Eloi Camprubi Casas

Job Description

I’m a new assistant professor of Astrobiochemistry at the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley. Started my lab (https://eloicamprubi.com/) just a few months ago and am now actively recruiting lab members. I hold two B.S. degrees – in biology and in biochemistry – from the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona (Spain). I completed a Masters of Research in molecular biophysics at University College London (UK), and obtained my PhD in chemistry – under the mentorship of Profs. Nick Lane and John Ward – also at UCL. I’m an awardee of the University of Texas System’s STARs Program (US) and of the Human Frontier Science Program (international), and a former research fellow of ‘la Caixa’ Foundation (Spain) and the Origins Center (Netherlands).

How did life begin? What are the chemical precursors to life? Join us and help us figure it out!

My lab focuses on prebiotic chemistry – particularly on autocatalytic and pre-genetic evolutionary processes – and on chemical biosignatures for space exploration. I enjoy working in an interdisciplinary way – with a joint appointment in UTRGV’s Departments of Biology and Chemistry – and with a diverse range of people. I’m proud of having supervised a total of 13 research students so far. Our work focuses on probing the transition between geo- and biochemistry, on understanding the laws of living systems, on chemical biosignatures for space exploration, and on studying biological traits emerging in autocatalytic systems.