Pablo Alcón appointed tenure-track assistant professor
As of 1 September, Pablo Alcón has been appointed tenure-track assistant professor and will move from the Protein Science section to Molecular Health.
Pablo studied Biology and Biochemistry in Spain and did his master’s at the Cancer Research Center in Salamanca. For his PhD, he joined Guillermo Montoya's group at National Cancer Research Center (CNIO) in Madrid and later at The NNF Center for Protein Research in Copenhagen. In 2018, Pablo moved to Lori Passmore's lab at the MRC-LMB in Cambridge, UK, where he investigated the molecular mechanisms of the Fanconi Anemia pathway. Pablo started his research group at MBG in August 2024 based on a Lundbeck Fellows grant to study chromatin-associated tumor suppressors.
Pablo’s group studies how DNA damage is repaired. Our cells are constantly exposed to DNA damage caused by toxic chemicals, radiation or normal cellular metabolism. Evolution has equipped us with repair systems that identify and repair this damage, but these systems are not perfect. Understanding how DNA repair works, and how failures in these systems lead to disease, is essential for understanding genetic disorders and cancer.
The group uses biochemistry, structural biology and single-molecule imaging to visualise how DNA damage is recognised and repaired. Their aim is to understand the composition, architecture and dynamics of DNA repair complexes.
The ultimate goal is to gain mechanistic insight into DNA repair and, in the long term, to inform future prevention strategies and therapies.