Jorge Rubio Retama (associate professor, Ph.D. thesis) is specialized in the synthesis, functionalization, and conjugations of molecules and biomolecules like antibodies, DNA, RNA and proteins through coupling reaction in mild conditions. In the frame of the click-chemistry reactions, Jorge Rubio has a wide experience in strained-promoted alkyne-azide cycloaddition reactions (SPAAC), as well as external stimuli triggered click-reactions. He has developed different strategies for the bio-functionalization that is catalyzed by the presence of specific sequences of DNA or miRNA. He has published more than 80 papers, reviews, books, book chapters and patents (index h = 23). He led several research projects on this frame. Currently, he is involved in the development of nano‐tracers for diagnosis and treatment of infarcted and cancerous tissues.

Marco Laurenti (assistant professor, Ph.D. thesis) is an expert in the synthesis and functionalization of upconverting nanoparticles as well as in the synthesis and application of fluorescent microgels. He has authored and co‐authored a total of 40 publications and 2 books.

Rafael Contreras-Cáceres (postdoctoral researcher) is an expert in the synthesis and characterization of non-spherical metal nanoparticles. More precisely, he has consolidated experience in the fabrication of core@shell and core@shell@satellites colloidal particles. These systems are used in the detection of molecules by SERS spectroscopy as well as in the improvement of catalytic efficiencies in several organic reactions. He also synthesizes Au and bimetallic AuAg nanotriangles with plasmon absorptions at 800 nm, which are investigated for biological applications. He also works in the encapsulation of metal, magnetic and Ag₂S nanoparticles into biocompatible polymeric particles and fibers by electrospraying and electrospinning techniques.
He is postdoctoral researcher as “Atracción de Talento” fellowship from the Comunidad de Madrid from March 2019. He is author of more than 45 publications (most of them in high impact factor journals) and 3 book chapters.

Enrique López Cabarcos (full professor, catedrático) is an expert in synchrotron and neutron radiation techniques as well as the synthesis and application of polymers and gels, microgels, biosensors, calcium phosphate cements, hybrid materials based on nanoparticles and upconversion nanoparticles. He is currently interested in the physicochemical laws that determine the structure of the Solar System. He is author of more than 200 articles in renowned journals and books and of about 15 patents (1 in operation by Histocell SL, 3 licensed, and 5 with PCT extension).

Gonzalo Villaverde Cantizano (postdoctoral researcher, Ph.D. thesis) is a specialist on the functionalization of inorganic supports and the design and production of synthetic antibodies with targeting capacity for drug nanotransporters/vectorization applications, through coupling and peptide synthesis.

Christoph Gerke (postdoctoral researcher, Ph.D. thesis) is specialized in the fields of organic and macromolecular chemistry with special knowledge in peptide and carbohydrate synthesis as well as click chemistry. In the area of click chemistry, he has widely worked with copper (I) mediated azide-alkyne cycloadditions, mainly on solid support, Diels-Alder cycloadditions, as well as thiol-Michael and photoinduced thiol-ene click coupling reactions for polymer functionalization and as polymerization procedure. Currently, he is working on the development of novel in vivo click reactions for pretargeted imaging and pretargeted drug delivery using different types of nanoparticles. Furthermore, he has broad experience in the field of multivalent interaction in biological systems, mainly between carbohydrates and lectins but also between proteins. Since July 2020, he holds a Marie Skłodowska-Curie Action – Individual Fellowship.

Diego Méndez-González (postdoctoral researcher, Ph.D. thesis) has experience in the synthesis of nanoparticles with different properties (upconversion luminescence, superparamagnetism, plasmonic) and architectures (core/shell, Janus-like, core-satellite). He also has a wide experience in their surface functionalization with organic ligands, silica and polymer shells to improve their physical-chemical properties, as well as in their further bioconjugation with ssDNA and antibodies that provide them bioaffinity toward specific targets during biosensing and bioimaging applications. Additionally, during his Ph.D. he specialized in the ultrasensitive detection of nucleic acids through the combination of i) target-templated ligation strategies (photochemical or SPAAC) and ii) the use of upconverting nanoparticles as anti-stokes luminescent reporters. His current research interests span from the improvement of nanoparticle properties through the manipulation of their architecture and surface environment to their application in the fields of nano-thermometry, monitored hyperthermia and novel biodetection techniques.

Irene Zabala Gutierrez (Ph.D. student) is specialized in the synthesis, characterization and functionalization of fluorescent nanoparticles for their application in bioimaging and biodiagnosis. She started her Ph.D. period carrying out a three-month predoctoral stay at the Università degli Studi di Padova (Italy), working on the engineering of upconversion nanoparticle´s surfaces through core@shell architecture for different applications, such as bioimaging and sensing. Lately, she has been working on the development of NIR fluorescent nanoparticles, such as silver sulfide dots, and their optimization for biological applications.

She is a predoctoral student who holds a Santander-UCM grant under the supervision of Prof. Jorge Rubio Retama (Pharmacy Faculty UCM) and Prof. Sonia Melle Hernández (Optics and Optometry Faculty UCM).

Vivian Andrea Torres Vera (Ph.D. student) was born in Bogotá, Colombia, in 1992. She received her Chemistry degree from the Universidad de Los Andes in 2014. Besides that, she graduated with a Master of Science‐Chemistry from the same University in 2017. During her Ph.D., Vivian has been working with lanthanide-based nanoparticles. Her research leads to a systematic way to optimize upconverting nanoparticle luminescence and design new biosensors for the detection of different diseases.

Carlos José Alarcón Fernández (Ph.D. student) is a researcher specialized in organic chemistry and synthesis of nanoparticles. He assisted in the fabrication of iron and gold nanoparticles with core@shell structures and after that, he focused on the synthesis of lanthanide-doped NaLnF₄ and NaLn(WO₄)₂ based upconverting nanoparticles. These systems are used as photoluminescence nanoprobes for tissue imaging for disease detection, optical nanothermometry as well as contrast agents for magnetic resonance imaging.

He is a predoctoral researcher who holds an FPI grant to work on a project coordinated by the Faculty of Pharmacy of the Complutense University of Madrid and the Institute of Materials Science of Madrid (ICMM).