Researchers from IGFAE and CiQUS secure two ERC Synergy Grants in 2025

Researchers Jaime Álvarez‑Muñiz, affiliated with IGFAE, and Javier Montenegro, affiliated with CiQUS, have been awarded the prestigious ERC Synergy Grant in the 2025 call. Both projects will be carried out at centres of the CIGUS Network, an initiative promoted by the Xunta de Galicia that brings together centres in the system that have been recognised for their scientific excellence.

Jaime Álvarez‑Muñiz will lead the HERON (Hybrid Elevated Radio Observatory for Neutrinos) project, coordinated from IGFAE, which will receive €14 million to detect ultra‑high‑energy neutrinos, some of the most elusive and energetic particles in the cosmos. The project aims to open a new window on the observation of the Universe through the construction of a new observatory in a mountainous area of San Juan province, Argentina, near the Andes. HERON will be the most sensitive instrument in the world for detecting these ultra‑energetic neutrinos.

In addition to IGFAE, HERON will involve research centres from France (Institut d’Astrophysique de Paris and Université Sorbonne) and the United States (Pennsylvania State University), together with local support from Argentina’s Comisión Nacional de Energía Atómica (CNEA).

Meanwhile, researcher Javier Montenegro will carry out CARAMEL (Covalent Chaotropic Membrane Transport for Biotherapeutic Delivery), coordinated from CiQUS, which will receive €10 million in funding.

The project aims to address one of medicine’s remaining challenges: ensuring that impermeable biotechnological drugs, such as certain peptides and proteins, can cross the cell membrane to reach their target inside the cells. This capability is crucial for the development of new therapies. CARAMEL will explore a radically innovative strategy, abandoning classical design principles.

The team also includes researchers Werner Nau (Constructor University, Germany), Paola Luciani (University of Bern, Switzerland) and Oliver Hantschel (Philipps University of Marburg, Germany). Each of the four institutions will receive approximately €2.5 million to carry out this research over the next six years.

In this European Research Council call, 66 projects were selected, 15 of which belong to Spanish institutions and two of these to the University of Santiago de Compostela.