Gian Gaetano Tartaglia studied Physics at the University of Rome Sapienza (Italy) and obtained a PhD in Biochemistry at the University of Zurich (Switzerland). He carried out postdoctoral research in the Departments of Chemistry and Genetics at the University of Cambridge (UK), working on protein aggregation. In 2010 he became Principal Investigator at the Centre for Genomic Regulation (CRG) in Barcelona. In 2013 he was awarded an ERC Starting Grant for studies on the role of coding and non-coding RNAs in the regulation of amyloid genes. In 2014 he was tenured in Catalonia as ICREA Professor of Life and Medical Sciences. In December 2018 he became Full Professor of Biochemistry in the Department of Biology at the University of Rome Sapienza. In 2019 he joined the Italian Institute of Technology (IIT), where he leads the RNA Systems Biology Lab. In 2020 he was awarded an ERC Synergy Grant for studies on the composition of phase-separated assemblies. Since September 2020 he is a Member of Academia Europaea (MAE). In 2024 he became co-coordinator of the IIT RNA Flagship and in 2025 he was awarded an ERC Proof of Concept for the development of RNA aptamer technologies.
Positions:
March 2020 : Tenured Principal Investigator, Italian Institute of Technology (IIT), IT
Dec 2018 : Full Professor of Biochemistry, University of Rome Sapienza, IT
2014–2025 : ICREA Professor of Life and Medical Sciences, Barcelona, ES
Education:
2005-2010 : Postdoctoral Researcher, Chemistry and Genetics, University of Cambridge, UK (C. Dobson)
2001-2006 : PhD in Biochemistry, University of Zurich, CH (A. Caflisch)
1996-2000 : MSc in Physics, University of Rome Sapienza, IT (B. Tirozzi)
Achievements:
Published >150 computational & experimental articles; >16,000 citations. Google Scholar h-index: 62
Development of algorithms for RNA–protein interaction prediction and phase separation analysis.
Computational design of RNA aptamers for diagnostics and therapeutic applications.
Patent on RNA aptamer design filed in 2022 at IIT.
Previous Positions:
2010–2020 : Group Leader / Principal Investigator, Centre for Genomic Regulation (CRG), Barcelona, ES
Funding & Awards (Selected):
2025 : ERC Proof of Concept – Aptamer Platform
2023 : Target ALS ; EIC Pathfinder “IVBM4PAP”
2020 : ERC Synergy Grant “ASTRA”
2018 : H2020 INFORE
2016 : H2020 IASIS
2013 : ERC Starting Grant “Ribomylome”
2010–2020 : Various Plan Estatal grants in Spain
