Josue Lopez PhD

Head of Design

San Diego, California, United States12 yrs 10 mos experience
Highly Stable

Key Highlights

  • Expert in axonal growth and regeneration research.
  • Developed high-throughput screening protocols for small molecule inhibitors.
  • Strong background in mentoring and training in research settings.
Stackforce AI infers this person is a Neuroscience and Molecular Biology expert with a focus on therapeutic development.

Contact

Skills

Core Skills

NeuroscienceProject ManagementMolecular BiologyData PresentationBiochemistry

Other Skills

Primary Neuronal CultureConfocal MicroscopyData miningConvolutional Neural NetworksTimelinesAnalytical SkillsCritical ThinkingProject DesignLeadershipBacterial Cell CultureRNA BiologyOligonucleotidessiRNAqRT-PCRGene Silencing

About

My research focuses on axonal growth, regeneration, and mechanosensation, utilizing in vitro, ex vivo, and in vivo models to understand the function of calcium-binding protein 1 (CaBP1) in the peripheral nervous system. I have experience establishing new protocols and developing SOPs. Over my time in the lab, I have trained and mentored undergraduates, interns, and research assistants. I seek to continue growing my skills in the biotechnology sector to make an impact in diagnostic techniques, disease prevention, and therapeutics. During my academic training for my M.S. at the University of Iowa, I utilized molecular biology to clone plasmids for protein tagging, mutagenesis, and for protein purification by HPLC systems to study protein interactions. I expanded my tissue culture skills by working with mammalian cell lines, utilizing biochemical assays to further investigate protein interactions. However, the highlight of my M.S. training was establishing a high-throughput screen for small molecule inhibitors to disrupt known protein interactions. I have been interested in small molecule inhibitors and protein interactions ever since my undergraduate summer internship. I pursued a Ph.D. degree in Molecular Physiology and Biophysics to expand my knowledge of animal models and biological systems. During my studies, I focused on sensory systems to explore protein function and interactions, particularly involving calcium channels, calcium binding proteins, and calcium signaling in various systems such as auditory, visual, CNS, and PNS. Throughout my Ph.D., I established protocols for primary neuronal cultures and behavioral assays to investigate protein interactions and function. Beyond the bench, I have hosted a weekly music radio show at the University of Iowa radio station KRUI for 6 years, which has helped me improve my communication, branding, marketing, and networking skills. This experience led me to help the community by providing a safe space for new musicians/DJs, participating in fundraisers, organizing events, and supporting female, POC, Queer + Trans music collectives.

Experience

12 yrs 10 mos
Total Experience
5 yrs 4 mos
Average Tenure
2 yrs 1 mo
Current Experience

Scintillon institute

Postdoctoral Research Associate

Apr 2024Present · 2 yrs 1 mo · San Diego, CA · On-site

  • Currently working on image-based chromatin and epigenetic age (ImAge) in different cell types that include human iPSC, mammalian cell lines, and mouse primary cells, to answer questions related to cell differentiation, lineage tracing and metabolism.

The university of texas at austin

Postdoctoral Research Fellow

Aug 2021Sep 2023 · 2 yrs 1 mo · Austin, Texas, United States · On-site

  • The role of Caldendrin in nerve regeneration in vivo
  • Developed SOP for mouse surgery to study nerve regeneration and behavioral assays for post injury evaluation.
  • Tissue harvest for immunohistochemistry and confocal microscopy for image quantification to test nerve regeneration in transgenic mice.
  • Stablished SOP for fluorescent immunohistochemistry combined with RNAScope in DRG sections.
Primary Neuronal CultureData PresentationNeuroscienceProject Management

University of iowa

2 roles

Researcher PhD Candidate

Promoted

Aug 2015Jul 2021 · 5 yrs 11 mos · Iowa City, Iowa, United States · On-site

  • Thesis Project: Characterization of Calcium Binding Protein 1 (Caldendrin) expression and function in Dorsal Root Ganglion Neurons
  • Caldendrin represses neurite regeneration via a sex-dependent mechanism in sensory neurons
  • Handled transgenic mouse lines and maintenance of mouse colonies for in vitro and behavioral assays.
  • Developed SOP for harvesting tissues for primary neuronal cultures, protein, RNA, DNA and immunohistochemistry.
  • Optimized protocols for primary DRG neuronal and explant cultures to study nerite growth and in vitro axotomy to investigate axonal regeneration utilizing pharmacological drugs to study relevant pathways.
  • Stablished SOPs for microscopy image collection and live imaging of DRG neuronal cultures and explants to study axonal regeneration and calcium imaging to study the function of Caldendrin.
  • NEURITENET: A Convolutional Neural Network for assessing morphological parameters of neurite growth
  • Efficiently communicate scientific ideas and questions to multidisciplinary collaborators including scientist, engineers and computer scientist to solve complex biological problems. Utilizing convolutional neural networks to stablish new tools for sorting images based in morphological features in images collected from DRG neurons.
  • The role of caldendrin in mechanosensory neurons
  • Data mined single-cell RNAseq data and summarized data in figures for RNA profiles in DRG populations.
  • Transfection of cells lines for biochemical assays to determine protein interactions by western blot.
  • Performed mouse behavioral assays (Von Frey, Hargreaves and cold plantar assay) to study somatosensation.
Confocal MicroscopyPrimary Neuronal CultureNeuroscienceMolecular Biology

Graduate Student Researcher

Aug 2011May 2014 · 2 yrs 9 mos · Iowa City, Iowa, United States

  • Identification and validation of small molecule inhibitors for the Tiam1/SDC1 interaction
  • Utilized molecular biology to clone plasmids for protein tagging, mutagenesis and for protein purification by High-performance liquid chromatography systems to study protein interactions.
  • Tested purified proteins with fluorescent peptides by fluorescence anisotropy binding assay to generate dissociation constants and Isothermal titration calorimetry was used to determine the change in enthalpy, association constant and stoichiometry.
  • Stablished ALPHA based high-throughput screen for small molecule inhibitors library consisting of 2320 compounds to disrupts protein interactions utilizing a plate reader.
  • Worked with the High Throughput Screening Facility to utilize liquid handling, automatic dispenser and other automated equipment to set up ALPHA screen.
  • Small molecules inhibitors were tested using immunoprecipitation assays from mammalian cell lines by Western blot.
Data PresentationTimelinesMolecular BiologyBiochemistry

Education

University of Iowa

Doctor of Philosophy - PhD — Molecular Physiology and Biophysics

Aug 2015Jul 2021

University of Iowa

Master of Science - MS — Molecular and Cellular Biology

Aug 2011May 2014

Arizona State University

Bachelor of Science - BS — Molecular Biology and Biotechnology

Aug 2006May 2010

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