Dr. Alex Romero Zuñiga

Dr. Alex Romero holds a Bachelor’s degree in Biochemistry from the Austral University of Chile (1998) and a Ph.D. in Cellular and Molecular Biology from the same institution (2006). He is currently a Full Professor at the Institute of Animal Pathology, Faculty of Veterinary Sciences.

His research areas include immunology and molecular biology of aquatic organisms, genomic characterization, and molecular diagnosis of viral and bacterial pathogens in fish.

He has participated in national and international research and development projects. He has supervised and co-supervised undergraduate and graduate theses (Master’s and Ph.D.) at UACh and other universities, as well as postdoctoral projects. He has been a member of the FONDECYT Study Group on Animal Health and Production and is a member of the Chilean Society of Biology.

He currently leads the Aquatic Immunology and Stress Laboratory at the Institute of Animal Pathology, where he has consolidated a strong scientific output, national and international collaboration networks, and engagement with environmental stakeholders.

In recent years, he has led research focused on the development and scientific validation, both in vitro and in vivo, of natural-origin additives as non-pharmacological alternatives to improve fish health and production performance. His work also addresses the identification of new therapeutic targets for disease treatment, as well as the study of immunomodulation and defense mechanisms in the mucosal tissues of salmonids.