Latin American Microscopists - Peru

Peru

A behemoth of Latin American biodiversity, Peru’s biological prowess is a testament to South American biodiversity. Over 60% of Peru’s territory is covered by the Amazon Rainforest, which makes Peru the country with the second largest portion of the Amazon in its borders, behind only Brazil. Thus, it is no surprise that Peru was featured in the Conservation International’s 1998 list of megadiverse countries. Hence, Peru is a hotspot for up-and-coming biologists and veteran biologists to stake their claim in their respective fields. One such biologist is Mirko Zimic, a Principal Investigator at Universidad Peruana Cayetano Heredia (UPCH). Mirko started his scientific journey studying Physics at Universidad Nacional de Ingeniería in Peru. Then, after studying biochemistry at UPCH for a master’s degree, he travelled to the US to complete his PhD in control and prevention of diseases. Yet, Mirko left his life in the US to contribute to Peruvian scientific development. A huge impact which contributed to Peru’s scientific corpus was the inauguration of president Ollanta Humala, who drastically increased the amount one could get from a scientific local grant. Along with his body of well-renowned scientific advisors, Humala ushered a radical change in Peruvian scientific progression, the likes of which Mirko refers to as ‘the birth of scientific development in Peru.’ This blog details the importance that Peruvian scientists, both home and abroad, have had on the field of microscopy.

An interview with Samira Vera

Posted by Mariana De Niz, on 8 August 2023

MiniBio: Samira is a PhD student in the lab of Mohammed Mostajo at University of California at Santa Cruz, in the USA, where she focuses on neurophysiology and in open science and open education. She started her career in Peru, where she completed her BSc in Genetics and Biotechnology at Universidad Nacional Mayor de San

An interview with Carlos Bustamante

Posted by Mariana De Niz, on 11 July 2023

MiniBio: Carlos Bustamante is a HHMI investigator and full professor at University of California at Berkeley, where he leads a lab focusing on single molecule force spectroscopy. From an early age, Carlos was attracted to science, and at age 15, with the help of his family, set up his own lab in his parent’s house.

An interview with Brenda Delfin

Posted by Mariana De Niz, on 6 June 2023

MiniBio: Brenda Delfin is a researcher at Universidad Peruana Cayetano Heredia, in Lima, Peru. She is a Biologist by training, and has specialized in Neuroscience. She is currently head of the animal house and interim leader of the Neuroscience of development lab at UPCH. Joining her expertise in neuroscience and her passion for teaching, learning

An interview with Mirko Zimic

Posted by Mariana De Niz, on 30 May 2023

MiniBio: Dr. Mirko Zimic is a principal investigator at Universidad Peruana Cayetano Heredia (UPCH) since 2002, where he focuses on the study of tuberculosis using biomedical, biochemical, biophysical and bioinformatics approaches. Mirko began his career studying Physics at Universidad Nacional de Ingeniería, in Peru. He later studied a Masters degree in Biochemistry at UPCH, and

An interview with Rosa Isela Gálvez

Posted by Mariana De Niz, on 23 May 2023

MiniBio: Dr. Rosa Isela Gálvez is currently a postdoctoral fellow at La Jolla Institute for Immunology, where she is characterizing human T cell responses to different viral pathogens, vaccines and exposed populations in endemic regions. She has done most of her career in Germany. She studied her undergraduate degree at the University of Hamburg. She

An interview with Iskra Tuero

Posted by Mariana De Niz, on 16 May 2023

MiniBio: Dr. Iskra Tuero is a principal investigator at Universidad Peruana Cayetano Heredia, where she leads the laboratory of Immunobiology of Infections since 2017. Iskra studied for her undergraduate degree in Cusco, Peru, at Universidad Nacional de San Antonio Abad. During this time, she found a passion for Biochemistry, which she continued to pursue during

An interview with Piere Rodriguez-Aliaga

Posted by Mariana De Niz, on 9 May 2023

MiniBio: Dr. Piere Rodriguez-Aliaga is currently a postdoctoral fellow at Stanford University, where he uses biochemical and single-molecule techniques to study protein misfolding and aggregation. He began his career in Lima, Peru. He began as a research technician at Universidad Cayetano Heredia, working on an ecology project aiming to better understand endemic and introduced populations