EPFL nanoscientist Francesco Stellacci joins the Department of Biomaterials with a Humboldt Research Award
 

We are pleased to welcome Prof. Francesco Stellacci (Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, EPFL) who joins the Department of Biomaterials for a one-year research stay as recipient of the €80,000 Humboldt Research Award.

A leading nanoscientist with a long-standing commitment to interdisciplinarity, Stellacci shares MPICI’s biomimetic approach—translating nature’s design into materials for a circular economy.

During his fellowship, Stellacci will work on his ERC Advanced Grant project on controlling protein interactions in water. He studies how proteins attract, repel, or assemble in aqueous environments, and applies these principles to the development of broad-spectrum antivirals and recyclable polymers.

“I am excited to collaborate with the many researchers here at MPICI who focus on protein-based matrices in nature—from collagen to mineralized tissues, snail mucus, and biofilms,” says Stellacci. “Together we expect to better understand interaction rules at the nanoscale and turn them into tangible materials solutions.”