People Head
About:

I am a -Ronin- computational Biologist working in #evolution, #structural Bioinformatics, #Data integration, tool developments, and interested in #Zombification.

Currently I am Principal Investigator of the Computational Biology and Boinformatics Group (CBBio) at the Andalusian Center for Developmental Biology (CABD) since July 2018. The group is a garantor of the renewed accreditation of Excellence"Maria de Maeztu" Unit , from the SOMM alliance SOMMa.

I am a member of the board of the Function Special Interest Group , and a researcher of the firts Google Spain-Unviersity of Seville Chair for Artificial Intelligence. I am also a member of the executive board of the CSIC Hub for Computational Biology and Bioinformatics (2024), and a founder member of the Spanish Society of Bioinformatics and Computational Biology (SeBiBIC)


Trained as molecular microbiologist, I became a #Bioinformatician and #Computational Biologist in different labs, and in different countries.

In my past: I have worked as forensic biologist, bird watcher, and field microbiologist. I have named a bacterial species.


About my scientific path:

ORCID: 0000-0003-0750-9099

ResearcherID: D-5777-2011


Research Experience:
In the US:

Since 1998, I worked in several labs. I finished the experimental work of my PhD in Molecular Microbiology at the Sidney Kimmel Cancer Center (merged with the Burnham Institute) in the lab of Michael McClelland (currently at UCI ), a leading researcher on Salmonella and other Enterobacteria genomics. I continued to conduct posdoctoral research there when I earned a NASA-NSCORT fellowship, which allowed me to join Russell F. Doolittle's lab at UCSD , to enhance my knowledge in protein #Evolution. This constituted my transition to Computational Biology. Later I joined Adam Godzik's lab , as a Postdoctoral associate researcher to reinforce skills on #Structural #Bioinformatics, in particular #Protein Modeling, and #Protein Threading.

Back to Spain

I returned back to Spain in 2003 at CNB-CSIC in Alfonso Valencia's (currently at BSC ), as a recipient of a Marie Curie International Reintegration Grant. There I focused on #Sequence Analyses and #Protein families. In 2006 I was appointed as Staff Scientist of Alfonso Valencia's group at CNIO, a postition that lasted 3 years.

As PI

I became independent Group Leader in 2009 at the former Institute for Predictive and Personalized Medicine of Cancer (IMPPC Directed then by Prof. Manuel Perucho, and now merged with IGTP ). In 2013 I joined the Institute of Biomedicine of Seville as a Senior Principal Investigator. In 2017 I earned a Científico Titular (civil servant) position at CSIC .

Over the last years, my activities within the Group were related to research, although I've been involved in support as well.

I am Associate Editor of Nucleic Acid Research Genomics and Bioinformatics [NARGAB] , a new sister journal of NAR.

Past Positions:
Date Role Institution keywords
09/2013-07/2018

Senior Group Leader

Scientific Supervisor of the Bioinformatics Unit.

Institute of Biomedicine of Seville, Sevilla, ES.

#Structure/Function

#Transcriptomics

#Bioinformatics

#Integration

#Scientific-HPC

#Evolution

05/2009-09/2013 Junior Group Leader Institute for Predictive and Personalised Medicine of Cancer, (merged with IGTP). Badalona, ES.

#ScientificHPC

#Structure/Function

#Integration

#Evolution

06/2012-09/2013 Adjunt Researcher Barcelona Super Computer Center, Barcelona, ES.

#ScientificHPC

#Structure/Function

#Integration

#Evolution

03/2006-05/2009 Staff scientist in Alfonso Valencia's lab Spanish National Cancer Center (CNIO), Madrid, ES.

#Structure/Function

#Genomics

#SequenceAnalyses

#Protein Families

#Evolution

11/2003-03/2006 Posdoctoral associate in Alfonso Valencia's and Carlos Martinez labs National Centre for Biotechnology, Madrid, ES.

#Structure/Function

#Integration

#Genomics,

#Evolution

#ProteinModeling

11/2001-10/2003 Posdoctoral associate in Adam Godzik's lab. The Burnham Insitute for Biomedical Research, (Now the Sanford Burnham Prebys Medical Discovery Institute). La Jolla, CA, USA.

#Evolution

#Phylogeny

#Threading

#ProteinModeling

#StructuralBioinformatics

12/2000-11/2001 NASA-NSCORT fellow in RF. Doolittle's lab. My transition to computational Biology Center for Molecular Genetics, University of California in San Diego. San Diego, CA, USA.

#Evolution

#Programming

#wetlab

#Transition

1998-12/2000 pre and posdoc fellow in Michael McClelland's lab. Center for Molecular Genetics, University of California in San Diego. San Diego, CA, USA.

#Evolution,

#Microbiology

#Taxonomy

#Systematics

#wetlab

#MolecularBiology

Teaching Experience:
Date Topic Institution
2019 Master de Estadística. Minería de datos en Biología. Facultad de Estadística. Universidad de Sevilla, US.
Since 2015 Master de Investigación Biomédica. Genímica Funcional Y Biocomputación, (In Spanish) Universidad de Sevilla, US.
2014 OnLine Course about HMMMs in Biology (In English). University Carlos III, Madrid, Spain.
2004-2008 Summer Course on Bioinformatics (In Spanish). Complutense University of Madrid.
2004-2011 Master in Bioinformatics and Computational Biology (spanish). Complutense University of Madrid.
2004-2008 former PhD program (now a Master) in Bioinformatics (spanish). Autonomous University of Madrid.
2009 External Associate of the PhD programme, University of Barcelona.
Outreach:
Outreach activities in the context of 11deFebrero

  • Inteview (Spanish) for Beeparents
  • Talk about Bioinformatics at the IES Rodrigo Caro, 2019, Coria del Rio, Sevilla (In Spanish).
  • Talk about Bioinformatics at Yago School, Sevilla, 2019 (In Spanish).
  • Talk about Bioinformatics at the IES Miguel Servet, 2018, Sevilla (In Spanish).
  • Talk about Bioinformatics at the IES Itaca, 2018, Sevilla (In Spanish).
  • Talk about women in Science for primary school at CEIP Dos Hermanas, Seville (In Spanish).

Other outreach activities (in Spanish):

  • 2023, and 2024. "Ciencia en el Barrio"
  • 2019. General media: an article about Margaret Dayhoff
  • 2019. Pint of Science: a talk in a Bar about DNA,Genomics, etc . Download part of the talk in printed version [Here].
  • 2008. Semana de la Ciencia, outreach talk about Bioinformatics
  • Radio interview (Spanish) para el programa de Radio Tomares, :Un mar de Ciencia" aired on 19-04-22, [LISTEN].
  • Podcast (Spanish), "Hablame del CSIC" aired on 21-09-2022,[PODCAST].