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ABOUT ME

I am a Junior Group Leader at the Institute of Natural Resources and Agribiology (CSIC), in the group of Plant-Microbe Interactions.

I am interested in the transduction pathways underlying multitrophic interactions between belowground and aboveground plant-associated organisms. My research focuses on the molecular and chemical mechanisms governing the effect of root associated symbionts on plant interactions with other community members at different trophic levels. In my research, I use Solanum lycopersicum and Solanum dulcamara as crop and wild model plants respectively, to study the effects of arbuscular mycorrhizal and Trichoderma fungi on the interaction of plants with aboveground and belowground herbivorous at several trophic levels, including herbivorous insects, natural enemies of herbivorous and pollinators. I am also interested on how root parasitic nematodes and shoot herbivorous reciprocally interact via induced plant responses, and how do plants manage to defend themselves against diverse enemies. I take a multidisciplinary approach by integrating transcriptomics and metabolomics, as well as manipulative experiments to study these interactions.

My ultimate goal is to understand how root associated organisms determine plant-insect dynamics and distribution in natural and agricultural ecosystems, and to contribute to a sustainable agricultural production.

CAREER

EDUCATION

2015 - 2019

Project Group Leader

German Centre for Integrative Biodiversity Research (iDiv) - Germany

2012 - 2015

Marie Curie Postdoctoral Researcher

Utrecht University - The Netherlands

2010 - 2012

Postdoctoral Researcher

Estacion Experimental del Zaidin (EEZ)-CSIC - Spain

2006 - 2010

Ph.D. Student

Centro de Edafogia y Biologia Aplicada del Segura (CEBAS)-CSIC - Spain

2011

Diploma in Soil Sciences and Plant Physiology

Granada University- UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization)

2010

Ph.D. in Biology

Centro de Edafogia y Biologia Aplicada del Segura (CEBAS)-CSIC - Alicante University

2007

M.Sc. in Biology

Centro de Edafogia y Biologia Aplicada del Segura (CEBAS)-CSIC - Alicante University

2004

B.Sc. in Environmental Sciences

Miguel Hernandez University

2008 - 2009

Research Fellow

Institute of Tropical and Subtropical Ecology, South China Agricultural University - China

2007

Research Fellow

Ohio State University - USA

2019- Now

Junior Group Leader

Institue of Natural Resources and Agrobiology (IRNASA)- CSIC - Spain

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