Eduardo Antonio Espeso Fernández

Research Scientist (Investigador Científico) at the Centro de Investigaciones Biológicas Margarita Salas (CIB-CSIC), where he coordinates the Aspergillus Cell Biology research unit, together with Dr. Mario Pinar and Dr. Miguel A. Peñalva, and leads the research line "The endolysosomal system and environmental stress". The group uses Aspergillus nidulans as a genetic model for studying polarised cell growth and long-distance transport, combining formal Genetics with Molecular and Cellular Biology to understand intracellular traffic, including the mechanisms by which environmental signals are transduced to the different nuclei of the cell to ensure coordinated transcriptional responses.
Great genetic variability allows fungi the ability to thrive in extreme environments. The efficient transcriptional regulation and the perfect communication between the nucleus and the cytoplasm require coordination between receptors and transcription factors involving key internal machinery for transport and sorting. The study of transcriptional regulatory systems required to generate a response to environmental stresses such as alkalinization and cation stress has shown the close relationship between the endolysosomal system and these responses. Intracellular trafficking of vesicles for secretion of effectors and their processing after successful signaling in recycling endosomes is crucial for fungi to prosper in extreme environments, and has been shown to be necessary for spreading and the pathogenicity of fungi in plants and animals. (Description curated from publicly available data.)