The research group has an extensive experience in the study of molecular mechanisms that regulate the adaptation to changing environmental conditions of lichenic microalgae and vascular plants and their biotechnological application. This type of studies has been developed in different research lines:
a) Transcriptomic and metabolomic analysis of the response of lichenic microalgae to extreme conditions such as salinity, drainage and radiation.
b) Biotechnology of lichenic microalgae: transformation and obtaining natural products.
c) Characterisation of polyamine metabolism in the stress response of Arabidopsis thaliana. By means of transgenic manipulation, the polyamines (PAs) biosynthesis process has been manipulated, resulting in the obtaining of different plant lines with altered levels of putrescine, spermidine and/or spermine, which have been characterised at different levels, including metabolomic and transcriptomic studies. Most of the lines generated, plants with high levels of one or more PAs, show resistance to different environmental and biotic stresses.
d) Regulation of transcriptional programmes by DELLA and prefoldin proteins. These proteins act as transcriptional regulators whose accumulation depends on environmental conditions and which modulate the execution of multiple developmental programmes and stress responses by modifying the activity of transcription factors with which they physically interact.
The determination of mycotoxins present in food and knowledge of their intake and toxicity are the basis for assessing the risk associated with the consumption of contaminated food and providing data for the protection of the consumer’s health.
The COAL research group focuses its research on the analysis of mycotoxins in food, study of in vitro and in vivo toxicity, factors that influence intestinal bio-accessibility and decontamination procedures in order to assess risk. The COAL group also develops bioactive ingredients/products of natural origin to reduce the growth of mycotoxin-producing fungi in food for possible application both in the field and during the preservation of different agri-food products.
The COAL research group participates in several competitive research projects, the common points being the development of methodologies based on natural ingredients for the reduction of the growth of fungi in food and feed:
- "Integrated and innovative key actions for mycotoxin management in the food and feed chain (Mycokey) (GA 678781)". European project funded by the H2020 program based on the development of growth reduction methodologies of mycotoxin-producing fungi in maize, barley and wheat stored in silos.
- "Smart and innovative packaging, postharvest rot management and shipping of organic citrus fruit (BiOrangePack)". Project funded by the European program PRIMA-H2020 with the aim of developing an innovative packaging based on cellulose recovered from the waste of the citrus juice production industry (mainly from the albedo) containing a bioactive ingredient fermented by BALs, capable of reducing the growth of the contaminating fungal microflora of fruits throughout transport and storage.
- "Enhancing Research and Innovation Capacity of Tubitak MAM Food Institute on Managment of Mycotoxigenic Fungi and Mycotoxins (MycoTWIN)". Project funded by the H2020 where our research group will organize different activities related to the dissemination of knowledge of the most effective techniques for the control of mycotoxins present in food, including workshops, round-table conferences, info days, training school, etc.
- "Bio-preservation of tin loaf with fermented whey against mycotoxins and toxigenic fungi. Safety of use in the presence of carotenoids. (SAFEBIOBREAD) (PID2019-108070RB-100)'. Project funded by the Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness is based on the isolation of new strains of lactic acid bacteria (BALs) from the sweet whey of goat's milk liquid, its characterization of the potential antifungal, identification and quantification of the molecules that give rise to the activity object of the study, and its potential application as a bioactive ingredient in the preservation of tin bread. Another aspect of the project will be to study the beneficial effects of bioactive compounds produced by lactic acid bacteria throughout fermentation, both through in vitro tests with cell cultures and animal models.
The COAL group collaborates with different national and international companies on the development of ingredients / products to reduce the growth of mycotoxin-producing fungi both in the field and in storage.
The results of the research activity of the group have attracted a wide interest for the Spanish Agency for Food Safety and Nutrition (AESAN) and the European Food Safety Agency (EFSA) and has resulted in the publication in international journals of high impact index as Food Chemistry, Food Chemical & Toxicology, Journal of Agricultural & Food Chemistry, Food Control, Food Additives & Contaminants, Journal of Chromatography, Toxicon, Toxicology Letters, etc. It also collaborates with prestigious national and European groups in the scientific and technical field.
This Research Group focuses on the analysis of the strategic decision-making process and human resources strategy, relating it to organisational knowledge management, innovative employee behaviour, entrepreneurial behaviour and corporate sustainability. In particular, it studies how HR policies serve as key factors in facilitating the implementation of knowledge management processes (acquisition, creation, storage, sharing, application and distribution) in organisations, generating innovation and entrepreneurship-oriented behaviours of individuals.
The analysis of how HR policies and their joint or systemic consideration become a catalyst for the individual's creativity and interest in developing innovations (new products, new processes or even new business projects) at the organisational level, which can contribute to the achievement of sustainable competitive advantages. In addition, the implementation of sustainability-oriented HR practices will, at the same time, enable the development of individual and collective behaviours that meet the current challenges that organisations face in terms of social responsibility and business sustainability. Likewise, the fact that knowledge has recently become a strategic resource for organisations has highlighted the need to manage it actively and with a clear strategic orientation. Therefore, the study of all knowledge management processes and how they are affected by the organisation's HR strategy is a subject of study for this Research Group. In turn, these knowledge management processes are essential to create the necessary climate for employees and groups within organisations to develop innovative and entrepreneurial behaviours.
The research projects developed within the framework of the team have an academic and applied orientation, and focus on collaboration with companies and managers to improve their management, with special emphasis on the problems of SMEs.
This group has a recognised prestige for the numerous quality works it has carried out in inland aquatic ecosystems and for the new researchers that have been trained. The following are some of the basic and applied research topics carried out by this group.
Basic research in:
- Specific richness and dynamics of populations and communities of aquatic organisms: bacteria, phytoplankton, periphyton, zooplankton, acoto- and zoo-benthos and fish, and their controlling factors.
- Dynamics and functioning of aquatic ecosystems: biogeochemical cycles, productivity, microbial processes.
- Study of aquatic food webs, their structure, key species and vulnerability to global change.
- Community coupling: mechanisms and rules.
- Biogeochemistry of carbon in aquatic ecosystems, GHGs and climate change.
- Molecular ecology.
- Paleolimnology and global change.
- Polar zone limnology.
- Pancrustacean genomics.
- Ecotoxicology.
- Remote-sensing.
Applied research in:
- Aquatic pollution and eutrophication processes.
- Physico-chemical and microbiological water quality.
- Characterisation of aquatic ecosystems.
- Monitoring and assessment of the environmental and conservation status of aquactic ecosystems.
- Management and restoration of aquatic ecosystems.
- Assessment of the response of aquatic ecosystems to global changes, including chemical pollution.
- Ecosystem management applied to climate change mitigation.
- Water purification and naturalisation in artificial wetlands.
- Bioremediation.
- Alien invasive species in inland waters.
- Remote-sensing as a tool for the study of environmental quality and ecological status of inland waters.
Structural and property studies of solid state molecular materials.
Research on unconventional interactions in organic and metal-organic molecular crystals (agostic interactions, weak hydrogen bonds, halogen bonds, pnictogen, chalcogen and tetrel interactions, interactions in aromatic heterocyclics, pi interactions).
Studies on the influence of weak interactions on molecular conformation and supramolecular self-assembly in the solid state.
Design and description of new structural patterns of molecular recognition in crystalline species (supramolecular synthons, design and prediction of solid state behaviour).
Description and design of organometallic structures as potential catalysts in the activation of C-H and C-C bonds.
Description and design of metal-organic structures with potential magnetic properties based on structural patterns involving weak interactions.
The REDOLi group seeks to improve society through research in the fields of recognition, sustainability and innovation. The REDOLi group develops its research in the fields of recognition, sustainability and innovation. Its lines of work include:
- Development of molecules and nanomaterials to modulate the activity of proteins, in particular the enzymes polyphenol oxidase and lipase/pancreatin.
- Development of molecules and nanomaterials for sensors.
- Development of strategies for more sustainable processes and products, in particular in agriculture and the chemical, materials and food industries.
- Dissemination of current aspects of bioeconomy, circular economy, climate change and life cycle analysis.
- Support to companies in innovation processes, identification of knowledge, transformation of knowledge into products, development of protection strategies and projects.
The group’s research activity focuses on the design, preparation and characterisation of any type of organic molecules, both natural and synthetic substances, and their use for various biotechnological applications. These include, fundamentally, obtaining antibodies and developing immunoassays for the determination of analytes of interest in agri-food and environmental samples, and the development and scaling of the synthesis of pheromones for its application in ecological integrated control of agricultural pests.
