Associate Professor, Environmental and Occupational Health
Public Health

Air pollution toxicology, particulate matter toxicology, advanced materials toxicology, inhalation toxicology, cardiovascular diseases and metabolic disease. Oxidative stress molecular signaling.

www.faculty.uci.edu/profile.cfm?faculty_id=7082

- Editorial Board Member of Particle and Fibre Toxicology https://particleandfibretoxicology.biomedcentral.com/
- Current Opinion in Toxicology (The Official Journal of the International Union of Toxicology - https://www.iutox.org/) https://www.journals.elsevier.com/current-opinion-in-toxicology
- Editorial Board Member of Toxicological Sciences
https://academic.oup.com/toxsci

2000 - 2002 postdoctoral fellow in Toxicology (Air Pollution) at the Center for Research and Advanced Studies (Cinvestav) in Mexico City.

I am an Associate Professor of Toxicology in the Department of Environmental and Occupational Health at UCI, and my research is focused on Inhalation toxicology in response to particles or other toxicants using in vitro and in vivo models by the establishment of the mechanistic response through inflammation, tissue injury, oxidative stress signaling that lead to pulmonary disease and diseases beyond the lung (cardiovascular system, renal dysfunction, metabolic diseases and in utero toxicity). Toxicology and biointeraction of advanced materials (nanomaterials and microplastic).

1999 Young Scientist Award of the Year, EUROTOX’99, Oslo, Norway, June 27-30.
2005 Young Investigator Award, Second Workshop on Comparative Aspects of Oxidative Stress in Biological Systems, Institute for Free Radical Biology and Medicine, Louisiana State University Health Science Center of USA, La Paz Baja California Sur, México, February15 – 18.
2011 Young Investigator Award, Inhalation Respiratory Speciality Section, Society of Toxicology, USA.
2015 1st place – Award in innovation in BioNanoTechnology for the study Protein corona as a tool to selectively direct iron oxide nanoparticles to macrophages and increase their biocompatibility and efficiency, awarded by Cinvestav and Neolpharma Inc., Mexico City, Mexico.
2016 Travel Award for Aidee Solorio Rodriguez (PhD student), “Formation and Characterization of Protein Corona Around of SiO2-PEG-Tf NP and Its Implications in Cellular Uptake”. presented in the 8th International Nanotoxicology Congress 2016. 1 – 4 Jun, Boston, Massachusetts, USA.
2016 3rd place- IUTOX Trainee Award – Best poster awarded to Vicente Escamilla Rivera (PhD student), “In vitro and in vivo biocompatibility evaluation of hydroxyapatite coatings deposited by high velocity oxygen fuel on micromplants for bone prosthetic applications” presented at the XIV International Congress of Toxicology 2016. Oct 3 - 6, Mérida, México.
2021 Meeting Award - to Josefina Poblano Bata (MSc student), Chemical and toxicological characterization of the Extracted Organic Matter of PM2.5 collected in the north of the AMVM. Latin American Association of Environmental Mutagenesis, Carcinogenesis and Teratogenesis Virtual 2021, Oct 21-23, Virtual, host country Mexico.

I graduated in Veterinary Medicine at the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM) in 1995, and received my PhD in Toxicology from the School of Biological Sciences of the University of Surrey, England in 2000. Subsequently, I conducted postdoctoral studies in Air Pollution Toxicology at the Center for Research and Advanced Studies (Cinvestav) in Mexico City, where I further developed a distinguished career as a Research Professor in Toxicology at the Department of Toxicology with acknowledged expertise in inhalation toxicology. I have also mentored PhD (10) and MSc (21) students, as well as postdocs and BSc projects. Among my teaching duties are preclinical toxicology, respiratory and cardiovascular toxicology, in vitro toxicology and nanotoxicology courses, and mechanisms of toxicity.

Prominent publications (*depicts participation of post-graduate students or posdocs):
1. A De Vizcaya-Ruiz, ME Gutiérrez-Castillo*, M Uribe-Ramirez, ME Cebrián, V Mugica-Alvarez, J. Sepúlveda, I Rosas, E Salinas, C Garcia-Cuéllar, F Martínez, E Alfaro-Moreno, V Torres-Flores, A Osornio-Vargas, C Sioutas, P M Fine, M Singh, M D Geller, T Kuhn, A Eiguren-Fernandez, A Miguel, R Schiestl, R Reliene, J Froines. Characterization and in vitro biological effects of concentrated particulate matter from Mexico City. Atmospheric Environment, 40: S583–S592. (2006). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.atmosenv.2005.12.073

2. Guerra R.*, Vera-Aguilar E., Uribe-Ramirez M., Gookin G., Camacho J., Osornio-Vargas A. R., Mugica-Alvarez V., Angulo-Olais R., Campbell A., Froines J., Kleinman T.M., De Vizcaya-Ruiz A. Exposure to inhaled particulate matter activates early markers of oxidative stress, inflammation and unfolded protein response in rat striatum. Toxicology Letters. (2013); 222: 146-154. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.toxlet.2013.07.012

3. Octavio Gamaliel Aztatzi-Aguilar*, Marisela Uribe-Ramírez, José Antonio Arias-Montaño, Olivier Barbier, Andrea De Vizcaya-Ruiz. Acute and subchronic exposure to air particulate matter induces expression of angiotensin and bradykinin-related genes in the lungs and heart: angiotensin-II type-I receptor as a molecular target of particulate matter exposure. Particle and Fibre Toxicology (2015) 12:17. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12989-015-0094-4

4. Aztatzi-Aguilar O. G.*, Uribe-Ramírez M., Narváez-Morales J., De Vizcaya-Ruiz A., Barbier O. Early kidney damage induced by subchronic exposure to PM2.5 in rats. Particle and Fibre Toxicology (2016) 13:68. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12989-016-0179-8

5. Escamilla-Rivera V.*, Uribe-Ramirez M., Lozano O., Lucas S., De Vizcaya-Ruiz A. Protein corona acts as a protective shield against Fe3O4-PEG inflammation and ROS-induced toxicity in human macrophages. Toxicology Letters (2016); 240: 172-184. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.toxlet.2015.10.018

6. - Morales-Rubio R. A.*, Alvarado-Cruz I., Manzano-León N., Andrade-Oliva M. A., Uribe-Ramirez M., Quintanilla-Vega B., Osornio-Vargas A., De Vizcaya-Ruiz A. In utero exposure to ultrafine particles promotes placental stress-induced programming of renin-angiotensin system-related elements in the offspring results in altered blood pressure in adult mice. Particle and Fibre Toxicology (2019) 16:7, 1-16. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12989-019-0289-1

7. - A. Jiménez-Chávez*, A. Solorio-Rodríguez‡, V. Escamilla-Rivera, D. Leseman, R. Morales-Rubio, M. Uribe-Ramírez, L. Campos-Villegas, I. Medina-Ramirez, L. Arreola-Mendoza, F.R. Cassee, A. De Vizcaya-Ruiz. Inflammatory response inhibits surfactant protein A expression after TiO2 or ZnO NPs exposure in A549 human alveolar epithelial cells. (2021) Environmental Toxicology and Pharmacology 86: 103654. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.etap.2021.103654

8. Russell A. Morales-Rubio*, Omar Amador-Muñoz, Irma Rosas-Pérez, Yessenia Sánchez-Pérez, Claudia García-Cuéllar, Patricia Segura-Medina, Álvaro Osornio-Vargas, and A. De Vizcaya-Ruiz. Exposure to PM2.5 induces airway hyperresponsiveness and inflammation via the AhR pathway in a sensitized Guinea pig asthma-like model. Toxicology (2022) 465: 153026. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tox.2021.153026

9. Jiménez-Chávez A, Morales-Rubio R, Sánchez-Gasca E, Rivera-Rosas M, Uribe-Ramírez M, Amador-Muñoz O, Martínez-Domínguez YM, Rosas-Pérez I, Choy EH, Herman DA, Kleinman MT, De Vizcaya-Ruiz A. Subchronic co-exposure to particulate matter and fructose-rich-diet induces insulin resistance in male Sprague Dawley rats. Environ Toxicol Pharmacol. 2023 Apr 17;100:104115. https://doi:10.1016/j.etap.2023.104115

Complete List of Published Work: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2097-0464

Previous: - Final stage of a pilot plant for the manufacture of cemented and non-cemented hip prostheses with an automated system for the production of Hydroxyapatite, including histocompatibility protocols "in vivo". Granting Institution: CONACYT - 221791, Program for Research, Technological Development and Innovation 2014, together with the company Mextrauma, SA de CV, Mexico. 2015 - 2016. Funding amount: $ 203,021 USD. Role: Co-PI. 2014 -2015. - National Nanotoxicological Evaluation System (SINANOTOX). Granting Institution: CONACYT- Scientific Development Projects to Address National Problems 2017, 2017, 1602701-67. Funding amount: $ 182,719 USD. Role: Co-PI. 2018-2020. - Strengthening of the Toxicology Research and Service Laboratory (LISTO- Laboratorio de investigación y Servicio en Toxicología) and the inhalation toxicology experimentation laboratory (LETI - Laboratorio de Experimentación en Toxicología Inhalatoria). Funding Source: Conacyt - Support Program for Scientific, Technological and Innovation Activities, 314824. September 1 to November 20, 2020. Funding amount: $ 149,120 USD. Role: PI. 2020. - Metabolic alteration due to the exposure to atmospheric particles: formation of lipid droplet and induction of insulin resistance. Granting Institution: CONACYT, Basic Science 2016-01, 286739. 2018-2021. Funding amount: $ 101,510 USD. Role: PI. 2016 - 2022. - The role of aryl hydrocarbon (AhR) receptor in the induction of asthma, immunomodulation and cell proliferation in an animal model, from exposure to air pollution. Granting Institution: CONACYT-Secretary of Foreign Affairs, 2016-01, 286773. 2018-2021. Funding amount: $ 186,069 USD. Role: PI. 2016 - 2021. Recent: - In preparation

Society of Toxicology (IRSS, NAMSS, HOT)

Sociedad Mexicana de Toxicologia

Professor in Toxicology (Full time researcher level 3D)
Department of Toxicology, Cinvestav-IPN), Mexico City, Mexico 2015—2021

Sabbatical Stay in the Genomics and Nanotoxicology Laboratory
Mechanistic Studies Division, Health Canada, Ottawa, Canada, with Dr. Sabina Halappanavar. 2018—2019

Academic Coordinator, Master’s in Science in Toxicology
Department of Toxicology, Cinvestav-IPN), Mexico City, Mexico 2013—2018

Academic Coordinator, Doctorate in Science in Toxicology
Department of Toxicology, Cinvestav-IPN), Mexico City, Mexico 2013—2018

Associate Professor in Toxicology (Full time researcher level)
Department of Toxicology, Cinvestav-IPN), Mexico City, Mexico 2005—2014

Assistant Professor in Toxicology (Full time researcher level)
Department of Toxicology, Cinvestav-IPN), Mexico City, Mexico 2004—2002

Research stay at the Toxicology and Environmental Medicine Division
Environmental Public Health Division at EPA with Dr. Urmila Kodavanti 2007—2007

Environmental Health Sciences

Public Health

Center for Occupational and Environmental Health

Air Pollution Health Effects Laboratory

Link to this profile
https://faculty.uci.edu/profile/?facultyId=7082

Last updated
11/21/2023