Research Statement

During the development and progression of cancer, neoplastic cells acquire a series of genetic changes that result in drastic modifications both in how the cell responds to its environment and in the cell dynamics itself. The advance of genomic technologies and next generation sequencing have produced a wealth of information and provided substantial insights into the pathogenesis of disease. Especially in cancer, these tools have been exceptionally useful for identifying novel signal transduction pathways, with a great potential for the discovery of new biomarkers and therapeutic targets. However, the translation of these findings into a breakthrough in the understanding of cancer biology and care of cancer patients remains a major challenge.

In our Center we have in place all the computational tools, high throughput sequencing technology and bioinformatics and cell biology techniques needed to understand cancer biology, from genomics to cell signaling. We also want to contribute to medicine, looking for ways to make the knowledge of cellular and molecular biology of cancer generated in our laboratories useful for patients with cancer.

Professional experience

2020 – Professor (full time), Centro de Genetica y Genomica, Instituto de Ciencias e Innovacion en Medicina, Facultad de Medicina Clinica Alemana Universidad del Desarrollo (https://medicina.udd.cl/icim/)

2015 – 2019 Head of Research, Center for Excellence in Precision Medicine, Pfizer Chile.

2013 – 2016 Vice President and Member of the Board of the Chilean Cooperative Oncology Research Group (GOCCHI, http://gocchi.org).

2012 – 2015 Director, Center for Research and Treatment of Cancer, Faculty of Medicine, University of Chile (CITC, http://citc.uchile.cl/).

2015 – Professor (Adjunct and Ad honorem) Departamento de Oncología Básica Clínica, Faculty of Medicine, University of Chile.

2006 – 2015 Assistant Professor, full time, Program of Pathophysiology, Institute of Biomedical Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, University of Chile (https://www.icbm.cl/, http://www.medicina.uchile.cl/).

2006 – 2010 Associated Investigator, FONDAP Center for Molecular Studies of the Cell, Facultad de Medicina, Universidad de Chile (http://www.cemc.cl/).

2002 – 2006 Postdoctoral Associated Researcher, Howard Hughes Medical Institute at State University of New York, Stony Brook, USA.

2001 – 2006 Instructor, full time, Program of Pathophysiology, Institute of Biomedical Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, University of Chile.

1991 – 1995 Research Assistant, Department of Physiology and Biophysics, Facultad de Medicina, Universidad de Chile.

Education

2002       PhD in Biomedical Sciences, Universidad de Chile, Chile.

1996       Medical-Surgeon, Professional degree, Universidad de Chile, Chile.

1994       Licenciature in Medicine, Universidad de Chile, Chile.