, Soraya
Research Professor at
Centre de Recerca en Agrigenòmica (CRAG)
Life & Medical Sciences
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Research interests

The connection among crop production, climate change, and demographic growth is progressively uncovering a profound impact in the food security throughout the world. Because plants are sessile organisms, they maximize their chances to survive adversities by reprogramming their development for adaptation to environmental changes. Under this scenario, integrative approaches to understand the specific role of essential genetic regulatory networks in plants are urgently needed. RAV genes configure a potential hub to modulate plant development in response to adverse environmental conditions, which are major limiting factors for plant survival, adaptation, and crop production. Therefore, we perform a comprehensive functional study of RAV genes along the green tree of life. We analyze their gene regulatory networks in abiotic stress responses and aim to decipher RAV gene evolution and function acquisition unravelling their roles from non-flowering plants to flowering plants.

Key words
Flower development, floral induction, Arabidopsis.

ORCID
: 0000-0001-7699-9330

RESEARCHER ID
: F-3431-2015
Pelejero Bou, Carles

Institut de Ciències del Mar (CSIC - ICM)

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Pelejero Bou, Carles
Research Professor at
Institut de Ciències del Mar (CSIC - ICM)
Experimental Sciences & Mathematics
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Research interests

I am interested in understanding and quantifying how the marine environment and climate are changing today, in which ways they have changed in the past, and how will they influence marine organisms and ecosystems in the future. To this end, I analyse deep sea sediments and corals as archives of changes in the past, use systems to monitor the present, and run manipulative experiments in aquaria to simulate the future. A main environmental issue that I am currently studying is the progressive acidification of the oceans that is occurring due to the marine absorption of part of the CO2 that humans are emitting to the atmosphere. I am also setting up culture-based systems to calibrate paleoceanographic proxies in corals, making use of the aquaria facilities at the ICM.

Key words
Global Change, Paleoceanography, Oceanography, Geochemistry, Ocean Acidification, Corals, Deep Sea Sediments

ORCID
: 0000-0002-7763-7769

RESEARCHER ID
: AAF-4550-2019
Penta, Antonio

Universitat Pompeu Fabra (UPF)

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Penta, Antonio
Research Professor at
Universitat Pompeu Fabra (UPF)
Social & Behavioural Sciences
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Research interests

My research spans a range of areas within game theory, mechanism design, behavioral economics and auction theory. In game theory and mechanism design, most of my research has focused on questions of robustness with respect to various forms of model misspecification. I have also worked on more applied IO topics, concerning the market for online advertisement and online ad auctions, from both a theoretical and empirical perspective. Within behavioral economics, my work has been both theoretical and experimental. So far the main focus has been on understanding and modeling individuals’ reasoning processes, and particularly the interaction between their cognitve abilities and incentives, in strategic settings as well as in individual decision problems. More recently, I started a new agenda on risk preferences.

Key words
Game Theory; Mechanism Design; Bounded Rationality; Online Auctions

ORCID
: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3796-8245
Pérez García-Pando, Carlos

Barcelona Supercomputing Center - Centro Nacional de Supercomputación (BSC-CNS)

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Pérez García-Pando, Carlos
Research Professor at
Barcelona Supercomputing Center - Centro Nacional de Supercomputación (BSC-CNS)
Experimental Sciences & Mathematics
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Research interests

I am interested on understanding atmospheric aerosols and traces gases, from the physical and chemical processes affecting them, to their effects upon weather, climate, ocean biogeochemistry, air quality and health. My research group develops improved representations of pollutants within atmospheric and climate models to characterize their sources, sinks, atmospheric lifecycles and effects. I am known for my work on dust aerosols; in that context, I hold an AXA Chair that tackles both fundamental and applied research questions related to dust and I lead an ERC Consolidator Grant that investigates the role of the dust mineralogical composition in the climate effects of dust based on theory, experimental campaigns, remote spectroscopy and modeling.

Key words
Atmospheric aerosols, desert dust, climate, air quality, modeling, health impacts

ORCID
: 0000-0002-4456-0697