José Viña born in Valencia in 1953. After completing his studies in Medicine at the UV, he started Biomedical research in the “Medical Research Council” (Medical Research Council) of the United Kingdom,   in the University of Oxford, under the direction of the Professor Hans Krebs, obtaining  the doctoral qualification in 1976. After teaching as Professor of Physiology in the   Department of Biochemistry of the Universidad de Extremadura, he came back to Valencia  for occupying his post as Full University Professor of the Department of  Physiology, where he has set up  a  group  of  research  that  over   years   has become an important group of scientists who work in several institutes of medical research.

The work of Dr Viña focuses on the role of the oxigen radicals as the source of damage and as a sign of pathophysiological processess. His main merits are the following:

AIDS

• Identification of the fact that AIDS patients, who suffer oxidative stress, does not express the cytathionase, a key enzyme involved in the synthesis of cysteine from methionine. (JAMA, 2001).
• Identification of the AIDS patients who take  anti-retroviral drugs  and present  harm   in the  mitochondrial DNA   that  may  be avoided  through  high   doses   of antioxidant vitamins (Journal of Clinical Investigation, 1998; Hepatology, 1999).

Aging

• Determining the role of mitochondria in the generation of oxidative damage associated to aging (proposed by Harman and Miquel, but it was demonstrated by Dr Viña) (Hepatology, 1996, FASEB Journal, 1996).
• Setting of the mechanism by which the females live more than males (Free Radical Biology and Medicine, 2003). This is due to estrogens induce longevity genes (Aging Cell, 2005, FASEB Journal, 2005).
• Identification of the new genes linked to longevity. Transgenic mice generated by Dr Manuel Serrano (súper p53/súper p16 viven más) (Nature, 2007). Transgenic mice triples (telomerase, p16, p53 generated by Dr Maria Blasco live more, being this the first demonstration in which the over-expression of telomerase prolongs life, specially in mammals (Cell, 2008).

Mechanism by which physical exhaustion causes damage

Dr Viña studied physical exercise and, in particular, exhaustion, showing that alopurinol prevents the muscle damage associated to ageing (JAMA, 2003).

Determination of the role of free radicals in the progression of hepatitis to cirrhosis (Hepatology, 2004)

The  protective  mechanisms  against  the  free  radicals  in  the liver have been under condideration in the research of Dr Viña since the period of  his  collaboration  with  the  Professor  Sir  Hans  Krebs  (Biochemical Journal, 1987).

Change in the paradigm of the resuscitation treatement of prematures with ambient air oxygen

In the laboratory of the Dr Viña there have been carried out experiments that have caused a change in a standard therapeutic procedure. The studies carried out by Dr Viña (in collaboration with the  Dr  Vento  in  the  laboratory  of  Dr  Viña)  have  caused  a change in the standard procedure of resuscitation of prematures: it was recommended the resuscitation with oxygen, and after the studies in the laboratory of Dr Viña, it has been taken on the  practice  of  the  resuscitation with  air.  (Pediatría, 2001, Revista of Pediatría, 2003, Estadounidense Revista of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, 2005).