Professional Background:

Ricardo AO Medina is a veterinarian interested in clinical microbiology and computer science advances. He holds a PhD in microbiology and parasitology, with experience in animal models and vaccine development. He is currently pursuing a master's in bioinformatics to study the immune system in genetically engineered mice, accelerate drug development, and promote alternatives to animal testing.

Research Experience:

During his time in Spain, he contributed to research projects focusing on:

• Development of diagnostic methods.
• Creation of protein- and peptide-based vaccines.
• Study of vaccine adjuvants.
• Conducting efficacy trials in animal models, including sheep and inbred mice.

Current Research:

Based in Austria, Ricardo contributes to projects aimed at understanding the mechanisms of T-cell exhaustion, a critical aspect of:

• Chronic viral infections.
• Cancer immunology and advancing immunotherapy.

Informatics Enthusiast:

Passionate about the transformative impact of high-throughput sequencing and bioinformatics in microbiology.

• Particularly interested in artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning to:
  • Process large datasets.
  • Improve diagnostic precision.
  • Predict disease outbreaks.
  • Identify vaccine antigens.

Ongoing Education:

Currently pursuing a master's degree in bioinformatics to:

• Use computational tools for modeling infection dynamics and immune responses.
• Develop more effective treatments and vaccines.
• Promote alternatives to animal testing and advance in vitro models.

A list of peer-reviewed publications in diagnosis, vaccine development, animal models and informatics.

1. In-plate recapturing of a dual-tagged recombinant Fasciola antigen - PLOS ONE
2. Antibody responses to chimeric peptides derived from parasite antigens - Molecular Immunology
3. Vaccination of sheep with Quil-A® adjuvant expands antibody repertoire - Vaccine

4. Comparison of recombinant cathepsins L1, L2, and L5 as ELISA targets for serodiagnosis of bovine and ovine fascioliasis - Parasitology Research
5. Usefulness of ELISA methods for assessing LPS interactions with proteins and peptides - PLOS ONE
6. Rapid enhanced MM3-COPRO ELISA for detection of Fasciola coproantigens - PLoS Neglected Tropical Diseases
7. Exploring the pan-surfome of Streptococcus suis: Looking for common protein antigens - Journal of Proteomics

8. Mapping chemical structure–activity information of HAART-drug cocktails over complex networks of AIDS epidemiology and socioeconomic data of U.S. counties - Biosystems
9. Multiscale mapping of AIDS in U.S. counties versus anti-HIV drugs activity with complex networks and information indices - Current Bioinformatics
10. Mapping networks of anti-HIV drug cocktails versus AIDS epidemiology in U.S. counties - Chemometrics and Intelligent Laboratory Systems
11. ANN multiscale model of anti-HIV drug activity versus AIDS prevalence in the U.S. at county level based on information indices of molecular graphs and social networks - Journal of Chemical Information and Modelling

• Programming: Python, R statistics, GNU/Linux Shell
• Immunology Techniques: ELISA, PBMC isolation, antibody purification
• Bioinformatics Tools: Biopython, RDkit, PyMOL, MASCOT
• Statistical Analysis: Multivariate data analysis, ROC curves

• Email: orbegozo.medina@gmail.com