Pablo
Ortega Martinez
Contact
Areas of expertise
Biography
- Ph.D. in Molecular Biology, University of Seville (2019–2025).
- M.Sc. in Biotechnology, Autonomous University of Madrid (2018–2019).
- B.Sc. in Biochemistry, University of Seville (2014–2018).
Grants and Awards:
- Best Paper of the Month, University of Seville (July 2024) - “Glycogen synthesis prevents metabolic imbalance and disruption of photosynthetic electron transport…”
- EMBO Scientific Exchange Grant (2022) - Research stay at the University of Turku
- Best Paper of the Month, Cartuja Scientific Research Center & Ebro Foods (May 2022) - “Stress response requires an efficient connection between glycogen and central carbon metabolism…”
- Extraordinary Master’s Degree Award, Autonomous University of Madrid (2020) - Top academic performance in the 2018–2019 Biotechnology MSc program
- FPU Predoctoral Fellowship, Spanish Ministry of Universities (2019) - A competitive national grant for doctoral training and teaching
- Master’s Research Fellowship, Autonomous University of Madrid (2018)
- Erasmus+ International Mobility Grant (2018) - Summer intership in Müsnter (Germany) at the Max Plank Institute for Molecular Biomedicine.
- Undergraduate Collaboration Fellowship, Spanish Ministry of Education (2017) - Conducting experimental research during the final year of BSc studies
Research
I am a molecular biologist with a strong interest in cyanobacterial metabolism and how these organisms adapt to changing environmental conditions. During my Ph.D. at the University of Seville, I focused on understanding the role of glycogen metabolism in Synechocystis sp. PCC 6803, particularly under stress conditions such as nitrogen deprivation, high light, and photomixotrophy.
During the M.Sc. in Biotechnology I gained experience in enzymatic heterologous expression in Pichia pastoris for industrial biocatalysis applications and through the Erasmus+ practices programme I studied stress adaptation mechanisms in S.Cerevisiae.
Since 2019, I have contributed to several Spain nationally funded research projects focused on carbon and nitrogen metabolism, redox signaling, and the regulation of glycogen accumulation in cyanobacteria.
Currently, I am a postdoctoral researcher in the Bioelectricity Group, where I work in biophotovoltaics to generate green electricity and photo-bio-batteries, continuing to explore microbial redox regulation and bioenergetics with potential applications in sustainable biotechnology and carbon capture.