UTSA Today Home

UTSA microbiologist Jose Lopez-Ribot elected president of international society

Jose Lopez-Ribot

Jose Lopez-Ribot

Share this Story

By Christi Fish
Associate Director of Media Relations

(Sept. 1, 2011) -- Jose L. Lopez-Ribot, professor of microbiology in the UTSA College of Sciences Department of Biology and associate director of the South Texas Center for Emerging Infectious Diseases, has been elected to serve as the 2012 president of the Medical Mycology Society of the Americas. Medical mycology is the study of fungal organisms that cause infectious diseases.

Lopez-Ribot will be the second UTSA professor to serve as president of the international Society. UTSA Associate Professor of Microbiology and Immunology and STCEID member Floyd L. Wormley Jr. served as the society's youngest president in 2010.

A native of Spain, Lopez-Ribot is a pharmacist who transitioned into medical mycology research following receipt of his doctorate degree in microbiology and his Pharm.D. from the University of Valencia in Valencia, Spain, in 1991. His research focuses on understanding and preventing the spread of Candida albicans, commonly associated with superficial yeast infections and a leading cause of hospital-acquired infections in the United States.

The fungus, which proves fatal in 30-50 percent of patients with compromised immune systems, forms biofilms on catheters and other medical devices. Those biofilms give the fungus a safe place to grow and spread, making infections extremely difficult to treat.

Lopez-Ribot's career is marked by an enormous body of work. He is an author of more than 100 articles, 14 books or book chapters, and more than 200 abstracts for meetings. Additionally, he holds three U.S. patents for discoveries he and his collaborators made during the course of their C. albicans research. He also is an ad-hoc reviewer for more than 60 scholarly journals, some published in Spanish.

"The Medical Mycology Society of the Americas brings together microbiologists from North, Central and South America in a forum that allows them to share knowledge, develop professionally and establish new international research collaborations," said Lopez-Ribot. "I am privileged to have the opportunity to serve this organization, which represents many of the best medical mycologists in the world."

 

 

Events

Submit an Event


Spotlight

UTSA Bold Promise CTA

UTSA’s Mission

The University of Texas at San Antonio is dedicated to the advancement of knowledge through research and discovery, teaching and learning, community engagement and public service. As an institution of access and excellence, UTSA embraces multicultural traditions and serves as a center for intellectual and creative resources as well as a catalyst for socioeconomic development and the commercialization of intellectual property - for Texas, the nation and the world.

UTSA’s Vision

To be a premier public research university, providing access to educational excellence and preparing citizen leaders for the global environment.

UTSA’s Core Values

We encourage an environment of dialogue and discovery, where integrity, excellence, inclusiveness, respect, collaboration and innovation are fostered.

UTSA’S Destinations

UTSA is a proud Hispanic Serving Institution (HSI) as designated by the U.S. Department of Education .

Our Commitment to Inclusivity

The University of Texas at San Antonio, a Hispanic Serving Institution situated in a global city that has been a crossroads of peoples and cultures for centuries, values diversity and inclusion in all aspects of university life. As an institution expressly founded to advance the education of Mexican Americans and other underserved communities, our university is committed to promoting access for all. UTSA, a premier public research university, fosters academic excellence through a community of dialogue, discovery and innovation that embraces the uniqueness of each voice.

Related Links