Sergi Padilla

Professor Sergi Padilla‑Parra is an interdisciplinary scientist specializing in virus imaging and biophotonics, currently based at Biofisika Institute. Holding an Ikerbasque Research Professor position, he earned his MSc in Chemistry from Lund University before completing a PhD in biophotonics at Institut Jacques Monod, Paris (2009) . His postdoctoral work at Emory University advanced the use of time‑resolved single‑virus tracking to study retroviral entry, leading to key insights into HIV‑1 and ASLV fusion mechanisms. In 2013 he launched an independent lab at Oxford under an NDM Leadership Fellowship and later secured a prestigious ERC Consolidator Award to explore the molecular mechanisms of enveloped virus fusion using cutting‑edge single‑molecule fluorescence microscopy at King’s College London, where he earned his professorship. His group develops cutting-edge single molecule approaches  and integrative imaging employing novel fluorescent probes. At Biofisika he continues this pioneering work developing advanced microscopy platforms (including Integrative approaches in Cryo-Photonics imaging) and expanding translational collaborations aimed at understanding membrane fusion mechanics.