Pilar Domingo-Calap, PhD

I am a biologist interested in the biomedical implications of viruses. I obtained my biology degree and master in biodiversity at the Universitat de València (UV), both with honors. During my PhD (supervised by Dr. Sanjuán and defended in 2012 at UV with honors), I investigated the fitness effects of mutations in phages, as well as their influence on phage evolution. This work was published in PLoS Genetics, Molecular Biology and Evolution, and Journal of Virology, among other Q1 journals. My PhD training was extended with two internships at the Institut de Biologie Moléculaire et Cellulaire (CNRS, France), where I studied the mutation rate of HIV-1 co-funded by a European Research Council (ERC) Starting Grant (PI: Dr. Sanjuán).

Whereas my PhD was mainly focused on fundamental research topics, my interests shifted towards biomedicine during my postdoc. In 2013, I joined a Laboratoire d’Excelence from the Institut National de la Santé et de la Recherche Médicale (INSERM) at the Centre de Recherche d’Immunologie et Hématologie (Université de Strasbourg). Under the supervision of Dr. Bahram, I started a new research line aimed at characterizing BK polyomavirus genetic diversity and immune escape in kidney transplant recipients, using next-generation sequencing and epitope analysis. During this period, I also established several collaborations with medical doctors and clinical virologists to study polyomavirus genetics and immunity.

In 2016, I come back to Spain with a Juan de la Cierva Incorporación contract under the supervision of Dr. Sanjuán at the Instituto de Biología Integrativa de Sistemas (UV-CSIC). There, I extended my work on viral pathogenesis and immunity. Using a model rhabdovirus, I showed how virus-virus interactions determine immune evasion both in vitro and in vivo. Currently, I am hired as a senior postdoc under an ERC Consolidator Grant.

Recently, I have initiated my own research line on phage therapy, a promising treatment strategy against multi-drug-resistant bacteria. This allows me to combine my expertise in phage biology and biomedicine. Phages are ubiquitous in the environment and immensely diverse, thus making phage discovery a powerful source of new therapies against pathogenic bacteria.

ORCID                 pilar.domingo@uv.es            domingocalap@gmail.com            @pilardomingoc