Meiotic Chromosome Dynamics · Telomeres & Centromeres · Quantitative Imaging
Institute of Functional Biology and Genomics (IBFG) · CSIC / University of Salamanca
I am a Tenured Scientist (Científico Titular) at CSIC, leading the Nuclear Dynamics, Telomeres & Reproduction group at the Institute of Functional Biology and Genomics (IBFG, CSIC/USAL) in Salamanca, Spain. Our lab focuses on quantitative cell biology of meiotic chromosome dynamics, using fission yeast Schizosaccharomyces pombe as a primary model organism.
I obtained my PhD in Genetics (2011, cum laude, Extraordinary Award) from Universidad Pablo de Olavide, Seville, working on protein glycosylation in the plant pathogen Ustilago maydis. I then trained as an EMBO Long-Term Fellow at the London Research Institute (Cancer Research UK, 2011–2014) and as Senior Postdoc at the NIH (Bethesda, 2014–2018), in both cases in the lab of Dr. Julie Cooper, specialising in telomere biology and live-cell quantitative imaging. I returned to Spain in 2018 as a Ramón y Cajal Fellow at CABD (Seville) before joining IBFG as CSIC Tenured Scientist in December 2021.
A hallmark of my research is the integration of experimental cell biology with quantitative and computational approaches, including unsupervised machine-learning analysis of chromosome trajectories. This has led to the open-access platform ChroMo for automated analysis of chromosome dynamics.
Our lab combines genetics, quantitative live-cell microscopy and bioinformatics to understand how chromosomes segregate faithfully during meiosis.
We study how the meiotic spindle forms and functions in S. pombe and how its dynamic properties ensure faithful chromosome segregation. We use live-cell fluorescence microscopy combined with quantitative image analysis in real time.
ActiveWe explore the molecular identity, plasticity and mechanics of telomere bouquet formation and dissolution. Our 2025 Nature Communications paper showed that centromere positioning orchestrates bouquet formation and the onset of meiotic differentiation.
ActiveWe develop unsupervised machine-learning algorithms to identify patterns in meiotic chromosome trajectories. This line gave rise to ChroMo, an open-access web platform for automated analysis of chromosome dynamics.
ActiveWe are extending our quantitative approaches to budding yeast and C. elegans to address nuclear organisation during gametogenesis from a comparative and biomedically relevant perspective, including implications for female fertility.
ActiveFull list of 24 peer-reviewed articles. # = corresponding author. Also available on PubMed, Google Scholar and ORCID.
We are a young, dynamic group at IBFG (CSIC/USAL) in Salamanca, combining experimental cell biology with quantitative and computational approaches.
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Open to scientific collaborations, enquiries about our research, Master's and PhD projects, and postdoctoral applications.