Joel González

Joel González-Cabrera: I finished my degree in Biochemistry at the University of Havana, Cuba in 1996. In the early stages of my career, I worked at the Centre for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology, Havana, Cuba, mainly developing transgenic plants expressing Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) toxins.

From 1998 to 2012, I worked at several Spanish institutions (Universitat de València, Instituto Valenciano de Investigaciones Agrarias and Centro de Investigaciones Biológicas). I obtained my PhD (2004) and pursued in my post-doctoral investigations working in a throughout characterisation of the mechanisms of resistance to Bt toxins and studying the interaction of these toxins with their receptors. I also investigated the use of the Bt-based technology in combination with Biological Control Agents to control economically important pests in an IPM context.

In 2012, I moved to the United Kingdom to work at Rothamsted Research, as a Marie Curie fellow, to investigate the “Mode of action and selectivity of pyrethroids on economically important mites and ticks” and “the mechanisms of resistance to other chemicals like flumethrin, coumaphos and amitraz and develop sensitive monitoring assays for use in IPM”.

Currently (from 2015), I am based at the ERI Biotecmed (Universitat de València, Spain) as a holder of a Ramón y Cajal contract. My scientific interest is focused mainly on the investigation of the mechanisms underlying the evolution of resistance to pesticides and in the elucidation of key determinants of their selectivity over non-target organisms.