Larissa Zarate (symposium chair)
Larissa has been a flow cytometry specialist at Imperial College London since 2020. She holds a Bachelor’s degree in Biology by the University of Salamanca and a Master’s degree in Human Assisted Reproduction by the Instituto Valenciano de Infertilidad-University of Valencia. Following a number of clinical internships in IVF labs and positions in science communication, she came to the UK in 2013 to start a PhD in Reproductive Biology at the University of Southampton. She studied the presence of adult ovarian stem cells in mice, a very controversial topic nowadays in IVF. She gained an invaluable expertise in flow cytometry and cell sorting during her research, and hence she decided to become a specialist technician at the Royal Veterinary College and currently at Imperial College London. She has developed and designed the website for the Flow Cytometry Facility where she works and she is the facility’s online manager. She joined SRUK/CERU in 2016 and, since then, she has been the director of the London Constituency, regional online manager, and has helped organize two symposia.
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Diego Alonso (symposium chair)
Diego leads the central Research Software Engineering (RSE) Team at Imperial College London since 2021 with a mission to increase the quality, impact, and sustainability of the research software developed at the university. He is passionate about sustainable software, open source, and graphical user interfaces to create accessible, long-lasting tools. He became an RSE back in 2018, but his background has nothing to do with software. He did a PhD on semiconductor nanostructures at the Institute of Micro and Nanotechnology (IMN-CSIC) and then shifted his interests to high efficiency solar cells and photovoltaic devices, chaining several postdoctoral positions at Heriot-Watt University (Edinburgh) and Imperial College London. He joined SRUK/CERU in 2016, becoming part of the London working group, where he is still active, and getting involved in several Departments, Committees, and roles, such as being the former SRUK/CERU Secretary.
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Sandra Álvarez-Carretero
Sandra obtained a BSc in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology at the Rovira I Virgili University (Spain), an MSc in Bioinformatics at Högskolan I Skövde (Sweden), and her PhD in Computational Biology at Queen Mary University of London. She is currently a postdoc at UCL, and her main interest is focused on understanding species’ evolution by developing and applying new computational methods that use information from genomes and fossils to estimate evolutionary timelines. Her ultimate goal is to ensure that all the tools she develops are well documented and can reproduce all the results she reports as part of the projects she is involved in. She has been a member of SRUK/CERU since 2017, when she joined the SRUK/CERU London working group. She is the current director of the press department, the Co-EIC of the SRUK/CERU Blog, and the SRUK/CERU’s website manager.
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Cristina Barrero-Sicilia
Cristina is a Lecturer in Biomedical Sciences (Genetics) at the University of Hertfordshire (UH) teaching at different Programs such as BSc (Hons) Bioscience, BSc (Hons) Pharmacology, BSc (Hons) Nutrition and Dietetics, and MSc Molecular Biotechnology. She has more than 10 years of experience in teaching and post-doctoral research within biological sciences with a strong focus on genetics and plant biotechnology. Most of her original research work has been focused on elucidating the molecular and genetic mechanisms in plants to be improved as food source and in transferring the acquired knowledge in model plants to important agronomic crops. Cristina has built her research career in several international research centers in Spain (Alcala University, Madrid; Centre of Biotechnology and Genomics of Plants, UPM-INIA, Madrid), Germany (Max Plank Institute, Koln), and the UK (Rothamsted Research and University of Hertfordshire). As an independent researcher at the UH, she has directed her research interest toward collaborating with the industry through KTP projects in different topics of Plant Biotechnology.
Ana Cristina Carvajal Duperier
Ana carried out her BSc in Biology (Madrid Complutense University, Spain) and then pursued an MSc in Environmental Biology (Swansea University, Wales). After that, she worked for Tejerina Foundation as the Head of the Translation and Documentation Department. She was also the Head of Cultural Planning, where she was in charge of organising both National and International conferences and activities collaborating with different Spanish and European universities. She is also the former Head of Medical Documentation and Library at Sanofi – Synthélabo. Currently, she is a freelance scientist for technical translation collaborating with several companies such as IQVIA or ELZABURU, among others.
María Camacho Encina
María worked in biomarker development while a PhD student and, when she was a postdoc at A Coruña University (UDC, Spain), she had the opportunity to come to the UK to carry out a one-year stay at the School of Computing at Newcastle University. Since then, she has been improving her skills in bioinformatics, and her current research is focused on the development of a patient-specific prediction model for osteoarthritis progression and disease phenotyping. In 2023, María will be starting a new postdoc at the Bioscience Institute at Newcastle University focused on cardiovascular diseases (CVD) research, and she expects to combine her skills in lab work and bioinformatics to develop new biomarkers of CVD.
Cristina Delgado
Since 2001, Cristina carries out her scientific activity from the UK as an independent consultant for biotech companies and also as an expert witness in litigations between pharmaceutical companies. She obtained her BPharm in 1981 at the Universidad de Alcala, which was followed by an MPhil (Biochemistry) in 1983 and a PhD (Biochemistry) in 1986. During her post-doctoral years at the Royal Free Hospital School of Medicine, she developed new technologies for the PEGylation of proteins, liposomes, and viruses which innovation led to seven patent families. In 1995, she was one of the three founder scientists of polyMASC Pharmaceuticals plc, where she continued developing the technology until the sale of the company to Valentis Inc and transfer of the technology to California in 2001. She joined SRUK/CERU as an associate member in 2012 and has contributed to the international department. She is currently an active member of the working group at Oxford.
Sara Franco
Sara holds a degree in Biotechnology at the University of León (Spain) and two Master’s Degrees, one in Advanced Microbiology (University of Barcelona) and another in Quality Management and Safety in the Food Industry (Madrid’s Institute of Training, Spain). She obtained her PhD in plant pathology at the University of Turin (Italy) in 2019, where she specialised in the development of new molecular techniques for the diagnosis of plant pests. She did her first postdoc at Newcastle University working on a project in partnership with Syngenta UK. This project led to new insights into the roles of enzymes involved in the detoxification of xenobiotics in wheat, where she looked into the molecular and biochemical mechanisms of herbicide-resistant weeds. Right now, Sara works as a postdoc at the University of York, focusing on the use of bacteriophages as biocontrol agents of the major plant pathogen Ralstonia solanacearum in the plant rhizosphere.
Berta Gallego
Berta currently works as a bioinformatician in the Tree of Life Initiative at Royal Botanic Gardens in Kew (a world-leading botanic garden in London), where she joined in 2018 as a scientific applications developer. Her academic background includes a doctorate in Plant Biology and Biotechnology (she studied how plants use zinc to cope with fungal diseases), an MSc in Bioinformatics and Biostatistics, and she is currently pursuing a degree in Computer Engineering. She has been an active member of SRUK/CERU since she moved to the country in 2018 and has collaborated in an array of activities as part of the London Constituency (where she was the Director during the 2020/21 and 2021/22 terms) and the Design Committee (including co-founding the Inktober with a Scientific Twist initiative)
Esther García-Cela
Esther is a Senior Lecturer in Applied Mycology at the University of Hertfordshire (UH). Prior to that, she completed her PhD at the University of Lleida (Spain) and carried out her postdoc at the Cranfield University (UK). Esther is passionate about fungi and microscopes, and her research is focused on mitigating fungal contamination of ‘mycotoxins’ in food. She is currently supervising BSc, MSc, and PhD students in projects related to microbial biotechnological applications such as remediating environmental pollutants, fermenting food processes, antimicrobial assessment for microorganisms isolated from food, or assessing mycotoxin toxicity in cell lines, among others. She is also leading modules in the area of Mycology and Food Safety at Undergraduate and Postgraduate levels in the School of Life and Medical Sciences at UH. In addition, she is an international student MSc tutor, a Deputy Biosafety Officer, and a STEM ambassador enjoying sciences and engaging with young researchers. Esther joined SRUK/CERU last year when she hosted a summer student from Spain and, given the great experience, she is going to join the initiative this year.
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Claudia López
Claudia holds a BSc in Biology at the University of the Basque Country (Spain). While at the Basque Country, she also completed the degree for the intermediate level of piano at the Conservatory of Music. She holds an MSc degree between the University of Oviedo (Spain) and Cranfield University (UK), where she obtained a double mention in Biotechnology of the Environment and Health and also in Food Systems and Management. Currently, she is carrying out her PhD in Mycology between the University of Montpellier (France) and the Cranfield University, where she is focused on developing biocontrol agents to reduce mycotoxins in food.
Isabel Murillo
Isabel was born in Barcelona, where she studied Biology and later obtained her Master’s degree in Biotechnology. As an undergraduate, she was interested in projects combining microbiology and plants. Her PhD at the Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC) allowed her to explore that field. In 2001, Isabel was awarded a Postdoctoral Marie Skłodowska-Curie Individual Fellowship, which brought her to the UK. In Bristol, she fell in love with the city, which she sees as an open-minded and charismatic community. At the University of Bristol, Isabel has been researching for many years pathogen-host interactions, first with Neisseria meningitidis and then with Shigella flexeneri. She is currently a senior lecturer in Microbiology. Isabel loves education and helping students in their journey throughout their time at university. She is one of the digital champions at the University of Bristol and a member of the Equality, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) committee, amongst others in the Faculty of Life Sciences.
Francisco Romera
Francisco is part of the Cornwall Business School at the Falmouth University, being a course leader for BSc (Hons) Business and Marketing Online course. He has been working full-time since 2018 as a lecturer in the UK participating in different undergraduate and postgraduate modules, being module coordinator and supervisor of theses and dissertations. He holds a PhD in the area of business sustainability and innovation. Previously, he obtained a master’s degree in Strategy and another in Education. Prior to his activity as a lecturer, he has worked in other sectors for the private sector and non-profit organisations working in the areas of administration and marketing. Francisco is also an active researcher working in business and sustainability.
Diego Sainz
Diego has been a cell biologist for over 10 years. His first lab project was as an Erasmus student in Glasgow. There, Diego studied the role of the NF-kB signaling pathway in radio- and chemoresistance of cancer cells. Later, he carried out his MSc and PhD in Madrid, where he studied which genes and pathways are required to acquire stem cell-like properties. For his postdoc, Diego chose a model organism to study stem cells in vivo. Using the fruit fly, he studies how adult stem cells decide when to divide and produce new stem cells and when to differentiate and give rise to other cell types. Shortly after moving to the UK in 2017, Diego joined SRUK/CERU and has been a volunteer at the Department of Science Policy ever since.
Carmen Sánchez Cañizares
Carmen is an agronomist and the main focus of her research is a process called Biological Nitrogen Fixation, which only certain microbes can carry out in order to convert atmospheric nitrogen into a biochemically usable form for the plants, mimicking the effect of chemical fertilisers. She is currently working in the Department of Plant Sciences at the University of Oxford as a postdoctoral researcher in the rhizosphere laboratory, studying the regulatory networks that control the metabolism of these bacteria in order to understand the molecular mechanisms responsible for the establishment of an efficient symbiosis with legume plants, what will lead to sustainable crop yields. During her time in Oxford, she has been a lecturer in Biological Sciences at The Queen’s College and participated regularly in several outreach activities. She is actively involved in SRUK/CERU, currently as a member of the working group in Oxford and the Science Policy department. She is the former Director of Institutional Relations, former director of the Oxford constituency, and former vice-president and president of SRUK/CERU.
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