Impulsa Science and Academic Award (individual) is granted to a person who has developed his or her activity within the framework of a research or teaching project in the field of sciences (including social sciences), who has excelled in his or her discipline and has high development potential.

Óscar Fernández-Capetillo was born in Bilbao in 1974. He began his scientific career during his doctoral work on mice with E2F genes, associated with cancer, at the País Vasco University under the direction of Dr. Ana María Zubiaga.

After receiving his doctoral degree, he joined Dr. André Nussenzweig’s team in the National Health Institute in the USA. During his three-year stay in the USA (Nov 2001- Nov 2004), he began work on DNA repair mechanisms, a field in which he continues working today. He was recruited by the National Oncology Research Center (NORC) in Madrid, being the youngest research team leader at the center.

His work at NORC has centered on trying to understand how the proteins that protect our genome are critical for cancer prevention and aging. In addition, his most recent studies are aimed at trying to develop anticancer molecules that can use intrinsic properties of tumors to damage the tumor and minimize its effects on healthy tissue. His work has been recognized by numerous national and international awards, including the Swiss Bridge Award (2005), the EMBO Young Researcher Award (2008) and recently the Eppendorf Award, granted in conjunction with the prestigious magazine Nature in recognition of research work done by scientists under the age of 35, making him the first Spaniard to receive this award.