Dr Guttman received his MS and doctoral degrees as a chemical engineer from the University of Pannonia in Veszprém, Hungary. From 1987 to 1989, he was a postdoctoral fellow at the Northeastern University in Boston where he started pioneering work in the new field of capillary electrophoresis. He joined Beckman Instruments in 1990, Genetic Biosystems in 1996, Novartis in 2000, and received the Marie Curie Chair professorship from the European Commission in 2004. This latter served as a basis for establishing the Horvath Csaba Laboratory of Bioseparation Sciences, which he still directs, in laboratories at the University of Debrecen and the University of Pannonia in Veszprem.
By virtue of his innovative research in modern miniaturised electrophoresis methods, he has made important contributions to DNA analysis, proteomics, and recently to glycomics. He has written more than 310 publications, 35 book chapters, edited 5 textbooks, and authored 24 patents.
Succeeded in obtaining the first single-nucleotide resolution separation of DNA fragments, opening up the potential for DNA sequencing by capillary gel electrophoresis.
Developed a revolutionary replaceable gel technology, which was the foundation of the automated capillary gel electrophoresis systems that enabled sequencing the human genome in record time.
Pioneered SDS gel electrophoresis in capillary format for rapid analysis of recombinant protein therapeutics, now one of the crucial methods used in the biopharmaceutical industry.
Carried out groundbreaking work in analytical and translational glycomics by developing a comprehensive glycosylation analysis workflow for biomedical research.
Professor Guttman plays an active role in organising international meetings, chairs scientific conferences, and serves on the editorial boards of more than a dozen international scientific journals. He is also a member of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences and former president of the American Chemical Society, Hungary Chapter.
Among numerous other awards, Dr Guttman has received the Analytical Chemistry Award of the Hungarian Chemical Society in 2000 and was named a Fulbright Scholar in 2012. He also received the CASSS CE Pharm Award in 2013, the János Arany medal of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences, the Pro Scientia award of the University of Pannonia, and the Dennis Gabor Award of the Novofer Foundation in 2014. Dr Guttman was the recipient of the prestigious Dal Nogare Award of the Delaware Valley Chromatography Forum in 2017.
The MTA-PE Translational Glycomics Project has been established in the framework of the Lendület III Program of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences. Led by Professor Guttman, the team on this project addressed one of the major concerns of our society by translating their glycomics research to cancer diagnostics and treatment using a new and revolutionary approach. Dr Guttman and his colleagues are helping the research to provide a solution to prevent metastatic cancer. They are also working on the development of a special circulating cancer cell capture device that will improve the quality of life for cancer patients.
The team on the MTA-PE Translational Glycomics Project translated their glycomics research to cancer diagnostics and treatment using a new and revolutionary approach.