Iris del Val García
Centre: Dpto. Bioquímica y Biología Molecular y Celular/IUI BIFI
Institution: Universiy of Zaragoza, Zaragoza (Spain)
Position: PhD Student
E-mail: idelval@unizar.es
Phone: 976762989
Profile: Ver
Personal statement
Graduated in Biotechnology from the University of Zaragoza, having completed the Final Degree Project in the laboratory of Dr. Javier García Nafría at the BiFi Institute (University of Zaragoza). Later, I completed the master’s degree at the Complutense University of Madrid, where I was able to train in neuroscience thanks to the development of the Master’s Final Project at the Cajal Institute and the support of a JAE Intro Scholarship. I am currently working on the doctoral thesis about oligomerization and functional mechanisms of orphan receptors, again under the supervision of Dr. Javier García Nafría at the BiFi Institute with a DGA predoctoral scholarship since December 2022.
Researcher profile identity
Currently, I am a DGA predoctoral student (R1 level researcher). The line of research I focus on is the study of orphan and lipid-binding G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs). GPCRs are the largest family of receptors in the body, mediating intercellular communication, and are the target of 35% of drugs in the clinic. Orphan GPCRs are those GPCRs for which no endogenous ligand has been identified. Our goal is to characterise their signalling pathways, develop assays to test proposed controversial agonists, and understand their functional and structural mechanisms. To do this, we use an integrated approach of structural biology techniques (electron cryomicroscopy), biophysics, functional cell assays, and biochemical assays
Why my research is important
G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs) are very successful therapeutic targets (>34% of approved drugs modulate GPCRs). This is a family of more than 800 members, of which around 70 are classified as orphan GPCRs, i.e. no endogenous ligand has yet been found. Therefore, understanding the molecular basis of GPCR signaling is crucial for drug design, and related to this, the study of orphan receptors presents enormous potential for the discovery of new neurotransmitters and therapeutic targets. Despite their (patho-)physiological relevance, their understanding is limited by the lack of structural information, activation mode, oligomerization and the lack of identification of endogenous ligands. Therefore, in this group we focus on understanding the molecular mechanisms of GPCR regulation by lipids, small molecules, approved drugs and other proteins in order to improve or generate new therapies.
Know more about me and my research
– https://bifi.es/es/biofisica/
– https://sites.google.com/view/signal-transduction-lab/homepage?authuser=
