| Name: | James Jason Valdes, Ph.D. Laboratory of Photosynthesis Jan Janouškovec´s group |
|---|---|
| Phone: | +420 384 340 448 |
| E-mail: | valdes(at)alga.cz |
| Position: | Scientist |
James Jason Valdes
ORCID: 0000-0002-0237-8061
Research Interests
Dr. Valdés is an experienced computational molecular biologist, and spearheaded interdisciplinary research in virology, parasitology, and neuroscience. Dr. Valdés possesses methodological expertise in bioinformatics, computational biology, histology (both in-vivo and in-vitro), and molecular biology (including genetic and protein analyses). Currently, his research focuses on uncovering uncharacterized enzymes involved in the biosynthesis pathways of diatom photosynthetic pigments.
Curriculum vitae
Education
- 2004 – 2009, Ph.D. in Biology at Florida International University (FIU; Miami, USA)
- 1998 – 2001, B.A. in Psychology at FIU (Miami, USA)
Scientific positions
- 2024 – Present, Research Scientist, Centre Algatech, Institute of Microbiology of the Czech Academy of Sciences (Třeboň, CZ)
- 2011 – 2023, Research Scientist, Institute of Parasitology, Biology Centre of the Czech Academy of Sciences (České Budějovice, CZ)
- 2015 – 2022, Research Scientist, Department of Virology, Veterinary Research Institute (Brno, CZ)
- 2010 – 2014, Visiting Scientist, Barcelona Supercomputing Center (Spain)
- 2010, Visiting Scientist, Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden (Florida, USA)
Academic positions
- 2012 – 2022, Lecturer, Faculty of Science, University of South Bohemia (České Budějovice, CZ)
- 2004 – 2009, Undergraduate mentor and T.A., Biological Sciences Dept., FIU (Miami, USA)
Top 5 publications
- Valdés, J.J. & Miller, A.D. (2019) New opportunities for designing small interfering RNAs. Scientific Reports. 9:16146.
- Valdés, J.J., Butterill, P.T., Růžek, D. (2017) Flaviviridae viruses use a common molecular mechanism to escape nucleoside analogues. Biochemical and Biophysical Research Communications. 492:652-658.
- Valdés, J.J., Gil, V., Butterill, P.T., Růžek, D. (2016). An all-atom, active site exploration of antiviral inhibitors that target Flaviviridae polymerases. Journal of General Virology. 97:2552-2565.
- Valdés, J.J., Cabezas-Cruz, A., Sima, R., Butterill, P.T., Růžek, D., Nuttall, P.A. (2016). Substrate prediction of Ixodes ricinus salivary lipocalins differentially expressed during Borrelia afzelii infection. Scientific Reports. 6:32372.
- Valdés, J.J., Weeks, O.I. (2009). Estradiol and Lithium Chloride Specifically Alter NMDA Receptor Subunit NR1 mRNA and Excitotoxicity in Primary Cultures. Brain Research. 1268:1.