San Diego IRACDA Scholars Seminar Speaker List
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IRACDA Scholars are a diverse group of young, dynamic speakers engaged in cutting-edge research
and are available to present seminars at your institution. Profiles and contact information is shown
below.
David Gorkin, Ph.D.
San Diego IRACDA Postdoctoral Scholar
Department of Cellular and Molecular Medicine
University of California, San Diego
Email: dgorkin@ucsd.edu
Availability: Spring 2016, Summer 2016
Seminar title: “The relationship between 3D genome organization and gene expression.”
David Gorkin earned his BA in molecular biology from Boston University and a PhD in human genetics and
molecular biology from the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. He is currently a postdoctoral fellow
at the Ludwig Institute for Cancer Research in San Diego, where he studies how the 3-dimensional (3D)
organization of chromatin influences genome function. New and exciting findings have shown that 3D
conformation of chromatin is integral to numerous processes including transcriptional regulation, DNA
replication, DNA repair, and X chromosome inactivation. Moreover, disruption of this 3D conformation can be
pathogenic. David uses a combination of high-throughput genomic technologies such as Hi-C (a derivative of
Chromosome Conformation Capture, or “3C”) and population genetic approaches to study how chromatin
conformation differs between individuals, how DNA sequence variation contributes to these conformational
differences, and what the functional consequences of such differences are. His research seeks to better
understand the relationship between genome conformation and genome function, and ultimately to move
beyond a linear view of the genome as a string of nucleotides, towards a more comprehensive view of the
genome as a highly organized 3D entity.
Anel Lizcano, Ph.D.
San Diego IRACDA Postdoctoral Scholar
Department of Cellular of Molecular Medicine
University of California, San Diego
Email: lanel@ucsd.edu
Availability: Fall 2015, Spring 2016, Summer 2016
Seminar title: “The quiescent life of blood neutrophils”
Anel Lizcano earned a B.S. in Clinical Laboratory Science from the University of Texas at El Paso. To gain
research experience, as she was fascinated with infectious diseases and their causes, she was selected and
participated in the G/GREAT (Genetics/Genomics Research Education and Training Program) summer
research program at Baylor College of Medicine – Human Genome Sequencing Center (BCM-HGCS) in
Houston, TX. Her training continued in the Pre-Graduate Training Education Program at BCM-HGCS, where
she examined genome instability and its impact on antibiotic resistance in bacteria. These excellent training
experiences helped her to realize she wanted to pursue a research career in Microbiology and Immunology.
Anel joined the Integrated Multidisciplinary Graduate Program at University of Texas Health Science Center at
San Antonio where she earned a Ph.D. in Microbiology and Immunology. Dr. Lizcano is currently a
postdoctoral fellow in the department of Cellular and Molecular Medicine at the University of California, San
Diego. Her current research interests include investigating the mechanisms of how oral streptococci and Group
A streptococci use molecular mimicry to evade the immune system in whole blood and skin, respectively, and
how self-associated molecular patters are essential to avoid unwanted inflammation in healthy humans.
San Diego IRACDA Scholars Seminar Speaker List
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John W. Steele, Ph.D.
San Diego IRACDA Postdoctoral Scholar
Department of Cellular and Molecular Medicine
Sanford Consortium for Regenerative Medicine
University of California, San Diego
Email: jsteele@ucsd.edu
Availability: Fall 2015, Winter 2016, Spring 2016
Seminar title: “Probing the Autophagy Pathway for Drug Discovery in Human iPSC-Derived Neurons”
John Steele earned a B.A. in psychology with a concentration in neuroscience from Kenyon College and a
Ph.D. in neuroscience from the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai. He is currently a postdoctoral fellow
in the Sanford Consortium for Regenerative Medicine at the University of California, San Diego, where he uses
human induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) to study the functional genetics of neurodegenerative diseases.
Human neurons endure decades of life as post-mitotic cells and must carefully manage access to vital
nutrients, maintain cellular organelles, and overcome cellular injuries while living in complex cellular network.
Through the use of patient-derived iPSCs and modern genome editing technologies, John studies how human
neurons access the autophagy pathway to mitigate disease-related damage, and how this pathway break
down in genetic and sporadic forms of Alzheimer’s disease and related tauopathies, and in lysosomal storage
diseases. His studies have led to discovery of drugs to combat autophagy failure in neurodegenerative
diseases and aims to better characterize the function of genes involved in the maintenance of autophagy in
human neurons. His studies will lead to a better understanding of basic neurobiology and the development of
new drugs to specifically target these pathways in neurodegenerative diseases.
Brian León, Ph.D.
San Diego IRACDA Postdoctoral Scholar
Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry
University of California, San Diego
Email: kbleon24@gmail.com
Availability: Winter 2016, Spring 2016, Summer 2016
Seminar title: “Abyssomicin 2 Reactivates Latent HIV-1 by a PKC- and HDAC-Independent Mechanism”
Brian earned a B.S. from the University of California, Irvine and a Ph.D. in Chemistry from the University of
California, Santa Cruz. He is currently a Postdoctoral fellow in the department of Chemistry at the University of
California, San Diego. His current research is aimed at trying to harness the biosynthetic machinery mother
nature uses to prepare natural products for different applications. Additionally, he is engaged in the
advancement of a lead compound with implications in the area of cancer.
San Diego IRACDA Scholars Seminar Speaker List
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Michael R. Dores, Ph.D.
San Diego IRACDA Postdoctoral Scholar
Department of Pharmacology
University of California, San Diego
E-mail: mdores@ucsd.edu
Availability: Fall 2015, Winter 2016, Spring 2016, Summer 2016
Seminar title: WWP2-dependent Ubiquitination of ALIX Drives GPCR Lysosomal Trafficking
Michael Dores received B.A. degrees in biology and anthropology from the University of Oregon. He completed
his doctoral dissertation on the mechanisms that regulate yeast G protein coupled receptor (GPCR)
endocytosis in the department of Biochemistry, Molecular Biology and Cell Biology at Northwestern University.
Currently, Michael is a postdoctoral fellow in the Department of Pharmacology at the University of California,
San Diego. His research focuses on the molecular mechanisms that regulate GPCR signaling and endocytic
sorting in cancer and inflammation. Michael discovered a novel lysosomal sorting pathway that regulates
GPCR signaling through the activity of the adaptor protein ALIX and the alpha arrestin ARRDC3. Michael’s
research has shown that upon activation of GPCRs, ARRDC3 recruits the E3 ubiquitin ligase WWP2 to
ubiquitinate ALIX. This process is required for receptor lysosomal sorting and degradation. ALIX also mediates
the biogenesis and release of extracellular vesicles (ECVs). ECVs are important biomarkers for disease and
can transmit signals, including RNA, to adjacent cells. Michael’s findings suggest a direct link between GPCR
signaling and the regulation of cellular machinery involved in ECV release and his future projects will
investigate the role of ECV signaling in the regulation of vascular integrity and inflammation.
Erilynn Heinrichsen, Ph.D.
San Diego IRACDA Postdoctoral Scholar
Department of Pediatrics
University of California, San Diego
Email: erusso@ucsd.edu
Availability: Spring 2016, Summer 2016
Seminar title: “Matters of the Heart: Cardiomyocyte Changes in High Altitude Adaptation”
Erilynn Heinrichsen earned a B.A. at Luther College in Decorah, IA and a Ph.D. in Biomedical Sciences at
University of California, San Diego. She is now an IRACDA postdoctoral scholar working under the mentorship
of Dr. Gabriel Haddad in the Department of Pediatrics at University of California, San Diego. Her research
focuses on the genetic response of the heart to hypoxia adaptation. Humans have made their homes in high
altitude regions for thousands of years, and certain populations have uniquely adapted to the challenge of
living in a low oxygen environment. High altitude (HA) dwellers present altered cardiovascular physiology that,
while allowing for survival in the harsh hypoxic environment, comes with an increased risk in pulmonary
hypertension and other heart conditions. Little is known about the molecular changes or underlying
mechanisms occurring in the hearts of these individuals. To study the hearts of HA dwellers, Heinrichsen has
taken advantage of stem cell technology by using iPS cells reprogrammed from fibroblasts of HA individuals.
She has differentiated these iPS cells into cardiomyocytes in order to evaluate phenotypic, transcriptional, and
metabolic alterations in the HA hearts. Her research aims to define the molecular mechanisms underlying the
cardiovascular changes observed in hypoxia adaptation.
San Diego IRACDA Scholars Seminar Speaker List
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Melvin Rouse, Jr., Ph.D.
San Diego IRACDA Postdoctoral Scholar
Department of Reproductive Medicine
University of California, San Diego
E-mail: mlrouse@ucsd.edu
Availability: Spring 2016, Summer 2016
Seminar title: “Unlocking puberty: disinhibition of Kisspeptin, an essential neural regulator of reproduction”
Melvin Rouse, Jr. is a postdoctoral fellow at UC San Diego in the Department of Reproductive Medicine in the
laboratory of Dr. Alexander S. Kauffman. He received a BS in psychology from Virginia Tech and an MA in
general psychology from Boston University. He did his doctoral work at Johns Hopkins University in the
department of psychological and brain sciences. His current work at UC San Diego investigates mechanisms in
the brain that control the timing of puberty. Puberty marks the transition from sexual immaturity to reproductive
competence. The timing of puberty is affected by a number of factors including sex, metabolic status,
environment, etc. The neuropeptide kisspeptin is a potent secretagogue of gonadotropin releasing hormone
(GnRH) which drives reproduction. Kisspeptin is essential for puberty, because humans and other animals
lacking kisspeptin (or its receptor) fail to enter puberty and remain infertile. Prior to puberty, kisspeptin gene
expression is inhibited and is not able to respond to cues that would up-regulate kisspeptin gene expression
post-puberty. Studies in juvenile mice indicate that kisspeptin gene expression is dis-inhibited in an age
dependent manner in association with changes to other reproductive related genes.
John D. Lapek, Jr., Ph.D.
San Diego IRACDA Postdoctoral Scholar
Department of Pharmacology
University of California, San Diego
E-mail: jlapek@gmail.com
Availability: Fall 2015, Winter 2016, Spring 2016, Summer 2016
Seminar title: “Multiplexed Quantitative Proteomics to Define Functional and Physical Interaction Networks”
John Lapek earned a B.S. in biology from Penn State Erie, the Behrend College in Erie, PA, followed by a
Ph.D. in toxicology from the University of Rochester in Rochester, NY. After graduate school, John was a
postdoctoral research fellow at Massachusetts General Hospital Cancer Center for two years. Currently, John
is a postdoctoral fellow in the Department of Pharmacology at the University of California, San Diego, where
his interests are in utilizing quantitative mass spectrometry to study network regulation, novel virulence factors
and kinases. Functional organization and dynamics of proteomes in disease states are poorly characterized.
Current state of the art quantitative mass spectrometry technology is allowing acquisition of quantitative
comprehensive proteomes approaching the pace of genomics technologies. Large-scale quantitative
proteomics datasets can be utilized to predict functional and physical interaction networks with high accuracy.
Perturbations of these networks can be detected in disease states and in response to treatment. This work
can lead to the discovery of novel pathways for drug response and resistance. John’s research aims to utilize
this technology to uncover novel virulence factors and pathways involved in resistance to therapeutic
interventions.
San Diego IRACDA Scholars Seminar Speaker List
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Apollo D. Kacsinta, Ph.D.
San Diego IRACDA Postdoctoral Scholar
Department of Cellular and Molecular Medicine
University of California, San Diego
E-mail: akacsinta@ucsd.edu
Availability: Fall 2015, Winter 2016, Spring 2016, Summer 2016
Seminar title: “Targeting Novel siRNN prodrug RNAi Therapeutics to Fight Cancer”
Apollo Kacsinta is currently an IRACDA postdoctoral scholar in the department of Cellular and Molecular
Medicine at University of California, San Diego under the mentorship of Steven F. Dowdy. Kacsinta’s objective
is to develop targeted personalized therapeutics to eradicate cancer. He is currently investigating the
development and delivery of a novel class of siRNA prodrugs called short interfering RiboNucleic Neutrals
(siRNNs) in vitro and in vivo, in metastatic models of prostate and ovarian cancers. Kacsinta earned a B.S. in
Biology from California State University, Los Angeles (as a participant in Bridges to the Future, MBRS-RISE
and MARC) and a Ph.D. in Cancer Biology from University of Arizona.
Angelina Hernandez-Carretero, Ph.D.
San Diego IRACDA Postdoctoral Scholar
Department of Medicine
University of California, San Diego
E-mail: a9hernan@ucsd.edu
Availability: Spring 2016, Summer 2016
Seminar title: “Transcriptomics of obese muscle: Ankrd2 is a regulator of insulin resistance”
Angelina earned a B.S. in biological sciences from the University of California, Irvine, a M.S. in biology from
Cal State Los Angeles, and a Ph.D. in cellular and integrative physiology from Indiana University School of
Medicine. She is currently a postdoctoral fellow in the Division of Endocrinology and Metabolism at UC San
Diego and her studies are focused on obesity and type 2 diabetes. Insulin resistance of the muscle is a key
contributor to the etiology of type 2 diabetes, but further investigation is needed to understand the molecular
players involved in obesity-induced insulin resistance. She has utilized a dietary switch mouse model to
perform transcriptomics of the skeletal muscle, and compared these findings with RNA-seq of human obesediabetic muscle. This multi-species approach identified three key genes that tracked with the insulin resistant
state in both mouse and human muscle, including Ankyrin repeat domain 2 (Ankrd2). Ankrd2 expression is
decreased in obese-insulin resistant muscle and preliminary findings, using an in vitro assay in L6 myocytes,
suggests that Ankrd2 plays an important role in insulin-stimulated glucose uptake. In summary, Angelina’s
research aims to identify novel targets to treat insulin resistance.
San Diego IRACDA Scholars Seminar Speaker List
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Nicole Rubin, Ph.D.
San Diego IRACDA Postdoctoral Scholar
Department of Medicine
University of California, San Diego
E-mail: nirubin@ucsd.edu
Availability: Fall 2015, Winter 2016, Spring 2016, Summer 2016
Seminar title: Environmental Correlates in Human Disease and Aging
Nicole comes from Reno, Nevada where she developed her curiosity for biology. She attained her B.A. in
Biology from Occidental College, which also cemented her desire for scientific research while working under
the mentorship of Dr. Gary Martin and contributing to 2 papers. She attended USC for a PhD in Pathobiology;
her thesis focused on the tools to study the regenerative response in zebrafish and mouse models of
myocardial infarction. Currently, as a UCSD IRACDA scholar in the Mohit Jain lab, her work is focused on the
environmental exposures that are biomarkers or contributors of cardiovascular disease and aging. Using
patient plasma samples and metabolomics, the lab is developing a high-throughput mass spectrometry
approach for identifying small molecules detectable in blood that correlate with the development of disease and
mortality. Future research will examine the cellular mechanisms of pathogenesis by these metabolites in vitro
and in vivo. She continues to be passionate about teaching the scientific process to the next generation of
STEM students and finding approaches to study pathogenesis with potential for preventative medicine.
Tony D. Davis, Ph.D.
San Diego IRACDA Postdoctoral Scholar
Department of Chemistry & Biochemistry
University of California, San Diego
E-mail: tdd005@ucsd.edu
Availability: Spring 2016, Summer 2016
Seminar title: “Small Molecules to Interrogate Natural Products Biosynthesis”
Tony D. Davis earned a B.S. in Biochemistry from Xavier University of Louisiana and Ph.D. in Pharmacology
from the Weill Cornell Graduate School of Medical Sciences of Cornell University. His Ph.D. studies were
conducted under the tutelage of Prof. Derek S. Tan and focused on advancing antibiotic drug discovery
through a systematic and quantitative platform to better understand small-molecule permeability in bacteria.
His studies revealed that several structural and physicochemical properties influence accumulation and efflux
in a non-trivial manner. Currently, he is a postdoctoral fellow in the Department of Chemistry & Biochemistry at
the University of California, San Diego, where his interests are natural product biosynthetic pathways.
Chemical tools have been developed to investigate substrate and protein specificity inherent in these
pathways. Davis’ work focuses on the design and synthesis of novel small-molecule probes to study the
biosynthesis of non-ribosomal peptide and polyketide-derived natural products to enable future bioactivity and
structural studies.
San Diego IRACDA Scholars Seminar Speaker List
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Edwin A. Paz, Ph.D.
San Diego IRACDA Postdoctoral Scholar
Department of Pediatrics
University of California, San Diego
E-mail: edpaz@ucsd.edu
Availability: Winter 2016, Spring 2016, Summer 2016
Seminar title: “Defining Transcriptional Regulatory Networks for Identification of Targets for Therapy in
Neurological Diseases”
Edwin Paz earned a B.S. in microbiology, immunology, and molecular genetics from the University of
California, Los Angeles and a Ph.D. in Cancer Biology from the University of Arizona. He is currently a
postdoctoral fellow in the Division of Biological Sciences at the University of California, San Diego, where his
research is focused on identification of novel therapeutic targets in neurodegenerative disorders by studying
transcriptional regulation. Using a bioinformatics approach, Paz and colleagues have identified putative
transcriptional motifs in genes that regulate reactive oxygen species (ROS) and lipid metabolism. Further
analyses have revealed candidate transcription factors that regulate these genes. These findings suggest that
there are novel networks that may contribute to neurodegenerative disorders. His research aims to novel
transcriptional networks underlying neurodegenerative in order to identify novel therapeutic targets.
Julieta Aguilar, Ph.D.
San Diego IRACDA Postdoctoral Scholar & UC President’s Postdoctoral Scholar
Skaggs School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences
Department of Pharmacology School of Medicine
University of California, San Diego
E-mail: juaguilar@ucsd.edu
Availability: Winter 2016, Spring 2016
Seminar title: “Novel cryptic peptides as virulence factors in CA-MRSA”
Julieta Aguilar earned a B.S. in Microbiology and minor in Chemistry from California State University,
Northridge and a Ph.D. in Microbiology from University of California, Berkeley. As a postdoctoral fellow at the
University of California, San Diego she investigated the use of Bacillus subtilis to control human pathogens on
produce. Now, Julieta is currently working on identifying and characterizing virulence factors in pathogens.
Pathogens have become a major challenge to public health, since they have become increasingly resistant to
first-line of antibiotics. Staphylococcus aureus has become resistant to methicillin (MRSA), and two main
strains of MRSA have been identified, hospital-associated MRSA (HA-MRSA) and community-associated
MRSA (CA-MRSA). CA-MRSA strains infect healthy individuals and can be attributed to an increase in
molecular virulence factors compared to HA-MRSA. Currently, the virulence of CA-MRSA is poorly understood.
Using a peptidomics approach, six novel bioactive peptides were identified in CA-MRSA, which are absent in
HA-MRSA. These peptides robustly stimulate primary immune cells and cause mammalian cell death.
Ultimately, the goal is to better understand the underlying determinants of virulence caused by pathogens and
the effects on the host in order to develop new pharmacological avenues of intervention for the treatment of
bacterial infections.
San Diego IRACDA Scholars Seminar Speaker List
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Dana Skarra, Ph.D.
San Diego IRACDA Postdoctoral Scholar
Department of Reproductive Medicine
University of California, San Diego
E-mail: dskarra@ucsd.edu
Availability: Fall 2015, Winter 2016, Spring 2016, Summer 2016
Seminar title: “The Impact of Insulin and IGF1 Signaling on Pituitary Gonadotropin Production”
Dana Skarra began her career in medical science when she earned a B.S. in nursing from the University of
South Alabama. She then completed a M.S. in biology from Sonoma State University and a Ph.D. in basic
medical sciences at the University of South Alabama. Her Ph.D. thesis work identified the type 2.3 smallconductance calcium-activated potassium channel as a novel drug target for preterm labor. Skarra is currently
a Ruth L. Kirschstein NRSA fellow under the mentorship of Varykina Thackray in the Department of
Reproductive Medicine at the University of California, San Diego. Her postdoctoral work combines two of her
long-held interests: reproductive endocrinology and metabolism. She is currently investigating how the
transcription factor FOXO1 represses luteinizing hormone and follicle stimulating hormone production in the
pituitary. Skarra also volunteers with several outreach organizations to enrich STEM education in economically
disadvantaged areas of San Diego. She plans to obtain a faculty position where she can continue pursuing her
passion for biomedical research and share it through mentoring and teaching.
Rea Lardelli Markmiller, Ph.D.
San Diego IRACDA Scholar
Division of Biological Sciences
University of California, San Diego
E-mail: rlardelli@ucsd.edu
Availability: Fall 2015, Winter 2016, Spring 2016
Seminar title: What is the molecular mechanism of deadenylase Caf1z in gene expression?
Rea Lardelli Markmiller earned a B.S. in biochemistry from California Polytechnic State University in San Luis
Obispo. She received a Ph.D. in biochemistry from The University of Texas at Austin where she studied the
dynamic interplay between RNA and protein that authorizes pre-mRNA splicing in yeast. She then continued
her biochemical interests of the spliceosome at the Ludwig Institute for Cancer Research in Melbourne,
Australia, where she used zebrafish to understand how minor-class splicing affects the transcriptome during
vertebrate development. Markmiller is now a postdoctoral fellow in the lab of Jens Lykke-Andersen at
University of California, San Diego, where she received a Ruth L. Kirschstein NRSA postdoctoral fellowship.
Here, she uses human tissue culture and deep sequencing techniques to pursue her studies in regulation of
gene expression at the RNA level. Currently, she studies the mechanism of a non-conventional deadenylase,
Caf1z. Intriguingly, this enzyme localizes to nuclear foci, known as Cajal bodies, and unlike characterized
deadenylases, also has a low level of activity on non-poly(A) tails. Her goal is to discover the RNA targets and
effects of Caf1z and other RNA-associating enzymes during gene expression.
San Diego IRACDA Scholars Seminar Speaker List
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Jennifer Betancourt, Ph.D.
San Diego IRACDA Postdoctoral Scholar
Division of Biological Sciences
University of California, San Diego
E-mail: jbetancourt@ucsd.edu
Availability: Spring 2016, Summer 2016
Seminar title: Death Associated Protein Kinase 1 (DAPK-1) negatively regulates the innate immune response
of wound repair in C. elegans.
Jennifer Betancourt received her B.S. in psychobiology from the University of California, Los Angeles. She
then went on to complete her doctoral dissertation at the University of California, Santa Cruz, where under the
mentorship of Dr. Bin Chen, studied the relationship between cerebral cortex development and transcriptional
regulation. Jennifer is currently a postdoctoral fellow in the Chisholm Laboratory at the University of California,
San Diego, and a recipient of the Institutional Research and Academic Career Award (IRACDA). Using the
roundworm nematode, Caenorhabditis elegans, Jennifer investigates the genetic mechanisms that regulate
epidermal wound repair. Specifically, her project is focused on characterizing how Death-Associated Protein
Kinase (DAPK-1) functions as a negative regulator of the innate immune response. Using epistasis analysis,
her results indicate that DAPK-1 functions downstream of gpa-12 and upstream of egl-8 and tpa-1, potentially
interacting with TPA-1 isoforms in a redundant manner. Committed to STEM education, Jennifer plans to use
her postdoctoral training in C. elegans biology and experience as a college instructor, to establish an
undergraduate research program for students interested in pursuing STEM careers.
Roberto Tinoco, Ph.D.
San Diego IRACDA Postdoctoral Scholar & Chancellor’s Postdoctoral Scholar
Division of Biological Sciences
University of California, San Diego
E-mail: rtinoco@ucsd.edu
Availability: Fall 2015, Winter 2016, Spring 2016
Seminar title: “T cell immunity to chronic viral infections and melanoma”
Roberto Tinoco is currently a postdoctoral fellow at the University of California, San Diego. He received a B.S.
degree in neurobiology at the University of California, Irvine. As an undergraduate student he received funding
by the MBRS, MHIRT, and CAMP minority science programs to study T cell immunology at UC Irvine and
microbiology at the Universidad Autonoma de Madrid, Spain. Tinoco completed a Ph.D. in biology at UC San
Diego under the guidance of Elina Zuñiga, where he discovered that TGF-beta signaling in T cells induced
apoptosis of virus-specific CD8+ T cells, which contributed to the establishment of a chronic viral infection. As
a postdoctoral fellow, he is studying the role of adhesion molecules in T cells and how these contribute to T cell
function during acute and chronic viral infections. He has extended his findings to cancer immunology and
found that adhesion molecules also play a critical role in anti-tumor T cells against melanoma tumors. Tinoco is
committed to making scientific discoveries in his own laboratory and training the next generation of scientists
through research, teaching and mentoring. His long-term goal is to obtain a faculty position and establish a
fully funded laboratory to study the T cell immunity to viral infections and cancers.