Antonio Santos

Full professor

About myself: As Full Professor at the Department of Genetics, Physiology and Microbiology of the Complutense University of Madrid, my research line is mainly focused in yeast physiology and genetics. My current projects concern molecular, physiological and ecological aspects of the complex microbial communities inhabiting different environments such as vineyard soils, wine fermentations and wastewater treatment plants.

Contact: ansantos@ucm.es
Profiles: ResearchGate | Google Scholar | ORCID

Lucía Arregui

Associate professor

About myself: Throughout my teaching and research career, I've developed an intense research activity in the field of wastewater treatment processes and the ecology of aquatic environments. My doctoral thesis project dealt with the cytology and ultrastructure of the psychrophilic protist Euplotes focardii. From that moment until now, my studies have addressed the different problems existing in several natural and artificial aquatic environments with a special focus on the role of microorganisms in wastewater purification owning an especial interest in biofilm related processes.

Contact: arregui@ucm.es
Profiles: | ORCID |

Domingo Marquina

Full professor. Associate Dean for Students

About myself:  I received my undergraduate education at the Complutense University of Madrid (UCM), where I also undertook my PhD in fungal metabolism. Then, I joined a postdoctoral European grant at Fundación Caloustre Gulbenkian (Portugal), under the mentorship of Dra. Isabel Spencer-Martins, working in yeast taxonomy and physiology. Upon returning to UCM, I began my independent career, focusing my research on the biology of killer toxins in yeasts. Now, I work in the search of yeasts for improved winemaking and the development of biological tools for controlling biofouling in WWTPs. During 2019-20, I was Head of the UCM Research Results Transfer Office (OTRI). 

Contact: dommarq@ucm.es
Profiles: Google Scholar | ORCID

Ignacio Belda

Associate professor

About myself: With a research background in wine yeasts physiology, I am currently interested in microbial interaction patterns and its role in complex ecosystem performance. Trying to understand the role of keystone species in complex anthropogenic microbial ecosystems, I always try to understand the lifestyle of microbes under an evolutionary perspective. 

Contact: ignaciobelda@ucm.es
Profiles: ResearchGate | Google Scholar | ORCID | Twitter

Javier Ruiz

Assistant Professor

About myself: I am a Biologist and Microbiologist at Complutense University of Madrid. Since my first steps of my scientific career I´ve had a strong interest in evolution, finding yeasts as perfect models to study it at the genomic and phenomic levels.

Contact: javiru02@ucm.es
Profiles: ResearchGate | Google Scholar | ORCID | Twitter

Javier Vicente

PhD candidate

About myself: Biologist and microbiologist formed at Complutense University of Madrid. Studying non-Saccharomyces yeasts physiology and evolution. Now focused in the implications of lactic acid production in Lachancea thermotolerans from a phylofuntional point of view.

Contact: javievic@ucm.es
Profiles: ResearchGate | Google Scholar | ORCID | Twitter

Belén Benítez-Domínguez

Graduate Student

About myself: I graduated in Biotechnology and worked with S. cerevisiae throughout my Bachelor and Thesis at the Centro Andaluz de Biología del Desarrollo (CABD). I am currently finishing my Msc in Bioinformatics and Computational Biology while working at the Microbial Interactions and Ecology Lab. Now I am working on my Master's Thesis, in which I will determine the role of the microorganism community composition and fermentation conditions in the metabolic profiling of wines.

Contact: belbendom@gmail.com
Profiles: Linkedin

Sergio Izquierdo Gea

PhD candidate

About myself: I began my research career in the field of molecular biology, with a focus on genetic engineering of yeasts for applications in biomedicine. After completing a project on transcriptional activation in bacteria using CRISPR systems, I am now pursuing my thesis project. The aim of this project is to investigate the ecological context of the non-conventional yeast Yarrowia lipolytica, with the ultimate goal of facilitating biotechnological applications of this microorganism. 

Contact: sergiz01@ucm.es

Samuel Jimena

Graduate Student

I am a Biologist and Biotechnologist formed at the Autonomous University of Madrid and at the Complutense University of Madrid. I did my Bachelor´s Thesis at the National Center of Biotechnology (CNB-CSIC, Spain) in Systems Biology. After finishing my Bachelor´s Degree I received the Erasmus+ Traineeship Grant to work in a project related to Cyanobacteria biotechnology in the University of Helsinki. I am now finishing my MSc in Industrial and Environmental Biotechnology doing my Master´s Thesis at the Microbial Interactions and Ecology Lab.

Contact: sjimena@ucm.es

Miguel de Celis

Postdoctoral Researcher (now at García-Palacios lab, ICA-CSIC)

About myself: Despite my microbiology formation, I am focused in microbial ecology, mainly of wastewater, giving a great importance to bioinformatic tools.

Contact: migueldc@ucm.es
Profiles: ResearchGate | Google Scholar | ORCID

Susana Serrano

Honorary professor

About myself: During my entire career I've performed an extensive research activity related with microbial species and communities in aquatic ecosystems. The structure and function of the microbial communities in wastewater treatment processes has been the main area of my research addressing different aspects such as the protist community’s composition and contribution to the depuration process, their bioindicator value, biofouling mechanisms in Membrane Biological Reactors (MBR), biofilm formation capacities of bacterial populations, and quorum sensing/quorum quenching mechanisms.

Contact: suserra@ucm.es
Profiles: | ORCID |