Rodrigo Fernandez Valdivia

Editorial Board Member - JCS

Assistant Professor
Department of Pathology
Wayne State University School of Medicine
United States

BIOGRAPHY:

Dr. Rodrigo Fernandez- Valdivia graduated from Universidad Nacional de San Agustín (Arequipa, Peru) and he earned his Doctoral degree from Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, Spain. He was a graduate fellow from the Inter- University Council of the Belgium’s Francophone Community, the FISS program in Spain, and completed his postdoctoral fellowship in the Institute of Molecular Medicine at the University of Texas-Houston.

Dr. Fernandez- Valdivia’s contributions include the deciphering of the progesterone-regulated mammary gland transcriptome, the identification of ID4 and RANKL as direct progesterone receptor targets in the breast, the demonstration of the proliferative and carcinogenic properties of RANKL, the discovering Rumi—the sole enzyme capable of adding glucose molecules to proteins in mammals—and its regulatory role in Notch signaling pathway, and the generation of several genetically-engineered animal models to study breast development and tumorigenesis. Furthermore, he has developed the innovative transgenic and genetic engineering technologies with direct clinical impact. His work has been widely recognized, and he has been selected recipient of merit Awards from several scientific societies, scientific journals, biotechnological companies, the American Cancer Society, the Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology (FASEB), and the NIH.

Dr. Fernandez-Valdivia is currently an Assistant Professor in the Departments of Pathology and Oncology at Wayne State University School of Medicine, and a Scientific Member of the Tumor & Microenvironment Program at the Barbara Ann Karmanos Cancer Institute. He is currently using his expertise in genetic engineering and mouse genetics to identify pharmacologically targetable pathways to treat breast cancer. His research program focuses on the role of O-linked glucose on the regulation of Notch signaling in breast development and carcinogenesis, with particular emphasis in mammary gland stem cells.