Gustavo Valbuena, MD, PhD

Gustavo Valbuena, MD, PhD, Assistant Professor, Director of the Master in Medical Science Program. Dr. Valbuena is a physician-scientist with training in Anatomical, Clinical, and Experimental Pathology. He obtained his MD degree from Javeriana University in Bogota, Colombia.  He subsequently completed residency training in Pathology at the University of Texas Medical Branch (UTMB) in Galveston, Texas, where he also received a Ph.D in Experimental Pathology in 2003.  His expertise includes pathogenesis, immunology, and development of animal models and in vitro systems for the study of rickettsial diseases. The research interests of his laboratory currently focus on four areas that are funded by NIH: 1) role of the endothelium in the regulation of the anti-rickettsial immune response; 2) identification of rickettsial antigens recognized by T cells and B cells (the first step in the development of an anti-rickettsial vaccine); 3) optimization of a humanized mouse model of rickettsial infections; and 4) development of a mouse model of scrub typhus, a disease caused by Orientia tsutsugamushi. Dr. Valbuena is also interested in understanding the epidemiology and ecology of rickettsial diseases.  He addresses this aspect through his collaboration with scientists in Latin America, particularly Colombia.  Lastly,  Dr. Valbuena is heavily involved with biomedical graduate education.  He is currently developing the curriculum of a new PhD program in Translational Medicine using a new approach that focuses on competencies.