Juan Crespo Santiago

Coordinator of the Generative design strategies for tissue engineering research line in TR2Lab

ORCID: 0000-0002-0762-9325

Scientific Profile: URECERCA

Juan Crespo is associate professor at the Industrial Design Engineering BSc at Elisava University School of Design and Engineering UVIC-UCC (Barcelona), and research leader of Generative design strategies for tissue engineering research line at Tissue Repair and Regeneration Laboratory (TR2Lab) at UVIC-UCC. His research focuses on exploring the potential of biomedicine, generative design and additive manufacturing to create new strategies for tissue regeneration. He currently leads the projects 3D BONE BIOTEC funded by AEI (Ministerio de Industria y Turismo) and PHYGITAL HUMAN BONE funded by LLAVOR (AGAUR).

Juan Crespo holds a PhD in Biomedicine awarded Cum Laude in 2016, from the University of Barcelona (Spain) on Development of biomimetic human iPS-derived myocardial grafts. A MSc in Biomedical Engineering on Development of nano-fibered stimulating scaffolds, from the University of Barcelona & Polytechnic University of Catalonia (Spain), a BSc in Industrial Design Engineering from Elisava University School of Design and Engineering UVIC-UCC (Spain) and a BA in Design from the Polytechnic University of Catalonia (Spain).

Previously, during the completion of his PhD he worked as a predoctoral researcher at the Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells (iPSC) Potency group with Dr. Ángel Raya, at the Institute of Engineering of Catalonia (IBEC), Barcelona. In 2016 he became a collaborating professor at Elisava UVIC-UCC, and in 2019 he became an associate professor and head of the Design and Materials Area of the same institution. In 2021 he founded the Biolab to promote bioengineering research and began his own research line at the same institution. The same year he joined the TR2Lab UIVIC-UCC as Senior Researcher, where he currently continues to expand his research in bone tissue engineering.

My last happenings:

Juan Crespo wins Santander X Spain Awards 2026 with the Phygital Bone project

Dr. Juan Crespo, member of the TR2Lab research group, has been named one of the three winners of the Santander X Spain Awards | Proyectos Emprendedores Universitarios 2026, a competition that supports university entrepreneurial talent and showcases innovative projects with social, business, and technological impact. Crespo's winning project, Phygital Bone, is a deep-tech scientific and medical platform focused on severe bone reconstruction. The project combines 3D computational design algorithms, new biomaterials, and bioprinting of personalized implants to address complex bone regeneration challenges. The award was granted following the presentation of eleven finalist projects, held online on June 18th in a [...]

July 6, 2026|

Phygital Bone: A biomimetic parametric model for 3D-printing human bone surrogates

Authors: Crespo-Santiago J*; Jordana X; Gesualdo M; Álvarez A; Andreu C; Mallafré H; Rzymelka V; Galtés I; Otero-Viñas M. Results in Engineering 2026 Jun;30:110448 DOI: 10.1016/j.rineng.2026.110448 Read More Abstract Accurate human bone surrogates are essential for biomechanical research. Existing commercial models provide limited control over microarchitectural features. In this study, we present Phygital Bone (PHyB), a biomimetic and fully customizable 3D-printed bone surrogate developed using algorithm-aided design (AAD) to reproduce key cortical and trabecular structures. PHyB specimens fabricated with commercially available resins were compared with fresh human femur samples and commercial surrogates. Structural validation was performed through [...]

May 12, 2026|

Reference Network in Additive Manufacturing of Catalonia

GRANT Original Title (English): “Reference Network in Additive Manufacturing of Catalonia” Reference: 2025 XARDI 00031 Period: 01/01/2026-21/12/28 Principal Investigador: Marta Otero Viñas TR2Lab research team members: Juan Crespo Santiago and Francesc Sant Funded by: AGAUR – Generalitat de Catalunya Established with the aim of facilitating the recovery and transfer of 3D printing technologies to society. The XaRFA network comprises 36 research groups from 18 Catalan entities. We offer a guided and supervised roadmap through 4 action programmes: Organizing, monitoring, and evaluating the activities and results of the XaRFA project, while ensuring gender equality. Identification and continuous international promotion of the technological [...]

February 20, 2026|