Education

1985. Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, Spain, B.S. in Biology.
1992. Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, Spain, Ph.D. in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology.

Professional Experience

Academia:

• April 1998-2009: Sidney Kimmel Cancer Center, San Diego, CA. Assistant Professor .
• 1996-1998: Sidney Kimmel Cancer Center, San Diego, CA. Senior Research Scientist.
• 1994-1995: Sidney Kimmel Cancer Center, San Diego, CA. Postdoctoral associate;
  Magnus Pfahl, supervisor.
  
• 1992-1994: The Burnham Institute, La Jolla, CA. Postdoctoral fellow; Magnus Pfahl, supervisor.
  
• 1989, April-July. Trinity College, Dublin (Ireland). Visiting student; Keith Tipton, supervisor.
• 1986-1991: Institute of Organic Chemistry, CSIC, Madrid (Spain). PhD student; Ofelia Nieto, supervisor.
• 1984-1986: Center for Molecular Biology, CSIC-UAM, Madrid (Spain). Undergraduate student; Ricardo Amils and Jose P. Abad, supervisors.
  

Honors and Awards

• 1994-95: Postdoctoral fellowship (MEC).
• 1993: CAJA MADRID Award for the Doctoral Thesis.
  
• 1989: Short term fellowship for short stays at foreign countries (MEC).
  
• 1988-91: Predoctoral fellowship (MEC).
  
• 1987: ANTIBIOTICOS, S.A. Award, by the Spanish Society of Therapeutic Chemistry

Publications

1. S. Pérez-Rodríguez, M.A. Ortiz, J. García, R. Pereira, F. Rodríguez-Barrios, A.R. de Lera, and F.J. Piedrafita. Highly Twisted Adamantyl Arotinoids. Synthesis, antiproliferative effects and RXR transactivation profiles. Submitted to Eur. J. Med. Chem.

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2. P. Lorenzo, R. Alvarez, M.A. Ortiz, S. Alvarez, F.J. Piedrafita, and A.R. de Lera. Inhibition of IκB kinase-ß and anticancer activities of novel chalcone adamantyl arotinoids. Journal of Medicinal Chemistry, (2008), 51:5431-5440.

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3. C. Cavassotto, M.A. Ortiz, R. Abgayan, and F.J. Piedrafita. In silico identification of novel EGFR inhibitors with antiproliferative activity against cancer cells. Bioorganic and Medicinal Chemistry Letters, (2006), 16:1969-1974.
4. F.J. Lopez-Hernandez, M.A. Ortiz, and F.J. Piedrafita. The extrinsic and intrinsic apoptotic pathways are differentially affected by temperature upstream of mitochondrial damage. Apoptosis, (2006), 11:1339-1347.
5. W.F. Reynolds, A. Kumar, and F.J. Piedrafita. The human myeloperoxidase gene is regulated by LXR and PPARalpha ligands. Biochemical and Biophysical Research Communications, (2006), 349:846-854.

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6. F.J. Lopez-Hernandez, M.A. Ortiz, Y. Bayon, and F.J. Piedrafita. Retinoid-related molecules require caspase 9 for the effective release of Smac and the rapid induction of apoptosis. Cell Death and Differentiation, (2004), 11:154-164.
7. A. Kumar, F.J. Piedrafita, and Wanda F. Reynolds. PPAR? ligands regulate MPO expression by an estrogen-dependent mechanism involving the -463 G/A promoter polymorphism. Journal of Biological Chemistry, (2004), 279:8300-8315.
8. Y. Bayon, M.A. Ortiz, F.J. Lopez-Hernandez, P.H. Howe, and F.J. Piedrafita. The retinoid antagonist MX781 induces clusterin expression in prostate cancer cells via heat shock factor-1 and activator protein-1 transcription factors. Cancer Research, (2004), 64:5905-5912.

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9. Y. Bayon, M.A. Ortiz, F.J. Lopez-Hernandez, F. Gao, M. Karin, M. Pfahl, and F.J. Piedrafita. Inhibition of I?B kinase by a new class of retinoid-related anticancer agents that induce apoptosis. Molecular and Cellular Biology, (2003), 23: 1061-1074.
10. F.J. Lopez-Hernandez, M.A. Ortiz, Y. Bayon, and F.J. Piedrafita. Z-FA-fmk inhibits effector caspases but not initiator caspases 8 and 10, and demonstrates that novel anticancer retinoid-related molecules induce apoptosis via the intrinsic pathway. Molecular Cancer Therapeutics, (2003), 2: 255-263.
11. F.J. Lopez-Hernandez, M.A. Ortiz, Y. Bayon, and F.J. Piedrafita. Reduced concentrations of serum enhance the antiproliferative activity of retinoid-related molecules and accelerate the onset of apoptosis. Biochemical Pharmacology, (2003), 65:2021-2030.

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12. M.A. Ortiz, F.J. Lopez-Hernandez, Y. Bayon, M. Pfahl, and F.J. Piedrafita. Retinoid-related Molecules Induce Cytochrome c Release and Apoptosis through Activation of c-Jun NH(2)-Terminal Kinase/p38 Mitogen-activated Protein Kinases. Cancer Research, (2001), 61: 8504-8512.

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13. A.N. Fanjul, F.J. Piedrafita, H. Al-Shamma & M. Pfahl. Apoptosis induction and potent anti-ER negative breast cancer activity in vivo by a retinoid antagonist. Cancer Research, (1998), 58: 4607-4610.

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14. X.P. Lu, A. Fanjul, N. Picard, M. Pfahl, D. Rungta, K. Nared-Hood, B. Carter, F.J. Piedrafita, S. Tang, E. Fabrizio, and M. Pfahl. Novel retinoid-related molecules as apoptosis inducers and effective inhibitors of human lung cancer cells in vivo. Nature Medicine, (1997), 3: 686-690.
15. F.J. Piedrafita and M. Pfahl. Retinoid-induced apoptosis and Sp1 cleavage occur independently of transcription and require caspase activation. Molecular and Cellular Biology, (1997), 17: 6348-6358.

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16. F.J. Piedrafita, R.B. Molander, G. Vansant, E.A. Orlova, M. Pfahl and W.F. Reynolds. An Alu element in the myeloperoxidase promoter contains a composite SP1-thyroid hormone-retinoic acid response element. J. Biological Chemistry, (1996), 271: 14412-14420.

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17. F.J. Piedrafita, I. Bendik, M.A. Ortiz & M. Pfahl. Thyroid hormone receptor homodimers can function as ligand-sensitive repressors. Molecular Endocrinology, (1995), 9: 563-578.
18. F.J. Piedrafita, M.A. Ortiz & M. Pfahl. Thyroid Hormone Receptor-ß mutants associated with generalized resistance to thyroid hormone show defects in ligand-sensitive repression function. Molecular Endocrinology, (1995), 9: 1533-1548.
19. H.L. Bouterfa, F.J. Piedrafita, D. Doenecke & M. Pfahl. Regulation of H10 gene expression by nuclear receptors through an unusual response element: implications for regulation of cell proliferation. DNA and Cell Biology, (1995), 14: 909-919.
20. M.A. Ortiz, F.J. Piedrafita, M. Pfahl and R. Maki. TOR: A new orphan receptor expressed in the thymus that can modulate retinoid and thyroid hormone signals. Molecular Endocrinology, (1995), 9: 1679-1691.

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21. R.A. Pérez, E. Fernández-Alvarez, O. Nieto & F.J. Piedrafita. Kinetics of the reversible tight-binding inhibition of pig liver catechol-O-methyltransferase by [2-(3,4-dihydroxy-2-nitrophenyl)-vinyl]ketone. J. Enzyme Inhibition, (1994), 8: 123-131.

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22. T. Hermann, B. Hoffmann, F.J. Piedrafita, X.K. Zhang & M. Pfahl. V-erbA requires auxiliary proteins for dominant negative activity. Oncogene, (1993), 8: 55-65.
23. G. Salbert, A. Fanjul, F.J. Piedrafita, X.P. Lu, S.J. Kim, P. Tran & M. Pfahl. Retinoic acid receptors and retinoid X receptor-α down-regulate the transforming growth factor-ß1 promoter by antagonizing AP-1 activity. Molecular Endocrinology, (1993), 7: 1347-1356.
24. R.A. Pérez, E. Fernández-Alvarez, O. Nieto & F.J. Piedrafita. Inhibition of catechol-O-methyltransferase by 1-vinyl derivatives of nitroguaiacols. Kinetics of the irreversible inhibition by 3-(3-hydroxy-4-methoxy-5-nitrobenzylidene)-2,4-pentanedione. Biochemical Pharmacology, (1993), 45: 1973-1981.

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25. F.J. Piedrafita, E. Fernández-Alvarez, O. Nieto & K.F. Tipton. Kinetic and inhibition studies on catechol-O-methyltransferase. Affinity labeling by N-(3,4-dihydroxyphenyl)-maleimide. Biochemical J., (1992), 286: 951-958.
26. R.A. Pérez, E. Fernández-Alvarez, O. Nieto & F.J. Piedrafita. Dihydroxynitro-benzaldehydes and hydroxymethoxynitro-benzaldehydes: synthesis and biological activity as catechol-O-methyltransferase inhibitors. J. Medicinal Chemistry, (1992), 35: 4584-4588.

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27. F.J. Piedrafita, C. Elorriaga, E. Fernández-Alvarez & O. Nieto. Inhibition of catechol-O-methyltransferase by N-(3,4-dihydroxy-phenyl)maleimide. J. Enzyme Inhibition, (1990), 4: 43-50

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28. C. Elorriaga, M.A. Cortés, E. Fernández-Alvarez, O. Nieto & F.J. Piedrafita. Enzyme inhibitors XXII. Preparation and preliminary studies as COMT inhibitors of a new series of maleimides, isomaleimides, succinimides, and maleamic and succinamic acids. Anales de Química, (1987), 83C: 70-76.