Meet Eduardo Rodriguez our 2019 Fellow: “Bioinformatics abilities to develop RNA virus infectious clones, and learning how to find (re-)emerging viral species from metagenomic data using Next Generation Sequencing (NGS)″

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  • 2021•09•27     Venezuela

    Meet Our 2019 Fellow: Eduardo Rodríguez

    We want to showcase the experience of our 2019 Fellow, Dr Eduardo Rodríguez.  He is a Venezuelan biologist with a Ph.D. in Biological Sciences— currently working at the Venezuelan Institute for Scientific Research (IVIC) in Caracas, Venezuela. He reminisces about his time in Brazil.  His research project was focused on the study of the ecology and evolution of emerging and re-emerging viruses in plants and animals, including humans.

    He relates how he and his research team discovered a virus infecting a vegetable crop in Venezuela. Its partial molecular characterization led them to the conclusion that such virus shared a common ancestor with a virus previously identified in the same area in Brazil. This was the crucial reason that led him to contact his peers at the University of Brasilia and join efforts to study further what is the biology of this type of virus.

    Thanks to the fellowship, he shares how they were able to build infectious clones of the DNA virus, a work that is vital to understanding the biology of this type of virus.

    Finalizing the testimonial, Dr Rodríguez adds: «I would like to encourage young scientists who are in their final stages of doctoral studies or at the beginning of their post-doctoral careers to apply for a scholarship from the United Nations Programme UNU-BIOLAC, thank you very much.»

    Watch the complete Dr Eduardo Rodríguez’s testimonial video.

     

    We invite you to stay tuned to our next enrolling period for UNU-BIOLAC Fellowships.

    Our Fellowships

    The UNU-BIOLAC fellowship programme focuses on overcoming limitations in the LAC region by improving abilities, skills, and techniques and promoting learning through the experiences of regional experts.

    The programme consists of short fellowships to build strong research networks with training outputs that include research reports, policy recommendations, manuals, handbooks, protocols, and other reference materials. It is crucial for the programme that the knowledge acquired by fellows will benefit their institutions and country capacities.

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