Cristina López-Rodríguez is Professor at Universitat Pompeu Fabra (UPF), where she directs her research group at the Immunology Unit (https://www.upf.edu/web/genimmune) and also coordinates the Master in Biomedical Research. Cristina obtained her PhD in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology at Universidad Autónoma de Madrid in 1996 with the distinction of the Extraordinary Thesis award. She did her postdoctoral training at Harvard Medical School, Boston, where she got the position of Instructor in the department of Pathology (2001), and received the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society Research Special Fellow recognition. In 2004 she obtained a Ramon y Cajal and a Group Leader position at the Center for Genomic Regulation in Barcelona, and in 2006 she transferred her group to the department of Experimental and Health Sciences (DCEXS) of UPF at the Barcelona Biomedical Research Park (PRBB).

Research interests

Our group is interested in the connection between inflammation and disease. Briefly, how pro- and anti-inflammatory immune responses are balanced to benefit the organism, and how disrupting this balance contributes to conditions such as loss of pathogen control, the progression of cancer, and transplant rejection. We approach this question by focusing on the identification of mechanisms regulating gene expression and chromatin configuration that now emerge as novel points of control of the inflammatory response.

Keywords

Immune responses, innate immunity, inflammation, mouse models of disease, gene expression, chromatin regulation, NFAT5