Genomics and Biomedicine

The Genomics and Biomedicine research group  (GXB) at the University of Vigo, has expanded recently in order to reach the critical size necessary to become truly multidisciplinary and to confront with confidence new, ambitious challenges in biomedical and genomic research.

The XB5 group is now coordinated by Diana Valverde, and includes three additional senior PIs (Carmen Rodríguez, Carlos Canchaya, and David Posada) and three junior PIs (Miguel Arenas, Iria Fernández-Silva, and Marta Tojo), together with postdocs, graduate students, and technical staff.

Our group is part of the Center for Biomedical Research (CINBIO) at the University of Vigo, a Singular Research Center of the Galician Government.

Our research is currently funded by the University of Vigo, the Consellería de Cultura, Educación e Ordenación Universitaria of the Galician Government, the Ministerio de Industria, Economía y Competitividad of the Spanish Government, and the European Research Council.

The GXB group focuses on three main research areas:

1. Genomics applied to pathogens and diseases
2. Nanomaterials in biomedicine
3. Marine genomics

In the area of Genomics applied to pathogens and diseases,GXB researchers collaborate in different research basic and applied around the genetic basis of human diseases (Diana Valverde),  cancer genomics (Diana Valverde, David Posada, Miguel Arenas, Marta Tojo, Alberto Vicens), and viral genomics (Miguel Arenas, Marta Tojo), using tools from personalized medicine, epidemiology and evolution.

In the area of Nanomaterials in biomedicine, M Carmen Rodríguez-Argüelles lab worked on the obtention of new nanoparticles with potential therapeutical applications, in collaboration with the Posada lab.

In the area of Marine genomics,  GXB researchers collaborate in several projects aimed to understand speciation genomics in marine organisms (Iria Fernández-Silva), and structural genomics and phylogenomics in mollusks (Carlos Canchaya, David Posada).

Principal investigators

Senior

• Diana Valverde (coordinator), Associate Professor (mail)
• Carlos Canchaya, Assistant Professor (mail)
• David Posada, Full Professor (mail)
• Carmen Rodríguez-Argüelles, Associate Professor  (mail)

Junior

• Miguel Arenas, Ramon y Cajal fellow (mail)
• Iria Fernández-Silva, Marie Curie FellowSea (mail)

Postdoctoral researchers

• Joao Alves, cancer computational genomics (mail)
• Andrés Pérez-Figueroa, cancer selection
• Sara Rocha, phylogenomics (mail)
• Nuria Estevez, single-cell genomics, coronavirus
• Loretta de Chiara, cancer, coronavirus
• Guillermo Pousada (HAC), mutational study of pulmonar arterial hipertension (mail)
• Maria Álvarez, signalization routes in the Alström syndrome (mail)
• Sheila Castro, animal models in the Bardet-Biedl syndrome (mail)

PhD students

• Tamara Prieto, cancer computational genomics (mail) (advisor: David Posada)
• Harry Detering, cancer computational genomics (advisor: David Posada)
• Jose Luis Soto, cancer population genetics (jsoto@uvigo.es) (advisor: David Posada)
• Laura Tomás, cancer computational genomics (ltomas@uvigo.es) (advisor: David Posada)
• Debora Chantada, cancer pathology and genetics () (advisors: & Joaquín Glez-Carreró[HAC], David Posada)
• Catarina Branco, human evolution (mail) (advisor: Miguel Arenas)
• Roberto Del Amparo, protein evolution (mail) (advisor: Miguel Arenas)
• Manuel Mendoza,  comparative genomics of hypervariable organisms (mail) (advisor: Carlos Canchaya)
• Noelia González-Ballesteros (advisor: Carmen Rodríguez-Argüelles)
• Brais Bea,molecular basis of the Alström syndrome(mail) (supervisor: Diana Valverde)
• Mauro Lago, molecular basis of pulmonar arterial hipertension (mail) (supervisor: Diana Valverde)
• Fabian Crespo, cancer clonal growth/fitness estimation (mail) (advisor: David Posada)
• Monica Valecha, tumor mutational signatures (mail) (advisor: David Posada)
• Pilar Gallego, molecular epidemiology coronavirus (advisor: David Posada)
• Nair Varela,  circulating tumor cells (advisor: David Posada)

Staff

• Merchi Rodríguez, administrative assistant (mail)
• Pilar Alvariño, lab technician
• Jose María Lamas, lab technician

Our labs can be found in three close locations at the As Lagoas-Marcosende campus of the University of Vigo:

• School of Biology
  • Carlos Canchaya
  • Diana Valverde
• School of Chemistry
  • Carmen Rodríguez-Argüelles
• CACTI Tower (entrance through CINBIO)
  • Miguel Arenas
  • Iria Fernández-Silva
  • David Posada
  • Marta Tojo

Phone: (+34) 986 130050
Email: xb5lab@gmail.com