UNIVERSIDAD NACIONAL DE QUILMES

Their core work

Universidad Nacional de Quilmes (UNQ) is a public university near Buenos Aires, Argentina, with research strengths spanning computational biology and social sciences. Their bioinformatics teams specialize in protein structure analysis, intrinsically disordered proteins, and tandem repeat characterization, contributing database tools and predictive methods to international consortia. In parallel, their social science researchers study gender justice, digital citizenship, and social/solidarity economy models, bringing Latin American perspectives to European research networks.

What they specialise in

How they've shifted over time

UNQ's early H2020 work (2015-2019) was rooted firmly in computational biology — microbial metagenomics, protein disorder, and bioinformatics tool development. From 2020 onward, social science themes appeared alongside the continuing protein research: gender justice, digital citizenship, and solidarity economy models entered their portfolio. This dual-track evolution suggests a university broadening its European research footprint beyond its original bioinformatics niche into socially engaged research.

UNQ is diversifying from a pure bioinformatics profile toward social innovation and community development research, making them increasingly relevant for interdisciplinary projects connecting science with societal impact.

How they like to work

UNQ participates exclusively as a third-party contributor — they have never coordinated or been a direct partner in their five H2020 projects. This is typical for non-EU institutions accessing Horizon 2020 through MSCA mobility schemes. With 41 unique consortium partners across 22 countries, they maintain a wide but light-touch network, joining different consortia rather than deepening ties with a fixed set of partners.

UNQ has collaborated with 41 unique partners across 22 countries, an unusually broad geographic spread for a non-EU institution with only five projects. Their network reflects the international mobility character of MSCA schemes rather than deep bilateral partnerships.

What sets them apart

As an Argentine university, UNQ brings a Latin American research perspective that is rare in H2020 consortia — valuable for projects needing global comparative data or South American fieldwork sites. Their bioinformatics group has sustained involvement across multiple protein-focused MSCA projects, indicating recognized expertise in this niche. The combination of computational biology and social science research under one institutional roof could appeal to interdisciplinary calls connecting technology with societal challenges.

Highlights from their portfolio

• REFRACT
  A specialized bioinformatics project on tandem repeat proteins running until 2024, demonstrating sustained depth in protein sequence analysis and classification.
• ESSENTIALS
  Their most recent project (2022-2025) marks a clear pivot into social innovation and solidarity economy research, the newest direction for UNQ in European frameworks.
• IDPfun
  Focused on intrinsically disordered proteins — a growing field in structural biology — combining database development with functional characterization.