Dr. Joaquin Castilla

Ikerbasque Research Professor
(Spain)

Doctor in Science 1996 from University Autonoma of Madrid
Award of Royal Academy of Doctors (1997) ; National award for the best thesis of the Animal Health (1998)
Research experience: More than 10 years of research experience in centers in Europe and USA. Since 2006, group leader of a laboratory in Scripps Research Institute, Florida.
Research line: the molecular mechanisms involved in the prion transmission between different species. The research implies the study and design of new molecules able to block the prion replication and could be used as therapy.
Origin Centre: Scripps Research Institute (Florida)
Host Centre: CIC bioGUNE (Bizkaia)

Publications

2011

Rodrigo Morales, Claudia Duran-Aniotz, Joaquín Castilla, Lisbell D. Estrada and Claudio Soto (2011)
De novo induction of amyloid-b deposition in vivo
Molecular Psychiatry

Gian Mario Cosseddu, Romolo Nonno, Gabriele Vaccari, Cecilia Bucalossi, Natalia Fernández-Borges, Michele Angelo Di Bari, Joaquín Castilla and Umberto Agrimi (2011)
Ultra-efficient PrPSc amplification highlights potentialities and pitfalls of PMCA
PLoS Pathogens

M.C. Garza, N. Fernández-Borges, R. Bolea, J.J. Badiola, J. Castilla and E. Monleón (2011)
Detection of PrPres in genetically susceptible fetuses from sheep with natural scrapie
PLoS ONE

Joaquín Castilla and Félix M. Goñi (2011)
Lipids, a missing link in prion propagation
Chemistry & Biology

Natalia Fernández Borges y Joaquín Castilla (2011)
Priones, más de 200 años de historia
Revista de la SEV

2010

Morales R, Estrada LD, Diaz-Espinoza R, Morales-Scheihing D, Jara MC, Castilla J, Soto C. (2010)
Molecular cross talk between misfolded proteins in animal models of Alzheimer's and prion diseases
Journal of Neuroscience

Christina J. Sigurdson, K. Peter R. Nilsson, Simone Hornemann, Giuseppe Manco, Natalia Fernández-Borges, Petra Schwarz, Joaquín Castilla, Kurt Wüthrich and Adriano Aguzzi (2010)
A key molecular switch directs interspecies prion conversion
Journal Clinical Investigation

Rachel C. Angers, Hae-Eun Kang, Dana Napier, Shawn Browning, Tanya Seward, Candace Mathiason, Aru Balachandran, Debbie McKenzie, Joaquín Castilla, Claudio Soto, Jean Jewell, Catherine Graham, Edward A. Hoover and Glenn C. Telling (2010)
PrP primary structure controls stability and propagation of interrelated CWD prion strains in deer and elk
Science

Fernández-Borges N and Castilla J. (2010)
PMCA. A decade of in vitro prion replication
Current Chemical Biology

2009

Fernández-Borges N, de Castro J, Castilla J. (2009)
In vitro studies of the transmission barrier
Prion

In press

Caroline Lacroux, Didier Vilette, Natalia Fernández-Borges, Claire Litaise, Severine Lugan, Nathalie Morel, Fabien Corbière, Stephanie Simon, Hugh Simmons, Pierrette Costes, Jean Louis Weisbecker, Isabelle Lantier, Frederic Lantier, Francois Schelche (2011)
Prionemia and leuco-platelet associated infectivity in sheep TSE models
Journal of Virology

Master degree

BÚSQUEDA DE UNA PrP DOMINANTE NEGATIVA HUMANA MEDIANTE ESTUDIOS DE REPLICACIÓN IN VITRO (2010)
UPV
Saioa Rodríguez Elezgarai

Courses given

2011
Conferencia invitada - Máster en Neurociencias (UPV) - Mal plegamiento proteico: de los priones a otras enfermedades neurodegenerativas
2011
Conferencia invitada - IBMCP - Replicación in vitro de priones. Fenómenos de infectividad, cepa y barrera de transmisión
2011
Conferencia invitada - Istituto di Ricerche Farmacologiche Mario Negri - In vitro prion replication. Infectivity, strain and transmission barrier phenomena
2011
Conferencia invitada - Institut National de la Research Agronomique (INRA) - In vitro prion replication. Infectivity, strain and transmission barrier phenomena
2011
Conferencia invitada - CIC biomaGUNE (Christmas lecture) - Prions: Minimalist pathogenic agents with maximum complexity
2011
Conferencia invitada (Clausura) - XI Congreso Nacional de Virología - Priones. Dualidad entre una irreductible simplicidad y una compleja estructura
2010
Curso de encefalopatías espongiformes transmisibles (Universidad de Zaragoza)
2010
Conferencia invitada - Unidad de Biofísica (UPV) - In vitro prion replication. Infectivity, strain and transmission barrier phenomena
2010
Conferencia invitada - Hospital de Cruces - In vitro prion replication. Infectivity, strain and transmission barrier phenomena
2010
Conferencia invitada - Centro Andaluz de Biología del Desarrollo - In vitro prion replication. Infectivity, strain and transmission barrier phenomena
2010
Conferencia invitada - Neuroprion 2010 - In vitro studies for evaluating prion transmission between species
2010
Conferencia invitada - Ciclo de seminarios en Virología Veterinaria del CISA - In vitro prion replication. Infectivity, strain and transmission barrier phenomena
2010
Conferencia invitada - Centro Nacional de Biotecnología (CNB) - In vitro prion replication. Infectivity, strain and transmission barrier phenomena

Managerial activities

Director of I National Congress of Prions.

Congresses, Proceedings & Scientific meetings

Failure of prions from “rigid loop” equine PrP transgenic mice to adapt across a species barrier. Jifeng Bian, Joaquín Castilla, Rachel Angers, Natalia Fernández-Borges, Glenn C. Telling
Neuroprion congress (2011) Congress
Montreal (Poster)
Comparative study of BSE behavior in the boTg110 mice model after in vivo and in vitro passage through C57 and VM inbred mice. Vidal, E., Fernández-Borges, N., Fondevila, D., Torres, JM., Pumarola, M. and Castilla, J.
Neuroprion congress (2011) Congress
Montreal (Poster)
Detection of PrPSc in fetal tissues from natural scrapie infected ewes. Garza MC., Fernández-Borges N., Acín C., Badiola JJ., Castilla J. and Monleón E.
Neuroprion congress (2011) Congress
Montreal (Poster)
Prions in the Ocean: A Natural Case of Prion Disease in Dolphins. Manuel V. Camacho, Diego Morales-Schehing, Natalia Fernández-Borges, Joaquín Castilla, Daniel Cowan and Claudio Soto
Neuroprion congress (2011) Congress
Montreal (Poster)
In vitro prion transmission studies. A switch to a recombinant PrPSc world. Natalia Fernández-Borges, Ester Vázquez-Fernández, Saioa Rodríguez-Elezgarai, Binbin Gong, Beatriz Parra, Jana Alonso, Manuel A. Sánchez-Martín, Hasier Eraña, Chafik Harrathi, Mayela Gayosso, Enric Vidal, Tomás Mayoral, Jesús R. Requena and Joaqu
Neuroprion congress (2011) Congress
Montreal (Poster)
In vitro studies for evaluating prion transmission between species. Joaquín Castilla
Transmissible Spongiform Encephalopathies Conference (2011) Congress
Praga (Invited talk)
Priones. Dualidad entre una irreductible simplicidad y una compleja estructura. Joaquín Castilla
XI Congreso Nacional de Virología (2011) Congress
Granada (Invited talk)
Developing a prion susceptible human neuronal cell line based on reprogramming fibroblasts from CJD affected patients. Joaquín Castilla
CJD 2011 and the Ninth Annual CJD Foundation Family Conference (2011) Congress
Washington (Invited talk)
Mal plegamiento proteico en enfermedades neurológicas: de los priones a otras enfermedades neurodegenerativas. Joaquín Castilla
IV Simposium sobre transtornos cognitivos en la enfermedad de Parkinson (2011) Congress
San Sebastián - Donosti (Invited talk)
In vivo and in vitro studies of prion transmission barrier. Vidal E., Fernández-Borges N., Torres JM., Pumarola M., Telling G., Pintado B., Castilla J.
II Congreso Nacional de Priones (2011) Congress
Madrid (Talk)
Landing in a new recombinant world. Chafik Harrathi, Hasier Eraña, Saioa Rodríguez-Elezgarai, Ester Vázquez-Fernández, Natalia Fernández-Borges, Jesús R. Requena and Joaquín Castilla
II Congreso Nacional de Priones (2011) Congress
Madrid (Poster)
Lessons from Nature: Prion resistant species and their mechanisms. Natalia Fernández-Borges, Beatriz Parra, Saioa Rodríguez-Elezgarai, Enric Vidal, Manuel Sánchez Martí, Jorge de Castro, Ester Vázquez, Martí Pumarola, Jesús Requena, Tomás Mayoral and Joaquín Castilla
II Congreso Nacional de Priones (2011) Congress
Madrid (Talk)
In vitro studies for evaluating prion transmission between species. J. Castilla
Neuroprion congress (2010) Congress
Salzburg (Talk)
Are rabbits really resistant?. F. Chianini, N. Fernandez-Borges, L. Gibbard, J. de Castro, S. Priola, S.L. Eaton, J. Finlayson, Y. Pang, S. Hamilton, P. Steele, K. McNally, H.W. Reid, M.P. Dagleish and J. Castilla
Neuroprion congress (2010) Congress
Salzburg (Talk)
Neuropathological and molecular characterization of rabbit in vitro adapted BSE upon inoculation in bovine PrP transgenic mouse model. Vidal E., Fernández-Borges N., Márquez M., Fondevila D., Torres J.M., Pintado B., Pumarola M. and Castilla J.
Neuroprion congress (2010) Congress
Salzburg (Poster)
Diferenciación de “cepas” priónicas mediante estudio histológico e inmunohistoquíco. Vidal E., Estévez J., Brugnolaro C., Fernández-Borges N., Molin J., Marco P., Rabanal R.M., Fondevila D., Castilla J. y Pumarola M.
I Congreso Nacional de Priones (2010) Congress
CIC bioGUNE/Bilbao (Poster)
Neuropathological and molecular characterization of BSE prions amplified in vitro from rabbit normal brain homogenate upon intracerebral inoculation in a bovinised mouse model (BoTg110). Vidal E., Fernández-Borges N., Marquez M., Fondevila D., Torres J.M., Pintado B., Pumarola M. and Castilla J.
I Congreso Nacional de Priones (2010) Congress
CIC bioGUNE/Bilbao (Poster)
Identification of prnp gene polymorphisms in Spanish sheep and their association with classical and/or atypical scrapie. L. Hurtado, M. Hernández, C. Lòpez-Maroto, J. Castilla, E. Anadon and T. Mayoral
I Congreso Nacional de Priones (2010) Congress
CIC bioGUNE/Bilbao (Poster)
Studying the transmission barrier by in vitro prion replication. J. Castilla
I Congreso Nacional de Priones (2010) Congress
CIC bioGUNE/Bilbao (Talk)
Modulated conversion of PrPC into PrPSc in sheep by PMCA based on prnp genotype. T. Huélamo, J. Castilla, M.J. Nevado, M. Vigo, C. Gómez-Tejedor & T. Mayoral.
Neuroprion congress (2009) Congress
Greece (Poster)
Generation of new prion species by in vitro prion replication. Natalia Fernández-Borges, Francesca Chianini, Suzette A. Priola, Glenn Telling, Enric.Vidal, Jorge de Castro, Louise Gibbard, Rachel Angers, Hugh W. Reid, Kristin McNally, Scott Hamilton, Tanya Seward, Martí Pumarola, Mark P. Dagleish and Joaquín Ca
Neuroprion congress (2009) Congress
Greece (Talk)

Other merits and matters

Member of the Veterinary Research Advisory Board. (2011)

Ikerbasque. Basque Foundation for Science