Head of Screening and Target Validation
Fundacion Medina, Spain
I am a cell biologist and molecular biologist by training. I did my PhD in pharmacogenetics of colorectal cancer and a short postdoctoral project in NGS applications for rare diseases. Next, I spent 10 years at Massachusetts Eye and Ear- Harvard University in Boston. As an assistant professor in Ophthalmology, I studied the molecular mechanisms underlying eye diseases and developed new cell-based models for drug discovery and gene therapy applications. The models were based on CRISPR editing and ocular organoids derived from induced pluripotent stem cells. Later on, I was recruited as a Director of the Retina Team at a Intergalactic Therapeutics, where I contributed to develop non-viral therapies for eye diseases. In 2022, I joined Fundacion MEDINA as the Head of Screening and Target Validation. Here, I lead the efforts to identify Natural products with potential to treat cancer, infectious diseases and CNS diseases.