Ildefonso Marin Montesinos

Methodology

• Methodology in solid-state NMR and Magic-Angle Spinning Dynamic Nuclear Polarization (MAS-DNP) techniques
• Developing of protocols  and novel radicals for MAS-DNP
• Dipolar recoupling techniques by symmetry-based pulse sequences
• Other characterization techniques: Neutron scattering and reflectometry, QCMd, AFM, ellipsometry, XRD, FT-IR, Langmuir-Blodgett isotherms, volumetric adsorption analysis, thermogravimetric analysis.
• Sample preparation of lipidic samples: Langmuir-Blodgett film formation and liposome formation techniques

Materials

• Characterization of materials for gas capture applications
• Characterization of materials for application in catalysis
• Novel materials from different waste for gas adsorption
• Novel Materials for CO2 adsorption/conversion

Biology

• Protein-Ligand interactions
• Interaction site structure in protein-ligand binding
• Characterization and study of membrane associated processes and biomolecules
• Antimicrobial peptides
• MAS-DNP and NMR characterization of biological systems
• Structural study of the interaction interfaces of adaptor proteins involved in clathrin-mediated endocytosis (CME)
• CME and its implications in degenerative diseases

ACADEMIC BACKGROUND

I obtained my BSc. in Chemistry at the Universidad de Sevilla in 2001. By October 2003, I started a PhD funded by an EPSRC Grant in the development of recoupling methods in Solid-State NMR for biomolecules in the group of Malcolm H. Levitt (University of Southampton). RESEARCH CAREER In November 2007, I joined the group of Ulrich Günther (University of Birmingham) as post-doc, where I entered in contact for the first time with the Dynamic Nuclear Polarization (DNP) technique. In 2010, I obtained the Beatriu de Pinós and Juan de La Cierva grants to work at the Biomolecular NMR Laboratory with Miquel Pons (IRB-Barcelona and the Universitat de Barcelona). In this lab, I started building my network of collaborators, further strengthening my knowledge of DNP and protein-ligand interactions. From 2015-2018, I was awarded a Labex ARCANE Postdoctoral Fellowship in the laboratory of Gaël de Paëpe and Sabine Hediger (CEA-Grenoble and Université Grenoble-Alpes). This position allowed me to further improve my knowledge of DNP by working in the study of carbohydrate-protein interaction by Magic-Angle-Spinning DNP (MAS-DNP) solid-state NMR in lectins. In 2019, I joined CICECO-Aveiro Institute of Materials as a researcher to work in the team of Luis Mafra using NMR and MAS-DNP for the characterization of porous materials and biomaterials with multiple applications such as gas separation/capture and catalysis. Additionally, I am establishing my own independent research line on structural biology with two main projects (see below).

CURRENT RESEARCH LINES

a) Biochemistry/Biology:

1. Study interaction interfaces in clathrin-mediated endocytosis using complementary characterization techniques (solid-state NMR, neutron reflectometry, QCMD)
2. Study the interaction of antimicrobial peptides with mimetic membranes
3. Brewer spent yeast glucan structural characterization and its role on receptor recognition

b) Porous materials for CO2 capture:

1. Amine-modified silicas
2. Valorization of industrial bioresidues
3. Covalent Organic Frameworks
4. Periodic mesoporous organo-silicas
5. Polysaccharide-derived solid CO2
6. Lithium silicate sorbents. Different studies are performed for the characterization of these materials for CO2 capture. Amongst others, adsorption isotherms, NMR/DNP experiments for speciation and quantification, degradation under different conditions of humidity and temperature and recyclability assays.

c) NMR/DNP methodological developments:

1. 3D-printing of NMR probe components.
2. New radicals and sample formulation for MAS-DNP in porous materials and lipid membranes.

Team Specko: http://specko.web.ua.pt