Phone: 94 601 2603
Email: ana.zubiaga@ehu.es
Office Location: School of Science and Technology, Building F1, Ground floor, office 3
Research Group: MOLECULAR BIOLOGY OF CANCER

Researcher ID S-3457-2019

I teach the course Human Genetics in Basque language, a compulsory subject in the Degree in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology. Regarding post-graduate teaching, I teach the course Workshop in Molecular Biology, and I am one of the lecturers in the course Fundamentals of Genomics, Proteomics and Bioinformatics. These courses are part of the Masters degree in Molecular Biology and Biomedicine.

In addition, I supervise undergraduate student projectsin the Degree inBiochemistry and Molecular Biology, and master student projects in the Master in Molecular Biology and Biomedicine. 

I am general coordinator of the Interuniversity Masters degree in Molecular Biology and Biomedicine.

I earned my PhD degree in 1986 at the University of the Basque Country (UPV/ EHU) with a project on the Histophysiology of pulmonate gastropod molluscs. I carried out post-doctoral research (1986-1994) at the Universities of Tufts and Harvard (USA) in the field of genetic regulation of cell proliferation, specifically in the mechanisms that regulate the immune response and the role of cellular oncogenes.

Since my arrival to the UPV/EHU in 1995, my research focuses on the Biology of Cancer, particularly on the study of the molecular mechanisms regulated by the Retinoblastoma/E2F pathway, and the control of the cell cycle. Experimental designs in my research involve the use of cellular and animal genetic models.

I am responsible for the Gene Expression Unit, Research Facilities department, UPV/EHU.

I am a member of the Ethics Committee for Animal Research (CEBA) of the UPV/EHU, and en elected member of the Post-Graduate Committee of the UPV/EHU. I have collaborated as deputy with Agencia Nacional de Evaluación y Prospectiva (ANEP) (2005-2009), in the area of Molecular Cell Biology, and Genetics.

Project Title: Revisando el papel de los factores E2F en el desarrollo tumoral: estudio de la conexión E2F-EMT (E2F/ transición epitelio-mesénquima)  Funding Organization: Ministerio de Ciencia, Innovación y Universidades. MCIU/AEI/FEDER, UE, RTI2018-097497-B-I00 (2019-2021)

Project Title: Balance entre proliferación y diferenciación: mecanismos y relevancia en patología humana. Red de 10 grupos de investigación. Funding Organization: Ministerio de Ciencia, Innovación y Universidades. MCIU/AEI/FEDER, UE, RED2018-102723-T (2020-2022)

Project Title: Grupo de Investigación del Sistema Universitario Vasco. Biología celular y molecular del cáncer. Funding Organization: Gobierno Vasco, Departamento de Educación. IT1257-19 (2019-2021)

Project Title: MATRIXBIOCELL-Desarrollo, caracterización y optimización de modelos celulares multicapa en el marco de una terapia avanzada 100% autóloga para su aplicación en ingeniería tisular. Funding Organization: Gobierno Vasco, Departamento de Desarrollo Económico y Competitividad. KK-2020/00014 (2020-2021)

Project Title: Relevancia fisiológica de los factores E2F más allá de la regulación del ciclo celular . Funding Organization: Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad. MINECO/AEI/FEDER, UE, SAF2015-67562-R (2016-2018)

Project Title: Prevención, diagnóstico, investigación y nuevas líneas terapéuticas para enfermedades raras en el marco de la CAPV. Funding Organization: Gobierno Vasco, Departamento de Desarrollo Económico y Competitividad. KK-2017/00084 (2017-2018)

Project Title: Grupo de Investigación del Sistema Universitario Vasco. Mecanismos moleculares implicados en la alteración de la homeostasis celular: perspectivas para la terapia del cáncer. Funding Organization: Gobierno Vasco, Departamento de Educación. IT634-13 (2013-2018)

García-Santisteban I, Llopis A, Krenning L, Vallejo-Rodriguez J, van den Broek B, Zubiaga* AM, Medema* RH. (* corresponding authors). Sustained CHK2 activity, but not ATM activity, is critical to maintain a G1 arrest after DNA damage in untransformed cells. BMC Biol. 2021 Feb 19;19(1):35. doi: 10.1186/s12915-021-00965-x.

Gonzalez-Romero F, Mestre D, Aurrekoetxea I, O'Rourke CJ, Andersen JB, Woodhoo A, Tamayo-Caro M, Varela Rey M, Palomo-Irigoyen M, Gómez-Santos B, Sáenz de Urturi D, Núñez-García M, García-Rodríguez JL, Fernández-Ares L, Buqué X, Iglesias-Ara A, Bernales I, Gutierrez De Juan V, Delgado TC, Goikoetxea-Usandizaga N, Lee R, Bhanot S, Delgado I, Perugorria MJ, Errazti G, Mosteiro L, Gaztambide S, Martinez de la Piscina I, Iruzubieta P, Crespo J, Banales JM, Martínez-Chantar ML, Castaño L, Zubiaga AM, Aspichueta P. E2F1 and E2F2-mediated repression of CPT2 establishes a lipid-rich tumor-promoting environment. Cancer Res. 2021 Mar 26:canres.2052.2020. doi: 10.1158/0008-5472.CAN-20-2052. Online ahead of print.

Zubiaga AM. Foreword Special Issue Cell Cycle and Regulation. Genes (Basel). 2020 Feb 27;11(3):254 doi: 10.3390/genes11030254 

Peñalver-González B, Vallejo-Rodríguez J, Mentxaka G, Fullaondo A, Iglesias-Ara A, Field SJ, Zubiaga AM. Golgi Oncoprotein GOLPH3 Gene Expression Is Regulated by Functional E2F and CREB/ATF Promoter Elements. Genes (Basel). 2019 Mar 25;10(3). pii: E247. doi: 10.3390/genes10030247. 

Valcárcel-Ocete L, Fullaondo A, Alkorta-Aranburu G, García-Barcina M, Roos RAC, Hjermind LE, Saft C, Frontali M, Reilmann R, Rickards H; REGISTRY investigators of the European Huntington’s Disease Network (EHDN), Zubiaga AM, Aguirre A. Does arterial hypertension influence the onset of Huntington's disease? PLoS One. 2018 May 23;13(5):e0197975. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0197975.

Mitxelena* J, Apraiz* A, Vallejo-Rodríguez* J, García-Santisteban I, Fullaondo A, Alvarez-Fernández M, Malumbres M, Zubiaga AM. (* equal contribution). An E2F7-dependent transcriptional program modulates DNA damage repair and genomic stability. Nucleic Acids Res. 2018 May 18;46(9):4546-4559. doi:10.1093/nar/gky218.

Iglesias-Ara A, Osinalde N, Zubiaga AM. Detection of E2F-Induced Transcriptional Activity Using a Dual Luciferase Reporter Assay. Methods Mol Biol. 2018;1726:153-166. doi: 10.1007/978-1-4939-7565-5_14.

Apraiz A, Mitxelena J, Zubiaga AM. Studying Cell Cycle-regulated Gene Expression by Two Complementary Cell Synchronization Protocols. J Vis Exp. 2017 Jun 6;(124):55745. doi: 10.3791/55745.

Osinalde N, Mitxelena J, Sánchez-Quiles V, Akimov V, Aloria K, Arizmendi JM, Zubiaga AM, Blagoev B, Kratchmarova I. Nuclear Phosphoproteomic Screen Uncovers ACLY as Mediator of IL-2-induced Proliferation of CD4+ T lymphocytes. Mol Cell Proteomics. 2016 Jun;15(6):2076-92. doi: 10.1074/mcp.M115.057158.

Mitxelena J, Apraiz A, Vallejo-Rodríguez J, Malumbres M, Zubiaga AM. E2F7 regulates transcription and maturation of multiple microRNAs to restrain cell proliferation. Nucleic Acids Res. 2016 Jul 8;44(12):5557-5570. doi: 10.1093/nar/gkw146.