Our research aims to study the molecular mechanisms controlling cellular senescence to reveal new targets for cancer and ageing treatments, and to address the outstanding fundamental question about the origin and function of the senescent cell state. Our group has been vital in discovering the SASP and its dependency on innate immune signalling, and in unravelling transcriptional programs upon senescence-associated nuclear stress and chromatin organisation. We use high-throughput approaches (e.g. proteomics, transcriptomics, metabolomics) combined with focused phenotypic screens (e.g.

The group’s research is focused on the theoretical investigation of excited state reactivity and dynamics in complex molecular systems. We use theory and simulation to characterize fundamental aspects of the photophysics and photochemistry of these systems with emphasis on charge and energy transfer and transport processes in novel materials with applications to nanoelectronics, organic photovoltaics, and lighting.

The aging of the population poses a growing burden in society. This is associated with an increase in disability and diseases that have a high impact on health care, on patients and their families. Also, aging is associated with the emergence of different neurodegenerative diseases among which include Alzheimer's disease (AD), Parkinson's disease (PD) and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). Therefore, the development of advanced biological markers, new drugs and appropriate technology is the key to establishing a treatment for these diseases, which is currently an important social challenge.

The focus of our research has been the PI3K/AKT/FOXO signaling which is considered as the most frequently activated pathway in cancer. FOXO is the major transcriptional effector of this signaling pathway and inactivated in many tumours. FOXO3a is the second most replicated gene associated with extreme human longevity.

Cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) represent the main cause of death and their high prevalence implies an elevated healthcare cost, in addition to increasing physical dependence and reducing the quality of aging of the population. Many CVDs are associated with alterations in tissue and cellular oxygen balance, although the underlying molecular mechanisms remain elusive. Our group is focused on understanding the importance of oxygen homeostasis and hypoxic signaling in the CV system.

We are devoted to the functional and biochemical characterization of DNA replication and repair enzymes. For that, we work with diverse biological systems, from very simple ones like bacterial viruses or genetic mobile elements, and also prokaryotic and eukaryotic cells. Our current efforts are focused in B-family DNA polymerases, in particular in the piPolB subfamily ("primer-independent PolBs), recently reported and characterized in our laboratory.

Our laboratory is interested in the structural and functional characterization of macromolecular assemblies, with special emphasis on the large protein complex that regulates transport between the nucleus and the cytoplasm in eukaryotic cells: the nuclear pore complex (NPC). Apart from its main role as mediator of nucleocytoplasmic transport, the NPC is also a key platform for the regulation of many essential nuclear processes, such as chromatin organization, gene expression, or DNA repair.