Horacio Martín Pallarés, Ph.D.

Research

At the Bazzini lab, I will unravel the genetic networks essential for brain development and implicated in neurodevelopmental disorders by studying how Zika virus infection disrupts these processes. Microcephaly—a condition characterized by reduced brain size—has been associated with mutations in at least 25 genes and can also result from Zika infection during pregnancy. This parallel suggests that the virus may target key neurodevelopmental pathways. Using models such as zebrafish embryos and human brain organoids for neural development and integrating cutting-edge methods in molecular genetics and CRISPR-based genome editing, I will identify the genes affected by infection and determine how their dysregulation impairs neural proliferation and differentiation. This work could point toward novel therapeutic targets to protect the developing brain from virus-induced damage and improve the diagnosis and treatment of neurodevelopmental disorders.

Mentor

• Ariel Bazzini, Ph.D.

Country of Origin

• Argentina