Researcher
Department of Biomacromolecules
National Autonomous University of Mexico
Mexico
The Prof. Armando Hernandez-Garcia was born in Mexico City on 1981. In 2007 he got a BSc. degree with major in Food Chemistry in the Chemistry School of the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM). Later he carried a MSc. degree in Lund University, Sweden between graduating in 2009 with a thesis under supervision of Prof. Sara Linse in the department of Biophysical Chemistry (now in Biochemistry). His doctoral studies were done in the Laboratory of Physical chemistry and soft matter of Wageningen University in the Netherlands under the supervision of Prof. Martien Cohen Stuart and Dr. Renko de Vries, graduating in 2014 with a “very exceptional almost excellent thesis dissertation”. In 2014 he received the prestigious award PEW biomedical Fellowship for Latin Americans to carry his postdoctoral research in the lab of Prof. Samuel Stupp in Northwestern University in Chicago, USA. In 2016 he entered to the Chemistry Institute of the UNAM to start his career as independent researcher and Professor in the lab of Biomolecular Engineering and Bionanotechnology. he honored in 2016 National Researcher Mexico – CONACyT (level 1), 2014 PEW Latin American Fellow, USA, 2009 Dutch Polymer Institute Fellowship, the Netherlands, 2009 Abroad PhD studies grant CONACyT, Mexico, 2007 Abroad MSc studies grant FUNED, Mexico.
The laboratory of Biomolecular Engineering and Bionanotechnology (BioNano) develops improved, optimized, programmable, standardized and simplified versions of proteins for building, together with DNA, supramolecular nanomaterials with augmented capabilities and controlled physical and chemical properties and applied them in innovative ways for healthcare, food security and sustainable energy. they look to connect basic research about Biomolecular Engineering and Bionanotechnology with technological development and innovation. We carried out multi and interdisciplinary projects combining experimental methodologies coming from molecular and structural biology, biophysics, biochemistry, physical chemistry, organic synthesis, material and polymer science and biomedical sciences. As consequence, chemists, biologist, physicist, engineers and health specialist, have a place to work together. Dr. Armando Hernández García research has three main goals: 1) Through the design of novel and artificial proteins and peptides and their assemblies we look to understand the forces that dictate function, structure and self-assembly properties. We apply the principle “If I can design it, then I can understand it”. 2) To establish guidelines that help to design novel and synthetic proteins and peptides in order to self-assemble in supramolecular nanostructures with defined and controlled shape, architecture, size and properties. 3) To study the interaction between synthetic proteins and peptides with cells and organisms.