Marc Llavanera Bruguera holds a BSc in Biology (2018), an MSc in Molecular Biology and Biomedicine (2019; Extraordinary Master’s Award), an MSc in Nutrition and Health (2024), and a PhD in Reproductive Biotechnology (2023; cum laude, international mention, and Extraordinary Doctoral Award) from the University of Girona (UdG). In January 2019, he joined the UdG with a competitive Transfer and Innovation (BTI) grant in the TechnoSperm group (TECNIO), affiliated with the Department of Biology and the Institute of Agrifood Technology (INTEA). In September 2019, he obtained a competitive FPU fellowship (MCIU), under which he carried out his doctoral thesis. He later completed a postdoctoral orientation period at the UdG, and since October 2023 he has been a postdoctoral researcher at the Max Planck Institute of Biochemistry (Germany), in the Chromosome Biology group, while maintaining collaborations with the UdG.
His research focuses on sperm physiology in livestock and humans, with particular emphasis on the discovery of biomarkers, sperm metabolism, cryopreservation, and the molecular regulation of meiosis and chromatin. During his PhD, he led a project on fertility biomarkers and developed porcine sperm metabolomics studies, as well as research on chromatin integrity and embryo development. He conducted research stays at the University of Bologna (Italy) and the University of Aveiro/ICBAS (Portugal), funded by the Spanish Ministry of Universities.
He is the author of over thirty publications in SCI/JCR-indexed journals, with >600 citations and an h-index of 15 (Google Scholar). He has presented his work at national and international conferences, has participated in competitive projects and collaborations with companies in the livestock and healthcare sectors, and serves as a reviewer for several international journals. In the teaching field, he has lectured at UdG and at international universities, and has supervised undergraduate, master’s, and doctoral theses. He is also actively involved in scientific outreach activities.