Franco Della Felice obtained his PhD in Science - Organic Chemistry from the University of Campinas in 2019 under the supervision of Prof. R. A. Pilli. His doctoral research focused on the total synthesis and structural revision of biologically active type I polyketides, combining advanced C-C and C-O bond-forming strategies with chiral organometallic catalysis. During this period, he completed a competitive research stay with Prof. M. J. Krische at The University of Texas at Austin, where he contributed to the development of Ir(I)-catalyzed reductive coupling methodologies with direct applications in complex molecule synthesis. His doctoral work resulted in four research and two review articles, several of which were highlighted by the international scientific community.

From 2019 to 2022 he joined the group of Prof. A. M. Echavarren at the Institute of Chemical Research of Catalonia (ICIQ) as a postdoctoral researcher, supported in part by the Juan de la Cierva-Formación fellowship. His work centered on homogeneous transition-metal catalysis, including Rh(III)-catalyzed allylic C-H functionalization and Au(I)-mediated cyclizations for the construction of polycyclic architectures. These studies led to one research article and a book chapter.

In 2022, he was awarded a Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions Postdoctoral Fellowship and joined the group of Prof. J. G. Roelfes at the University of Groningen. There, he specialized in the development of new-to-nature catalytic transformations through the design of artificial (metallo)enzymes, leveraging genetic incorporation of non-canonical amino acids and synthetic metal cofactors combined with directed evolution. This line of research resulted in additional two high‑impact publications.

In November 2025, he was appointed Serra Húnter Lecturer at the Autonomous University of Barcelona. His current and medium‑to‑long‑term research objectives focus on establishing an independent research program at the interface of synthetic organic chemistry, homogeneous catalysis, and chemical biology, aiming to integrate chemo- and biocatalysis to address fundamental reactivity challenges and enable the sustainable synthesis of complex molecules, while contributing actively to academic teaching and mentoring.