INVESTIGADORES AFILIADOS
Dr. Carmen L. Cadilla holds a B.S. in Chemistry from UPR Mayagüez, an M.S. in Chemistry (Major: Organic Chemistry) from UPR Rio Piedras, and a Ph.D. in Biomedical Sciences with a major in Biochemistry from the University of Tennessee-Oak Ridge Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences. Her doctoral work was on chromatin structure using ciliated protozoa as model systems. Her postdoctoral training in molecular biology was at the Oak Ridge National Laboratories-Biology Division, working on gene characterization and regulation of genes by insulin in rat liver and hepatoma cells.
Dr. Cadilla joined the faculty at the UPR School of Medicine in 1990, in the Department of Microbiology, and in 1996 transferred to the Department of Biochemistry, where she directs the laboratory of Human Molecular Genetics and the MBRS-RISE Program of the Medical Sciences Campus. Her research is funded currently by the NCRR RCMI Program of the Medical Sciences Campus and UPR. Her current research focuses on genetic diseases that affect the Puerto Rican population.
She teaches a graduate course in molecular biology and the topics of molecular genetics, regulation of gene ex-pression and mechanisms of hormone action to medical, dental and graduate students. She has also coordinated the Protein Biochemistry, Molecular Biology and Regulation of Eukaryotic Gene Expression courses in the Department of Biochemistry, as well as participated in the Molecular Physiology course of the Department of Physiology, UPR School of Medicine and the Pharmacogenetics course of the UPR School of Pharmacy. Dr. Cadilla has a joint appointment in the Department of Pediatrics.
Research interests are focused on:
Structure and function studies of the bHLH proteins of the Twist subfamily. Role of Twist2 in human development.
Identification of genes causing disease or genetic conditions in the Puerto Rican population.
Recent Publications:
- Casasnovas-Nieves JJ, Rodríguez Y, Franco HL, Cadilla CL. Mechanisms of Regulation of the CHRDL1 Gene by the TWIST2 and ADD1/SREBP1c Transcription Factors. Genes (Basel). 2023 Aug 30; 14(9). PMID: 37761873.
- Montes-Rodríguez IM, Soto-Salgado M, Torres-Cintrón CR, Tomassini-Fernandini JC, Suárez E, Clavell LA, Cadilla CL. Incidence and Mortality Rates for Childhood Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia in Puerto Rican Hispanics, 2012-2016. Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev. 2023 08 01; 32(8):1030-1037. PMID: 37222662.
- Montes-Rodríguez IM, Cadilla CL, López-Garriga J, González-Méndez R. Bioinformatic Characterization and Molecular Evolution of the Lucina pectinata Hemoglobins. Genes (Basel). 2022 11 05; 13(11). PMID: 36360278.
- Crespo NE, Torres-Bracero A, Renta JY, Desnick RJ, Cadilla CL. Expression Profiling Identifies TWIST2 Target Genes in Setleis Syndrome Patient Fibroblast and Lymphoblast Cells. Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2021 02 19; 18(4). PMID: 33669496.
- Rivera-Concepción J, Acevedo-Canabal J, Burós A, Vargas G, Cadilla C, Izquierdo NJ. Bleeding assessment in female patients with the Hermansky-Pudlak syndrome-A case series. Eur J Haematol. 2019 May; 102(5):432-436. PMID: 30659653