Institute of Science and Technology Austria (ISTA)
Meet the Team
Welcome to the Reisenbauer lab! We are actively building a dynamic and collaborative team to drive cutting-edge research at ISTA.
Julia C. Reisenbauer
Julia C. Reisenbauer studied Chemistry at ETH Zurich (2014–2019), where she completed both her Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees. She carried out her PhD in the Morandi group at ETH Zurich, supported by an ETH Zurich Research Fellowship (SSCI Fellowship). Her doctoral work was recognized with the ETH Medal and the Prix Schläfli Award in Chemistry (2024).
She then joined the Arnold group at the California Institute of Technology as a SNSF Postdoc Mobility Fellow, where she explored new directions in enzyme engineering and biocatalysis.
In February 2026, Julia started her independent research group as a tenure-track Assistant Professor at the Institute of Science and Technology Austria (ISTA). Her lab focuses on biocatalysis and enzyme engineering to enable sustainable synthetic chemistry and tackle pressing environmental challenges.
Eleonora Tufano
(PostDoc)
Eleonora Tufano pursued her Ph.D. in Organic Chemistry at the University of Pavia under the supervision of Professor Giuseppe Zanoni, focusing on metal acyl-nitrenoid-promoted biomimetic cyclizations, carried out in collaboration with the group of Professor Sukbok Chang (KAIST). In 2025, she joined the group of Professor Bill Morandi at ETH Zürich as a visiting Ph.D. student. She is currently a postdoctoral researcher at ISTA in the group of Julia Reisenbauer, where her work focuses on the use of enzymes to enable new reactivity in synthetic chemistry.
Outside the lab, she enjoys practicing yoga, reading in the sun, exploring the outdoors, and bouldering.
B.Sc. in Chemistry from the University of Insubria
M.Sc. in Organic Chemistry from the University of Pavia
Ph.D. in Organic Chemistry at the University of Pavia
Matthias Dröge
(Master student)
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Matthias Dröge is a Master’s student from northern Germany currently pursuing his Master’s thesis in the research group of Julia Reisenbauer at ISTA. His research focuses on biochemistry, specifically investigating the non-natural reactivity of natural enzymes. Outside the lab, he enjoys hiking, road biking, and cooking.
B.Sc. in Business-Chemistry at Kiel University
Nicolas Bikic
(Intern)
Nicolas Bikic is currently enrolled in the M.Sc. program in Engineering in Biomolecular Chemistry at the CY Tech, and was trained as a synthetic chemist, with a focus on biologically active molecules, specifically focusing on peptides, glycosides and fluorinated small molecules. He aspires to do research in biological chemistry and biochemistry, and he has a strong interest in spectroscopies, and molecular biology.
B.Sc. in Chemistry at CY Cergy-Paris Université
B.Sc. in Biology at CY Cergy-Paris Université
Postdocs, PhD, Bachelor and Master Students, and Interns
Join our team! We are actively recruiting and would love to hear from you. If you are interested in exploring opportunities with us, please visit our Contact Us page for more information. We look forward to connecting with you.
Our Collaborators
Ariane Mora
PI at AITHYRA
We are continuously exploring new collaborations to expand the reach and impact of our research. If you are interested in partnering with us, please contact us.