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AIDS Immunopathology

Research Lines

Content with Investigacion Hepatitis .

Hepatitis

  1. Diseño de métodos diagnósticos para el estudio de los virus de las hepatitis (VH) A, B, C, D, E: Diseñamos sistemas de PCR para su detección y caracterización.
  2. Evaluación de métodos diagnósticos de los VH. Colaboramos con empresas para estudios de sensibilidad y especificidad de equipos diagnósticos.
  3.  Estudios de Seroprevalencia de los virus de las hepatitis.
  4.  Epidemiología genómica de genomas completos de VHA, VHB, VHC, VHD y VHE en colaboración con el ECDC. Estudios de trazabilidad del VHE.
  5. Caracterización molecular de virus de las hepatitis mediante secuenciación masiva:               a) VHB: mutantes de escape HBsAg (prevalencia y efectos en la detección del HBsAg). Estudio de mutaciones en epítopos de estimulación inmune y mutaciones asociadas a evolución clínica desfavorable.
    1. b) VHC: resistencias a los antivirales de acción directa. Análisis molecular de subtipos poco frecuentes.
      c) Estudios filogenéticos del VHD.
       d) Análisis genómico del VHE.
       e) Investigación etiológica de hepatitis no filiadas mediante estudios de metagenómica.

Research projects

Content with Investigacion Hepatitis .

1.    Proyecto CIBEREPS 2022. Microbiological and genomic investigation of hepatitis in children by metagenomic approach in case and control subjects (IP: Ana Avellón).
2023-2024. En colaboración con el Hospital San Joan de Deu de Barcelona.

2.    MPY 501-19: Tracking hepatitis E virus infection by means of epidemiological research and whole genome sequencing. Project TrazHE. (IP: Ana Avellón). 2020-2024.

3.    Proyecto CIBEREPS 2021 Metagenomic sequencing to identify viral aetiologies in undiagnosed paediatric cases of meningitis and encephalitis (IP: D. Tarragó). 2021-2022.

4.    MPY 383/19 (PEJ2018-004446-A). Ayudas para la promoción de empleo joven e implantación de la garantía juvenil en I+D+I. análisis de la complejidad de secuencias de los virus de la hepatitis A, B, C; D y E (VHA, VHB, VHC, VHD y VHE) mediante técnicas de secuenciación masiva. (IP: Ana Avellón). 2020-2021.

5.    MPY 1285/16 Movilidad "Salvador de Madariaga" programa estatal de promoción de talento y su empleabilidad. (IP: Ana Avellón). 2016.​

Publications

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An expanded agar base secreening method for azole resistant Aspergillus fumigatus

Lucio J, Gonzalez-Jimenez I, Garcia-Rubio R, Cuetara MS and Mellado E. Mycoses 2022, 65 (2): 178-185.

PUBMED DOI

Broth microdilution protocol for determining antimicrobial susceptibility of Legionella pneumophila to clinically relevant antimicrobials

Sewell M, Farley C, Portal EAR, Lindsay D, Ricci ML, Jarraud S, Scaturro M, Descours G, Krøvel AV, Barton R, Boostom I, Ure R, Kese D, Gaia V, Golob M, Paukner S, Ginevra C, Afshar B, Nadarajah S, Wybo I, Michel C, Echahdi F, González-Rubio JM, González-Camacho F, Mentasti M, Flountzi AS, Petzold M, Moran-Gilad J, Uldum S, Winchell J, Wooton M, Bernard K, Jones LC, Chalker VJ, Spiller OB. J Microbiol Methods. 2025 Jan;228:107071.

PUBMED DOI

Trends in invasive bacterial diseases during the first 2 years of the COVID-19 pandemic: analyses of prospective surveillance data from 30 countries and territories in the IRIS Consortium

Shaw D, Abad R, Amin-Chowdhury Z, Bautista A, Bennett D, Broughton K, Cao B, Casanova C, Choi EH, Chu YW, Claus H, Coelho J, Corcoran M, Cottrell S, Cunney R, Cuypers L, Dalby T, Davies H, de Gouveia L, Deghmane AE, Demczuk W, Desmet S, Domenech M, Drew R, du Plessis M, Duarte C, Erlendsdóttir H, Fry NK, Fuursted K, Hale T, Henares D, Henriques-Normark B, Hilty M, Hoffmann S, Humphreys H, Ip M, Jacobsson S, Johnson C, Johnston J, Jolley KA, Kawabata A, Kozakova J, Kristinsson KG, Krizova P, Kuch A, Ladhani S, Lâm TT, León ME, Lindholm L, Litt D, Maiden MCJ, Martin I, Martiny D, Mattheus W, McCarthy ND, Meehan M, Meiring S, Mölling P, Morfeldt E, Morgan J, Mulhall R, Muñoz-Almagro C, Murdoch D, Murphy J, Musilek M, Mzabi A, Novakova L, Oftadeh S, Perez-Argüello A, Pérez-Vázquez M, Perrin M, Perry M, Prevost B, Roberts M, Rokney A, Ron M, Sanabria OM, Scott KJ, Sheppard C, Siira L, Sintchenko V, Skoczyńska A, Sloan M, Slotved HC, Smith AJ, Steens A, Taha MK, Toropainen M, Tzanakaki G, Vainio A, van der Linden MPG, van Sorge NM, Varon E, Vohrnova S, von Gottberg A, Yuste J, Zanella R, Zhou F, Brueggemann AB. Lancet Digit Health. 2023 Sep;5(9):e582-e593.

PUBMED DOI

Paenibacillus spp. isolated from human and environmental samples in Spain: detection of 11 new species.

Sáez-Nieto JA, Medina-Pascual MJ, Carrasco G, Garrido N, Fernandez-Torres MA, Villalón P, Valdezate S. Paenibacillus spp. isolated from human and environmental samples in Spain: detection of 11 new species. New Microbes New Infect. 2017. 24;19:19-27.

PUBMED DOI

ANISERP: a new serpin from the parasite Anisakis simplex.

Valdivieso E, Perteguer MJ, Hurtado C, Campioli P, Rodríguez E, Saborido A, Martínez-Sernández V, Gómez-Puertas P, Ubeira FM, Gárate T. ANISERP: a new serpin from the parasite Anisakis simplex.Parasit Vectors. 2015 Jul 28;8:399.

PUBMED DOI

Absence of tmRNA has a protective effect against fluoroquinolones in Streptococcus pneumoniae

Brito L, Wilton J, Ferrándiz MJ, Gómez-Sanz A, de la Campa AG, Amblar M. Front. Microbiol. 7:2164 (2017).

PUBMED DOI

ICOS deficiency hampers the homeostasis, development and activity of NK cell

Montes-Casado M, Ojeda G, Aragoneses-Fenoll L, López D, de Andrés B, Gaspar ML, Dianzani U, Rojo JM, Portolés P. PLoS One 2019 Jul 8;14(7):e0219449.

PUBMED DOI

Genomic analysis of community-associated methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (CA-MRSA) causing infections in children-a Spanish multicenter study.

10. Genomic analysis of community-associated methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (CA-MRSA) causing infections in children-a Spanish multicenter study. Autores: García-Cobos S, Seco Alberca N, Bravo-Queipo-de-Llano B, Casquero-García V, Ramírez de Arellano E, Calvo C, Ruíz-Carrascoso G, Falces-Romero I, Larrosa Escartín N, Viñado-Perez B, Martínez-López MÁ, Melendo Pérez S, Ruíz de Gopegui E, Pérez Vázquez S, Carrasco-Colom J, Aracil García B, Pérez-Vázquez M, Méndez-Echevarría A, Oteo Iglesias Revista: J. Front Microbiol. 2025 May 9;16:1534840.

PUBMED DOI

Definition of the viral targets of protective HIV-1-specific T cell responses

Mothe B, Llano A, Ibarrondo J, Daniels M, Miranda C, Zamarreno J, Bach V, Zuniga R, Perez-Alvarez S, Berger CT, Puertas MC, Martinez-Picado J, Rolland M, Farfan M, Szinger JJ, Hildebrand WH, Yang OO, Sanchez-Merino V, Brumme CJ, Brumme ZL, Heckerman D, Allen TM, Mullins JI, Gomez G, Goulder PJ, Walker BD, Gatell JM, Clotet B, Korber BT, Sanchez J, Brander C; J Transl Med. 2011 Dec 7;9:208

PUBMED DOI

Are point mutations in HMG-CoA reductases (Hmg1 and Hmg2) a step towards azole resistance in Aspergillus fumigatus?

Gonzalez-Jimenez I., Lucio J., Roldan A, Alcazar-Fuoli L. and Mellado E. Molecules, 2021, 26(19):5975.

PUBMED DOI

Meningococcal carriage in men who have sex with men presenting at a sexual health unit in Spain

Pérez-González A, Carballo R, Araújo-Ameijeiras A, Abad R, Navarro C, Ocampo A, Poveda E, Potel C. Eur J Clin Microbiol Infect Dis. 2023 Mar;42(3):287-296

PUBMED DOI

Shortcomings of the commercial MALDI-TOF MS database and use of MLSA as an arbiter in the identification of Nocardia species

Carrasco G, de Dios Caballero J, Garrido N, Valdezate S, Cantón R, Sáez-Nieto JA. Shortcomings of the commercial MALDI-TOF MS database and use of MLSA as an arbiter in the identification of Nocardia species. Front Microbiol. 2016 21;7:542.

PUBMED DOI

Bridging chromosomal architecture and pathophysiology of Streptococcus pneumoniae

Martín-Galiano AJ, Ferrándiz MJ, de la Campa AG. Genome Biol Evol. 2017; 9:350-361.

PUBMED DOI

Neutrophil derived CSF1 induces macrophage polarization and promotes transplantation tolerance

Braza MS, Conde P, García M, Cortegano I, Brahmachary M, Pothula V, Fay F, Boros P, Werner SA, Ginhoux F, Mulder WJM, Ochando J. Am J Transplant 2018 May;18(5):1247-1255.

PUBMED DOI

Widespread Detection of Yersiniabactin Gene Cluster and Its Encoding Integrative Conjugative Elements (ICEKp) among Nonoutbreak OXA-48-Producing Klebsiella pneumoniae Clinical Isolates from Spain and the Netherlands.

11. Widespread Detection of Yersiniabactin Gene Cluster and Its Encoding Integrative Conjugative Elements (ICEKp) among Nonoutbreak OXA-48-Producing Klebsiella pneumoniae Clinical Isolates from Spain and the Netherlands. Autores: Jati AP, Sola-Campoy PJ, Bosch T, Schouls LM, Hendrickx APA, Bautista V, Lara N, Raangs E, Aracil B, Rossen JWA, Friedrich AW, Navarro Riaza AM, Cañada-García JE, Ramírez de Arellano E, Oteo-Iglesias J, Pérez-Vázquez M, García-Cobos S; Dutch and Spanish Collaborative Working Groups on Surveillance on Carbapenemase-Producing Enterobacterales; Sánchez AMF, Pulido MA, Armas M. Revista: Microbiol Spectr. 2023 Aug 17;11(4):e0471622.

PUBMED DOI

Broadly cross-neutralizing antibodies in HIV-1 patients with undetectable viremia

Medina-Ramirez M, Sanchez-Merino V, Sanchez-Palomino S, Merino-Mansilla A, Ferreira CB, Perez I, Gonzalez N, Alvarez A, Alcocer-Gonzalez JM, Garcia F, Gatell JM, Alcami J, Yuste E; J Virol. 2011 Jun;85(12):5804-13.

PUBMED DOI

Multi-resistance to non-azole fungicides in Aspergillus fumigatus TR34/L98H azole resistant isolates

Gonzalez-Jimenez I, Garcia-Rubio R, Monzon S, Lucio J, Cuesta I, and Mellado E. Antimicrob Agents Chemother. 17;65(9):e0064221

PUBMED DOI

Effectiveness of a Meningococcal Group B Vaccine (4CMenB) in Children

Castilla J, García Cenoz M, Abad R, Sánchez-Cambronero L, Lorusso N, Izquierdo C, Cañellas Llabrés S, Roig J, Malvar A, González Carril F, Boone ALD, Pérez Martín J, Rodríguez Recio MJ, Galmés A, Caballero A, García Rojas A, Juanas F, Nieto M, Viloria Raymundo LJ, Martínez Ochoa E, Rivas AI, Castrillejo D, Moreno Pérez D, Martínez A, Borràs E, Sánchez Gómez A, Pastor E, Nartallo V, Arteagoitia JM, Álvarez-Fernández B, García Pina R, Fernández Arribas S, Vanrell J, García Hernández S, Mendoza RM, Méndez M, López-Tercero MM, Fernández-Rodríguez Á, Blanco Á, Carrillo de Albornoz FJ, Ruiz Olivares J, Ruiz-Montero R, Limia A, Navarro-Alonso JA, Vázquez JA, Barricarte A. N Engl J Med. 2023 Feb 2;388(5):427-438

PUBMED DOI

Increase in isolation of Burkholderia contaminans from Spanish patients with cystic fibrosis.

Medina-Pascual MJ, Valdezate S, Carrasco G, Villalón P, Garrido N, Saéz-Nieto JA. (2015) Increase in isolation of Burkholderia contaminans from Spanish patients with cystic fibrosis. Clin Microbiol Infect. ;21(2):150-6

PUBMED DOI

Upregulation of the PatAB transporter confers fluoroquinolone resistance to Streptococcus pseudopneumoniae

Alvarado M, Martín-Galiano AJ, Ferrándiz MJ, Zaballos A, de la Campa AG. Front Microbiol. 8:2074 (2017).

PUBMED DOI

Content with Investigacion Hepatitis .

List of staff

Additional Information

The AIDS Immunopathology Unit has been coordinated since 2000 by Dr. José Alcamí, bringing together during its history more than 20 independent researchers who collaboratively study different aspects of HIV infection. During this years, more than 30 visiting researchers and more than 50 national and international students have passed through the unit. From the beginning of the year 2025, Javier García Pérez and Francisco Díez Fuertes assumed the coordination of the AIDS Immunopathology Unit, with the aim of projecting its scientific competitiveness following multidisciplinary approaches and through the maintenance of the current close collaborations, as well as the promotion of participation in new national and international research networks.
Historically, the current members of the unit have focused on different lines of basic research that include the study of antibodies and the development of vaccines against HIV-1, the study of viral entry and tropism of the virus or the study of the host through the genomic characterization of populations with an extreme phenotype. Currently, the activity of our unit in the field of HIV-1 is focused on three main lines:
1.    Mecanismos moleculares asociados a la protección de la infección por VIH-1 en pacientes con distrofia muscular de cinturas dominante D2 (LGMDD2).
2.    Generación de anticuerpos neutralizantes de uso terapéutico basados en la respuesta neutralizante de amplio espectro frente a virus fundadores.
3.    Cribado y caracterización de nuevos fármacos anti-latencia frente al VIH-1.
A partir del año 2020, nuestra unidad se vuelca con la investigación sobre COVID-19, participando y liderando diferentes proyectos de investigación aplicada y clínica. Fruto de esta fuerte implicación en el campo, en la actualidad se mantienen diferentes estudios sobre la caracterización de la respuesta inmune frente a SARS-CoV-2, integrando diferentes técnicas de virología molecular, estrategias de inteligencia epidemiológica y tecnologías de célula única.
We also participate in different research consortiums and networks, such as the Spanish AIDS Research Network or the Center for Biomedical Research in Infectious Diseases Network (CIBER-INFEC), in which we participate as researchers in different lines and work packages within the research programs “Global Health, emerging and re-emerging infections” as well as “HIV/AIDS and sexually transmitted infections”.


Supervised doctoral theses

1.    GENOMIC AND FUNCTIONAL ANALYSIS OF HIV-1 PROTECTION PARAMETERS IN PATIENTS WITH SLOW PROGRESSION OF INFECTION. 
Student: Erick de la Torre Tarazona.
Supervisors: José Alcamí and Francisco Díez Fuertes.
Academic entity: Universidad Autónoma de Madrid.
Defense date: July 14th, 2020.
2.    ANALYSIS OF MIARN EXPRESSION PROFILES AND FUNCTIONAL CHARACTERIZATION IN HIV-POSITIVE INDIVIDUALS WITH DIFFERENT PROGRESSION TO AIDS.
Student: Rubén Ayala Suárez.
Supervisors: José Alcamí and Francisco Díez Fuertes.
Academic entity: Universidad de Alcalá.
Defense date: June 12nd, 2023.

The AIDS Immunopathology Unit has been coordinated since 2000 by Dr. José Alcamí, bringing together during its history more than 20 independent researchers who collaboratively study different aspects of HIV infection. During this years, more than 30 visiting researchers and more than 50 national and international students have passed through the unit. From the beginning of the year 2025, Javier García Pérez and Francisco Díez Fuertes assumed the coordination of the AIDS Immunopathology Unit, with the aim of projecting its scientific competitiveness following multidisciplinary approaches and through the maintenance of the current close collaborations, as well as the promotion of participation in new national and international research networks.
Historically, the current members of the unit have focused on different lines of basic research that include the study of antibodies and the development of vaccines against HIV-1, the study of viral entry and tropism of the virus or the study of the host through the genomic characterization of populations with an extreme phenotype. Currently, the activity of our unit in the field of HIV-1 is focused on three main lines:
1.    Mecanismos moleculares asociados a la protección de la infección por VIH-1 en pacientes con distrofia muscular de cinturas dominante D2 (LGMDD2).
2.    Generación de anticuerpos neutralizantes de uso terapéutico basados en la respuesta neutralizante de amplio espectro frente a virus fundadores.
3.    Cribado y caracterización de nuevos fármacos anti-latencia frente al VIH-1.
A partir del año 2020, nuestra unidad se vuelca con la investigación sobre COVID-19, participando y liderando diferentes proyectos de investigación aplicada y clínica. Fruto de esta fuerte implicación en el campo, en la actualidad se mantienen diferentes estudios sobre la caracterización de la respuesta inmune frente a SARS-CoV-2, integrando diferentes técnicas de virología molecular, estrategias de inteligencia epidemiológica y tecnologías de célula única.
We also participate in different research consortiums and networks, such as the Spanish AIDS Research Network or the Center for Biomedical Research in Infectious Diseases Network (CIBER-INFEC), in which we participate as researchers in different lines and work packages within the research programs “Global Health, emerging and re-emerging infections” as well as “HIV/AIDS and sexually transmitted infections”.


Supervised doctoral theses

1.    GENOMIC AND FUNCTIONAL ANALYSIS OF HIV-1 PROTECTION PARAMETERS IN PATIENTS WITH SLOW PROGRESSION OF INFECTION. 
Student: Erick de la Torre Tarazona.
Supervisors: José Alcamí and Francisco Díez Fuertes.
Academic entity: Universidad Autónoma de Madrid.
Defense date: July 14th, 2020.
2.    ANALYSIS OF MIARN EXPRESSION PROFILES AND FUNCTIONAL CHARACTERIZATION IN HIV-POSITIVE INDIVIDUALS WITH DIFFERENT PROGRESSION TO AIDS.
Student: Rubén Ayala Suárez.
Supervisors: José Alcamí and Francisco Díez Fuertes.
Academic entity: Universidad de Alcalá.
Defense date: June 12nd, 2023.

Content with Investigacion Hepatitis .