Education and Professional Experience
- Assistant Professor, 2008-present, Biology Department, The University of Miami
- Research Professional, 2005-2007, The University of Chicago, Chicago, IL, USA
- Postdoctoral Scholar, 2003-2005, The University of Chicago, Chicago, IL, USA
- Postdoctoral Fellow, 2001-2003, The University of Chicago, Chicago, IL, USA
- Visiting Research Fellow, 2000-2001, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ, USA
- Embryology Fellow, 2000, Marine Biological Laboratory, Woods Hole, MA, USA
- Ph.D. with Honors, 2000, Columbia University, New York, NY, USA
- M. Phil., 1996, Columbia University, New York, NY, USA
- M.S., 1995, Columbia University, New York, NY, USA
- B.S. with Distinction, 1994, National Autonomous University of Mexico, Mexico City, Mexico
Grants and Awards
- Best Postdoctoral Presentation, Society for Developmental Biology 45th Midwest Regional Meeting,
2005
- Gabino Barreda Medal to best undergraduate student of the class of 1994, National Autonomous University
of Mexico, 1994
- Postdoctoral Fellowship, The Helen Hay Whitney Foundation, 2000-2003
- Embryology Fellowship, Marine Biological Laboratory, 2000
- Development Traveling Fellowship, The Company of Biologists, Ltd., 1998
- Predoctoral Research Fellowship, National Autonomous University of Mexico, 1994-1998
Areas of Focus
Development and Neuroscience
Research Interests
My group is interested in how two fundamental developmental processes, segmentation and patterning, are regulated
and coordinated during vertebrate embryogenesis to generate morphological complexity. While segmentation subdivides
the embryonic body plan into an array of morphologically similar units or segments, patterning processes assign
different positional identities to such units based on their anterior-posterior position along the main body axis of
the embryo. What are the mechanisms that coordinate segmentation and patterning within and between different tissues
such as the nervous system and mesoderm (muscle and bone forming tissue)? What are the conserved and divergent
aspects of this machinery that drive variation in segment number and/or identity between vertebrates? We are
addressing these questions using the chicken and zebrafish embryos as model organisms. This allows us to combine
classic embryological techniques with powerful molecular and genetic approaches. By using two evolutionarily distant
organisms, we expect not only to elucidate the core molecular processes underlying segmentation and patterning of
the nervous system and mesoderm, but also the source of diversity in vertebrate segment number and form.
Furthermore, we expect this research to have important medical implications as it directly addresses developmental
processes underlying common birth defects such as open neural tube or congenital vertebral malsegmentation.
Teaching Interests
I believe that learning is a twofold process that consists of (1) the acquisition of new information and (2) its
synthesis, through critical thinking, into new models and ideas. Effective learning, therefore, results from the
correct balance between these two processes. To achieve this goal, I make use of a variety of didactic approaches
such as lecturing, small and large group discussion and hands-on exercises that encourage student to become active
participants in the learning process.
As a vertebrate developmental biologist, I enjoy sharing with students the amazing process that is the successful
formation of an organism from a fertilized egg. Since embryonic development relies on the proper deployment of
numerous cellular and molecular processes in time and space (e.g., cell migration, cell-cell communication, spatial
and temporal control of transcription, etc.), I like to use developmental biology as a platform to teach cell and
molecular biology. Furthermore, the field of developmental biology has a long history of cleverly designed
experiments, which I like to make frequent use of, not only to illustrate biological principles, but also to drive
problem-solving inquiry and show students how science "works".
Selected Publications
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