Our researchers have strong collaboration networks around the world and work closely with some of the most outstanding researchers in their fields, who are also part of our team of external researchers:
Angélica Quintero-Florez, PhD.
Collaborates with: Priscila Maldonado, PhD(c).
Current positions:
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Research Teaching Staff, Department of Preventive Medicine and Public Health of the Universidad de Sevilla, Spain.
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Research Collaborator, Instituto Universitario Vive Sano, Brazil.
Research interests:
Technology and food safety / Bioactive Compounds / polyphenols / extra virgin olive oil / in vitro digestion and bioaccessibility / sensory analysis / development of new products / functional foods / Public Health / Nutritional Epidemiology
Relevant links:
Universidad de Sevilla / ORCID / Scholar / Scopus / ResearchGate
Benjamin Bates, PhD.
Collaborates with: Mario Grijalva, PhD.
Current positions:
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Barbara Geralds Schoonover Professor of Health Communication in the School of Communication Studies, Ohio University, USA.
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Affiliated faculty member in the Communication and Development Studies Program.
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Affiliated researcher with the Infectious and Tropical Disease Institute, the Appalachian Rural Health Institute, and the Translational Biomedical Sciences doctoral program
Research interests:
Communication campaigns and messages on health / Rhetoric of Health / Communication, international health and development.
Relevant links:
Universidad de Ohio / ORCID / Scholar / ResearchGate
César Montalvo, PhD.
Collaborates with: Priscila Maldonado, PhD(c).
Current positions:
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Postdoctoral Research Associate, Social and Decision Analytics, Biocomplexity Institute and Initiative, University of Virginia, USA.
Research interests:
Statistics interface, mathematical models and public policies.
Relevant links:
University of Virginia / Scholar
Daniel Neafsey, PhD.
Collaborates with: Fabian Sáenz, PhD.
Current positions:
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Associate Professor of Immunology and Infectious Diseases, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Boston, MA, USA.
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Associate Director, Genomic Center for Infectious Disease, Broad Institute, Cambridge, MA, USA.
Research interest:
Evolutionary genomics and genomic epidemiology of Plasmodium malaria parasites and Anopheles mosquitoes.
Relevant links:
Neafsey Lab – Evolutionary Genomics of Malaria Parasites and Vectors / Scholar
Luciana Armijos, MD, MSc.
Collaborates with: Ruth Jimbo, PhD.
Current positions:
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Consultant Corporación Andina de Fomento – CAF.
Research interest:
Emerging diseases / Health technologie assessment.
Relevant links:
Katherine Simbaña, MD, MSc.
Collaborates with: Ruth Jimbo, PhD.
Current positions:
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Adjunct investigator at the Center for Research in Health in Latin America (CISeAL).
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PhD student at Universidad de las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Spain.
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Associate researcher level 3, accredited and categorized by the Secretaría de Educación Superior, Ciencia, Tecnología e Innovación (SENESCYT) No. REGINV-21-05106.
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Scientific member of the Latin American Network for Cancer Research (LAN-CANCER), Lima-Perú.
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Member of the Consejo de Asesores de la Asociación Científica de Estudiantes de Medicina - ASOCEM UCE.
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Former National Director of Health Research of the Ministry of Public Health, Ecuador.
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Member of the Scientific Comittee of the Red Iberoamericana Ministerial de Aprendizaje e Investigación en Salud (RIMAIS).
Research Interest:
Epidemiology / Public Health / Chronic degenerative diseases / Biomedicine / Oncology / Health technology assessment / One Health.
Relevant links:
ORCID / Scholar / ResearchGate
Manuel Fierro, PhD.
Collaborates with: Fabian Sáenz, PhD.
Current positions:
- Researcher at Clemson University, United States.
Research interest:
My research centers around how the deadliest causative agent of human malaria, Plasmodium falciparum, interphases with its host. I focus primarily on understanding the factors involved in protein export beyond the vacuolar compartment the parasite resides in, called the parasitophorous vacuole (PV).
Relevant links:
ORCID / LinkedIn / ResearchGate / NIH
María José Andrade Cuvi, PhD.
Collaborates with: Priscila Maldonado, PhD(c).
Current positions:
- Professor of Food Engineering. College of Sciences and Engineering, Polytechnic. Universidad San Francisco de Quito.
- Researcher of the Vive Sano Network (Brazil). Experimental Nutrition Research Group.
Research interest:
Technology and food safety. Postharvest technology. Antioxidants. In vitro digestion and bioaccessibility. Sensory analysis. Development of new products. Functional Foods.
Relevant links:
Paola Carrillo-Bustamante, PhD.
Collaborates with: Anita Villacís, PhD.
Current positions:
- Staff member in the Vector Biology Unit of at Max Planck Institute for Infection Biology, Berlin, Germany.
Research interest:
My research focuses on the role of mosquito physiology, metabolism, and environment on the transmission success of malaria. I use bottom-up modelling approaches that integrate knowledge gained in field and laboratory settings into mathematical models of transmission and pathogen evolution. By quantifying how individual mosquito traits shape pathogen transmission in humans, I aim to identify novel mechanisms or misconceptions in the way transmission occurs. This is a unique approach that can identify novel mechanisms of transmission, showing immense potential for policy changes.
Relevant links:
Paola Carrillo-Bustamante / ResearchGate / ORCID / Scholar
Raquel Marchan Rivadeneira, PhD.
Collaborates with: Fabián Sáenz, PhD.
Current positions:
- Assistant Investigator at the Edison Biotechnology Institute, Ohio University
- Research Assistant Professor at the Department of Biological Sciences, Ohio University
- Adjunct Faculty at the Translational Biomedical Sciences Program, Ohio University
- Adjunct Investigator to the group of Dr. Fabián Sáenz at the Center for Research on Health in Latin America, PUCE.
Research interest:
My current research in natural products drug discovery focuses on using genomic tools to characterize genetically biological diversity as a source for biotechnological innovation. In addition, my training as an evolutionary biologist focuses on assessing how the environment influences the genetic and morphological configuration of individuals and populations.
Relevant links:
Marco Neira, PhD.
Collaborates with: Anita Villacís, PhD.
Current positions:
- Research associate within Dr. Anita Villacís' group.
Research interest:
Biology, Physiology, and Control of Medically Important Mosquitoes (Diptera: Culicidae).
Relevant links:
Jorge Reyes, PhD.
Collaborates with: Ruth Jimbo, PhD.
Current positions:
- Physician, Coordinator of Epidemiological Surveillance and Infectious Diseases at IESS Quito Sur Hospital.
- Undergraduate Teacher of Biochemistry and Pharmacy at the Central University of Ecuador.
- Postgraduate Instructor in Infectious Diseases at the Pontifical Catholic University of Ecuador.
Research interest:
Bacterial resistance, mobile genetic elements, appropriate antimicrobial use programs.
Relevant links:
María del Mar Pastor Bravo, PhD.
Collaborates with: Venus Medina, PhD
Current positions:
- Faculty and Research Staff at the Department of Nursing, University of Murcia.
- Vice Director of the School of Nursing in Cartagena.
- Quality Coordinator at the School of Nursing in Cartagena.
- Mobility Coordinator at the School of Nursing in Cartagena.
- Coordinator of the Master's Program in Health, Women, and Care at the Faculty of Nursing, University of Murcia.
Research interest:
Gender-based violence, harmful traditional practices affecting women, healthcare access and the health of the transgender population, Social Determinants of Health, and Intersectionality.
Relevant links:
Scholar / ORCID / ResearchGate / IMIB / The Conversation / LinkedIn / Bloomberg
Esperanza Marbella Palencia Gutiérrez, PhD.
Collaborates with: Venus Medina, PhD
Current positions:
- Full Professor at the Pontifical Catholic University of Ecuador, Esmeraldas Campus.
- Accredited Researcher by SENECYT: Researcher Aggregated 2 - REG-INV-18-02539.
- Active member of the Network of Researchers and Scholars in Computer Science, Computing, and Society.
- Participant in the international project "100 Researchers from Latin America," organized by the International Community of Scholars in Informatics, Computing, and Knowledge Society (ICONS).
- Member of the Gender-Based Violence Prevention Research Group (E-previo) at PUCE, Quito, Ecuador.
Research interest:
Practice and Education in Nursing; Gender Violence Prevention.
Relevant links:
Scholar / ORCID / ResearchGate
Ismael Jimenez Ruiz, PhD.
Collaborates with: Venus Medina, PhD
Current positions:
- Permanent contracted professor of the Nursing Department.
- Vice Dean of Quality and Studies at the Faculty of Nursing, University of Murcia.
- Principal Investigator of the Advanced Nursing Care Research Group.
Research interest:
Aims to investigate and delve into, from various perspectives, the health determinants that disproportionately affect women's health processes. Focus on studying the multiple forms of violence against women.
Study of gender-based violence: causes, consequences, and prevention.
Harmful health practices for women based on culture, tradition, religion, and beliefs: Female Genital Mutilation.
Influence of gender-based beauty stereotypes on women's health.
Victimization of transgender individuals in childhood and adolescence.
Relevant links:
Scholar / ORCID / ResearchGate
Eugenia Mato Matute, PhD.
Collaborates with: Verónica Paez, PhD
Current positions:
- Researcher at CIBER-BBN, Endocrinology Group, IIB-Sant Pau. Hospital de la Santa Creu i Sant Pau
Research interest:
Biomedical, Biomaterials, and Nanomedicine.
Relevant links:
Claudia Nieto Sánchez, PhD.
Collaborates with: Esteban Baus, Mtr.
Current positions:
- Researcher in the Unit of Socio-Ecological Health Research (SEHR)/Department of Public Health and member of the Eco-Health Group at the Institute of Tropical Medicine in Antwerp.
Research interest:
Socio-ecological Health
Understanding the relationships between socio-spatial arrangements and vector-borne disease transmission, the impact of housing improvement and spatial modifications on sustainable control of infectious diseases, as well as emerging conceptualizations of community participation in global health research.
Relevant links:
María Isabel Echavarría, MSc.
Collaborates with: Esteban Baus, Mtr.
Current positions:
- Coordinator of M&E (Monitoring and Evaluation) and Knowledge Translation at CIDEIM.
Research interest:
Identifying barriers and proposing solutions to problems related to the implementation of effective interventions and programs for the management and control of infectious diseases of poverty in Latin America and the Caribbean.
Relevant links:
Mike Penkunas, PhD.
Collaborates with: Esteban Baus, Mtr.
Current positions:
- Implementation scientist in global health, Researcher, trainer, and author, World Health Organization Consultant.
Research interest:
Passionate about using applied research to improve health outcomes.
Relevant links:
