About me
My scientific career began in 1997 when, while studying my degree in Veterinary Medicine, I joined the group of Prof. Jesus Díez as an undergraduate student at the Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology at the University of Cordoba (Spain). A year later I started my first research project: the in vitro characterization of the inactivation of glutamine synthetase by metal-catalyzed oxidative systems in the marine cyanobacterium Prochlorococcus. This work was my Master Thesis defended in July 2001.

In September 2001 I started my PhD under the supervision of Dr. Jesus Diez and Dr. Jose Manuel Garcia–Fernandez, focused on the physiological role of metal-catalyzed oxidation in Prochlorococcus, with the aim of further understand metabolic adaptations of this cyanobacterium to cope with the adverse conditions of the oligotrophic oceanic environment. During this period, I used a broad range of techniques from basic biochemistry to molecular biology: chromatographic techniques (HPLC and 2D chromatography), SDS-PAGE and Western blotting; enzymatic assays; spectrophotometric and fluorimetric techniques; isolation of DNA and RNA, cloning DNA; transformation of bacterial cells; PCR and real time quantitative RT-PCR.

Part of the work was carried out as short collaborations with the groups of Dr. Pedro Candau (Instituto de Bioquímica Vegetal y Fotosíntesis, Sevilla, Spain) and Dr. Robert P. Donaldson (George Washington University, Washington D.C., USA). The stay at the Instituto de Bioquímica Vegetal y Fotosíntesis in Sevilla (Spain) had as objective the construction of a DNA library from the genome of Prochlorococcus strain PCC 9511. During my stay at the George Washington University I carried out experiments conducting to the detection and quantification of carbonylated proteins in samples from cultures subjected to several stress conditions. During this stay I had my first contact with proteomics techniques to identify target amino acid(s) modified by metal-catalyzed oxidation.

After the defence of my thesis in April 2007, I kept working at the Prochlorococcus team, as a Postdoctoral Researcher, on a project focused on carbon metabolism in Prochlorococcus. I carried out experiments quantifying the uptake of radiolabelled glucose in populations sorted by flow cytometry and the expression of several genes implicated in the glucose assimilation. The obtained results showed that Prochlorococcus, considered so far as a photoautrotophic organism, instead is a mixotrophic one.

After almost 10 years working on Prochlorococcus, I decided that it was time to go back to Veterinary Sciences. In April 2009 I started a 2 years postdoctoral stay at PFG group supported by a Marie Curie Intra-European Fellowship for Career Development. The aim of this training program was to apply state-of-art proteomics approaches in the identification and quantification of urinary biomarkers in dairy cows and cerebrospinal fluid biomarkers of bacterial meningitis in children. During the project, the lab acquired new instrumentation allowing the training to be even better than first planned. During this period I was trained in the use of 7 different instruments (Thermo LTQ ion trap, Axima MALDI TOF, Waters Synapt G1, Waters Synapt G2, Bruker Amazon ion trap, Bruker UltraFlex Extreme MALDI TOF-TOF, Thermo LTQ Orbitrap Velos) as well as other related techniques (in solution/in gel digestion, strataclean beads concentration, equalization protocols, etc).

Since July 2012 I’m working as a Postdoctoral Research Associate as part of an ambitious LoLa project focused on developing new tools and strategies for rodent pest control based on the use of scent signals to manipulate rodent behaviour. My role is this project is the biochemical characterization of volatile components and the proteins that bind them, mainly MUPs (major urinary proteins) present in mice and rats urine.


Publications

  • Mcdonagh, B., Dominguez-Martín, M.A., Gómez-Baena, G., López-Lozano, A., Diez, J., Barcena, J.A., García-Fernández, J.M. (2012) Nitrogen Starvation Induces Extensive Changes In The Redox Proteome Of Prochlorococcus Sp. Strain Ss120. Environmental Microbiology Reports. 4(2), 257-267.
  • Gómez-Baena, G., Rangel-Zuñiga, O.A., López-Lozano, A., García-Fernández, J.M. Y Diez, J. (2009) Stress Responses In Prochlorococcus Mit9313 Vs Ss120 Involve Differential Expression Genes Encoding Proteases Clpp, Ftsh And Lon. Research In Microbiology 160 (8), 567-575.
  • López-Lozano, A., Gómez-Baena, G., Muñoz-Marín, M.C., Rangel-Zuñiga, O.A., Diez, J., Y García-Fernández, J.M. Expression Of Genes Involved In Nitrogen Assimilation And The C/N Balance Sensing In Prochlorococcus Sp. Strain Ss120. Gene Expression Gene Expression 14(5), 279-289 (2009)
  • Rangel-Zuñiga, O.A., Gómez-Baena, G., López-Lozano, A., García-Fernández, J.M. Y Diez, J. Physiological Role And Regulation Of Glutamate Dehydrogenase In Prochlorococcus Sp. Strain Mit9313. Environmental Microbiology Reports 1(1), 56-64 (2009).
  • Gómez-Baena, G., López-Lozano, A., Gil-Martinez, J., Lucena, J.M., Diez, J., Candau, P., García-Fernández, J.M. Glucose Uptake And Its Effect On Gene Expression In Prochlorococcus. Plos One 3(10): E3416. Doi:10.1371/Journal.Pone.0003416 (2008).
  • Gómez-Baena, G., García-Fernández, J.M., López-Lozano . A, Toribio, F. , Diez, J. Glutamine Synthetase Degradation Is Controlled By Oxidative Proteolysis In The Marine Cyanobacterium Prochlorococcus Marinus Strain Pcc 9511. Biochimica Et Biophysica Acta. 1760:930-940 (2006).
  • El Alaoui, S., Diez, J., Toribio, F., Gómez-Baena, G., Dufresne, A. García-Fernández, J.M. Glutamine Synthetase From The Marine Cyanobacteria Prochlorococcus Spp.: Characterization, Phylogeny And Response To Nutrient Limitation. Environmental Microbiology 5:412-423 (2003).
  • Gómez-Baena, G., Diez, J., García-Fernández, J.M., El Alaoui, S., Humanes, L. Regulation Of Glutamine Synthetase By Metal-Catalized Oxidative Modification In The Marine Oxyphotobacterium Prochlorococcus. Biochimica Et Biophysica Acta.1568:237-244 (2001).
  • Muñoz-Marín, M.C., Dominguez, M.A., Gómez-Baena, G., Rangel, O.A., López-Lozano, A., Diez, J., Toribio, F., Beynon, R.J., García-Fernández, J.M. Metabolismo Del Carbono Y Del Nitrógeno En Prochlorococcus. In Avances En El Metabolismo Del Nitrógeno:Aproximación Molecular Al Estudio Del Ciclo Del Nitrógeno En La Biosfera Y Sus Repercusiones Agronómicas Y Medioambientales. In Press.
  • López-Lozano, A., Gómez-Baena, G., Rangel-Zuñiga, O.A., Diez, J., Y García-Fernández, J.M. Mecanismos Adaptativos Y De Control En El Metabolismo Del Nitrógeno Y Del Carbono En Prochlorococcus 51-54 (2009). Iv Jornadas De Divulgación De La Investigación En Biología Molecular, Celular, Genética Y Biotecnologíaservicio De Publicaciones De La Universidad De Córdoba.
  • Gómez-Baena, G., López-Lozano, A., Rangel-Zuñiga, O. A., Donaldson, R. P., García-Fernández, J.M., Diez, J. Oxidative Stress In Prochlorococcus: Degradation Of Glutamine Synthetase And Effect On Proteases Gene Expression. In Proccedings Of The International Conference On Free Radicals And Oxidative Stress In Biology And Medicine (In Press). Isbn 978-84-7801-9
  • López-Lozano, A., Gómez-Baena, G., Rangel-Zuñiga, O.A., Diez, J., Y García-Fernández, J.M. Regulación De La Isocitrato Deshidrogenasa Y Otros Genes Relacionados Con El Metabolismo Del Carbono Y El Nitrógeno En Prochlorococcus. In Avances En El Metabolismo Del Nitrógeno 248-255.Isbn 978-84-8454-806-5
  • Rangel-Zuñiga, O.A., Gómez-Baena, G., López-Lozano, A., García-Fernández, J.M. Y Diez, J. Caracterización, Regulación Y Expresión De La Glutamato Deshidrogenasa De Prochlorococcus Mit9313. (2009) In Avances En El Metabolismo Del Nitrógeno: De La Genómica Y La Proteómica A Las Aplicaciones Astronómicas, Industriales Y Medioambientales. 42-49. Isbn 978-84-8454-806-5
  • Gómez-Baena, G., López-Lozano, A., Gil-Martinez, J., Lucena, J.M., Diez, J., Candau, P., García-Fernández, J.M. Transporte De Glucosa En Prochlorococcus. In Avances En El Metabolismo Del Nitrógeno 210-217. Isbn 978-84-8454-806-5(2009)
  • García-Fernández, J.M., Gómez-Baena, G., López-Lozano, A., Rangel-Zuñiga, O.A., Toribio, F. Y Diez, J. Prochlorococcus Marinus: Some Keys For An Ecological Success. En New Strides In Biotechnology. Center For Integrative Mediterranean Studies (2008).
  • Gómez-Baena, G., Toribio, F., García-Fernández, J.M., Diez, J. Regulación In Vivo De La Degradación De La Glutamina Sintetasa De Prochlorococcus. In Avances En El Metabolismo Del Nitrógeno: De Los Microorganismos A Las Plantas 225-223 (2005).
  • López-Lozano, A; Gómez-Baena, G., Diez, J., García-Fernández, J.M. Estudio De La Isocitrato Deshidrogenasa De Las Estirpes Pcc 9511 Y Ss120 De Prochlorococcus. En Avances En El Metabolismo Del Nitrógeno: De Los Microorganismos A Las Plantas 375-385 (2005)
  • García-Fernández, J.M., El Alaoui, S., López-Lozano, A., Gómez-Baena, G., Rangel-Zuñiga,O.A., Toribio, F. Y Díez, J. Mecanismos Adaptativos De La Asimilación De Nitrógeno En Prochlorococcus. In Avances En El Metabolismo Del Nitrógeno: De Los Microorganismos A Las Plantas 155-165 (2005).
  • Gómez-Baena, G., Humanes, L., El Alaoui, S., García-Fernández, J.M., Diez, J. Modificación Oxidativa De La Glutamina Sintetasa De Prochlorococcus. In Avances En El Metabolismo Del Nitrógeno: De La Biología Molecular A La Agronomía145-153(2002).
  • El Alaoui, S., Diez, J., López-Ruiz, A., Gómez-Baena, G., Partensky, F., García-Fernández, J.M. Asimilación De Nitrógeno En El Procariota Fotosintético Marino Prochlorococcus. In Avances En El Metabolismo Del Nitrógeno: Bioquímica, Fisiología Y Biología Molecular. 195-200 (2000).