The Fundamentos Program supports 12 leading-edge scientific projects exploring core issues in three major knowledge areas
An innovative technology able to safeguard the electricity grid against another major outage; a town planning method that confers greater protection from storms, wildfires and other extreme climate events; a study of the mechanism that can turn healthy cells into childhood leukemia; a novel strategy to combat bacterial antibiotic resistance; new superconductor materials to advance the construction of quantum computers; catalysts that open the door to a more efficient, sustainable chemistry; light ‘chips’ that push the limits of computational power and efficiency… These are just some of the goals of the 12 innovative projects selected under the Fundamentos Program, launched by the BBVA Foundation to support exploratory fundamental and interdisciplinary research into core questions in basic science. After assessing a total of 633 applications, the committees of expert evaluators have awarded 12 grants of up to 250,000 euros each in three major knowledge areas: Physics and Chemistry; Biology and Biomedicine; and Engineering.
7 October, 2025
For over two decades now, the focus of the BBVA Foundation’s activity has been to foster knowledge generation through support for all facets of scientific research and its transmission to society, which it views as the most effective means to address the key challenges of the 21st century. The Fundamentos Program, funded with a total of 3,000,000 euros, focuses selectively on basic research, with support going to exploratory projects addressing the core or fundamental questions of a scientific field or discipline at its current stage of development, or questions of the same fundamental nature emerging from the intersection of various disciplines. The Foundation also promotes applied research through the sister program Prisms & Problems – another 3,000,000 euros funding package for innovative interdisciplinary research projects that specifically address some of the key social and environmental concerns of the 21st century.
“The Fundamentos Program is aimed at established research teams with a strong track record that are working on fundamental problems in their area of interest. The nature of the call allows researchers to focus on riskier, more exploratory topics that would not be funded in calls requiring direct applicability,” says Professor María Henar Miguélez Garrido, Professor of Mechanical Engineering at the Universidad Carlos III de Madrid (UC3M) and chair of the Engineering committee.
“We design or apply any truly innovative technology if we don’t have a grip on the underlying fundamentals. Hence the importance of a program like this, whose latest call has proved a notable success, with highly competitive proposals exploring fundamental issues, especially at a time when the temptation is to seek quick results and immediate applications,” adds Avelino Corma, Professor of Catalysis Research at the Instituto de Tecnología Química (CSIC – Universitat Politècnica de València), a 2025 Frontiers of Knowledge Laureate in Basic Sciences and chair of the evaluation committee in Physics and Chemistry.
For Isabel Varela-Nieto, Research Professor at the Instituto de Investigaciones Biomédicas Sols Morreale (CSIC – Universidad Autónoma de Madrid) and chair of the Biology and Biomedicine committee, “as well as focusing on fundamental issues, the originality of the selected projects rests on the interaction or convergence between the world of biology and biomedicine and those of physics, mathematics, engineering and data science. The teams undertaking these projects will place their diverse profiles and knowledge at the service of a common goal, which is to find answers to fundamental questions.”
The Fundamentos Program is open to projects led by up to two principal investigators (IPs) from one or more disciplines, who may be joined by researchers attached to centers in any country. The 12 projects selected in the latest call are led by PIs from 16 Spanish research centers headquartered in Catalonia (7), Madrid (5), the Basque Country (2), Valencia (1) and Andalucía (1). Regarding team make-up, members are drawn from 24 centers including one each in Austria, Germany and the Netherlands.
There follows an outline of the goals pursued by the 12 selected projects, and the names of their principal investigators and remaining team members. The composition of the three evaluation committees making the selection can be consulted on the BBVA Foundation website.
PHYSICS AND CHEMISTRY
Nature inspired catalysts for a greener chemistry
Project: “Reticular Enzyme-like Catalysis” (RETICAT)
Principal investigators: Miquel Costas Salgueiro (Universitat de Girona) and Daniel Maspoch Comamala (Institut Català de Nanociència i Nanotecnologia, ICN2).
Team members: Arnau Call Quintana (Universitat de Girona) and Xavi Ribas Salamaña (Universitat de Girona).
More information on the project
The quest for quantum simulators to refine predictions of how matter will behave
Project: “NanoPhotonic-based Quantum Sensing and Simulation” (NPhoQuSS)
Principal investigators: Antonio Isaac Fernández Domínguez (Universidad Autónoma de Madrid) and Alejandro González Tudela (Instituto de Física Fundamental, CSIC).
Team members: Johannes Feist (Universidad Autónoma de Madrid); Daniel González Cuadra (Instituto de Física Teórica, CSIC); Diego Martín Cano (Universidad Autónoma de Madrid); Alejandro Manjavacas Arévalo (Instituto de Física y Química, CSIC); Carlos Sánchez Muñoz (Instituto de Física Fundamental, CSIC); and Peter Zoller (University of Innsbruck, Austria).
More information on the project
Superconductor materials to construct more powerful quantum computers
Project: “Artificial Quantum Matter: From 2D Materials to Spin Lattice Systems” (AQM-2MSLS)”
Principal investigators: Francisco Guinea López (Donostia International Physics Center, DIPC) and Iván Brihuega Álvarez (Universidad Autónoma de Madrid).
Team members: Dario Bercioux (Donostia International Physics Center, DIPC); Deung-Jang Choi (Centro de Física de Materiales and Donostia International Physics Center, DIPC); Mikhail I. Katsnelson (Radboud University, Netherlands, and Constructor University, Germany); and José Ángel Silva Guillén (IMDEA Nanociencia).
More information on the project
Custom nanoparticles to ensure safety in new medicine production
Project: “Chiral Metal Nanorods for Enantioselective (Amino)catalysis” (CHIMERA)
Principal investigators: Luis Manuel Liz Marzán (CIC biomaGUNE) and Maurizio Prato (CIC biomaGUNE).
Team members: Lucía Borrallo López (CIC biomaGUNE); Lucia Cardo (CIC biomaGUNE); Jinyi Dong (CIC biomaGUNE); Isabel García Martín (CIC biomaGUNE); Elisa Sturabotti (CIC biomaGUNE); and Gail Vinnacombe-Willson (CIC biomaGUNE).
More information on the project
BIOLOGY AND BIOMEDICINE
Unraveling the web of molecular changes that drive the aging process
Project: “Causal Methods for Understanding and Improving Health” (CAUSALAGING)”
Principal investigator: Nicholas Stroustrup (Centre de Regulació Genòmica, CRG)
Team member: Jeremy Vicencio Gumarao (Centre de Regulació Genòmica, CRG).
More information on the project
The role of ‘disordered’ proteins in neuronal cells
Project: “pH Control of Phase Transitions in Biomolecular Condensates and Neuronal Adaptation” (pHACETransition)
Principal investigator: Michael Krieg (Institut de Ciències Fotòniques, ICFO) and Xavier Salvatella Giralt (Institut d’Investigació Biomédica, IRB Barcelona).
Team members: Jesús García Arroyo (Institut d’Investigació Biomédica, IRB Barcelona); Carla Garcia Cabau (Institut d’Investigació Biomèdica, IRB Barcelona); Montserrat Porta de la Riva (Institut de Ciències Fotòniques, ICFO) and Neus Sanfeliu Cerdán (Institut de Ciències Fotòniques, ICFO).
More information on the project
‘Mechanomics’: a new path to understanding how a healthy cell turns into leukemia
Project: “Descifrando el código epimecánico del cáncer: la red mecanómica del nicho leucémico” (LEUKONICHE-FBBVA)
Principal investigator: Manuel Ramírez Orellana (Hospital Infantil Universitario Niño Jesús).
Team member: Francisco Monroy Muñoz (Universidad Complutense de Madrid).
More information on the project
Interfering in bacterial evolution as a means to combat antibiotic resistance
Project: “Discovering Activities of Anti-microbial Resistance Genes Beyond Resistance (Beyond-AMR)”
Principal investigators: José Antonio Escudero García-Calderón (Universidad Complutense de Madrid) and Álvaro San Millán Cruz (Instituto de Biotecnología Microbiana, CNB-CSIC).
Team members: Lucía García Pastor (Universidad Complutense de Madrid) and Laura Ortiz Miravalles (Universidad Complutense de Madrid).
More information on the project
ENGINEERING
Light ‘chips’ to enhance computational power and efficiency
Project: “Analog Photonic Information” (API)
Principal investigators: José Capmany Francoy (Universitat Politècnica de València) and Andrés Macho Ortiz (Universitat Politècnica de València).
Team members: Cristina Català Lahoz (Universitat Politècnica de València) and Pablo Martínez-Carrasco Romero (Universitat Politècnica de València).
More information on the project
Complex urban planning in the face of extreme climate events like storms, flooding and fires
Project: La integración de la simulación de fenómenos climáticos extremos en el diseño urbanístico para la mejora de la resiliencia y la complejidad urbana” (URBAN-RECOVERY)
Principal investigators: Roger Joan Sauquet Llonch (Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya) and Inés Aquilué Junyent (Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya).
Team members: Álvaro Ardura Urquiaga (Universidad Politécnica de Madrid); Ernest Bladé Castellet (Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya); Antoni Grau Saldes (Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya); Pepa Morán Núñez (Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya); José Sergio Palencia Jiménez (Universitat Politècnica de València); Elsa Pastor Ferrer (Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya); Javier Ruiz Sánchez (Universidad Politécnica de Madrid); Beniamino Russo (Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya) and Pascale Vacca (Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya).
More information on the project
Safeguarding the power grid from blackouts with smart inverters
Project: “Architectures and Control for Enhanced Stability in Grid-Integrated Devices (ACES-GRID)”
Principal investigators: Carlos Olalla Martínez (Universitat Rovira i Virgili) and Àngel Cid Pastor (Universitat Rovira i Virgili).
Team members: Francesc Guinjoan Gispert (Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya) and Oswaldo López Santos (Universitat Rovira i Virgili).
More information on the project
Algae to regenerate urban wastewater and improve crops in ‘Europe’s orchard’
Project: “Soluciones basadas en microalgas para una agricultura resiliente y circular” (ALBOR)
Principal investigators: Francisco Gabriel Acién Fernández (Universidad de Almería) and Miguel Urrestarazu Gavilán (Universidad de Almería).
Team members: Fernando Marcelo Chiamolera Gallon (Universidad de Almería); Cintia Gómez Serrano (Universidad de Almería); José Luis Guzmán Sánchez (Universidad de Almería); Ainoa Morillas España (Universidad de Almería) and Tatiana Pagan Loeiro da Cunha (Universidad de Almería).