Jean-Didier Maréchal is a computational chemist expert in multi-scale molecular modelling of biochemical systems. He graduated from the Ecole Normale Supérieure de Paris (1997) and performed a dual Ph.D. between Paris Sud (France) and the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona (2002). After post-doctoral positions in the UK (University of Leicester and Manchester) and France (Orsay), he moved back to Barcelona, where he is now a Full professor in Physical chemistry. His research combines protein-ligand dockings, classical molecular dynamics, quantum mechanics as well as software developed in his group. Applications focus on biotechnology and biomedicine with emphasis on biometallic constructs (e.g. Metallodrugs, metalloenzymes).

I undertake research in the fields of structural biology and biophysics. My aim is to elucidate, in precise molecular terms, how enzymes and regulatory proteins operate during normal plant growth and in response to abiotic stresses. Direct applications of my research include the design of engineered molecules with specific properties. This knowledge can be introduced into crop plants through bioengineering to provide workable solutions for optimised biological systems to contribute to a sustainable and healthy society. To tackle the challenging aspects of structural and functional relationships of proteins, I have developed interdisciplinary expertise in computational chemistry, molecular modelling, X-ray crystallography, biochemistry, and modelling biology, electrophysiology, phylogenomics, and chemo-informatics. I have co-authored 191 works, including 16 invited reviews and 14 articles featured on the front covers. My articles received around 10,000 citations and were published in top-tier journals such as Science, Nature Communications, Communications Biology, Cell Research, Biotechnology Advances, Plant Cell, Journal of Biological Chemistry, and the American Chemical Society. My key scientific achievements are in three areas (enzymes involved in plant growth and development, membrane proteins underlying salinity and mineral toxicity, transcription factors involved in the regulation of plant responses to water deficit.

Lorenzo Gaetani, MD, PhD is a consultant neurologist at the Neurology Unit of Perugia University Hospital, Italy, and an adjunct faculty member at the University of Perugia. His clinical and research activities focus on the early and accurate diagnosis of neurodegenerative diseases, with particular expertise in cerebrospinal fluid and blood-based biomarkers. Dr. Gaetani has authored more than 90 peer-reviewed scientific publications and has delivered over 60 invited lectures at national and international meetings. He serves as member of the Advisory Board of the Society for CSF Analysis and Clinical Neurochemistry, as Coordinator of the Italian Neurological Society (SIN) Study Group on Biomarkers in Neurology and is a member of the Scientific Board of SINdem, the Italian Association for Dementia Research.