Silvio Alejandro López-Pazos

Silvio Alejandro López-Pazos has been a Professor and researcher in Microbiology at Bogotá-Colombia. He has 10 years experience of research on many different aspects of Biotechnology research such as insect rearing management and bioassays using recombinant toxins, studies of gene diversity in native populations and insect receptors analysis focused in aminopeptidase N. More recently his research has concentrated on novel insecticidal toxins from different biological sources for to improve the potential of this proteins, and evaluation of mutant toxins against lepidopteran and coleopteran species. In these studies molecular tools and rearing insect methods were applied for typing proteins activities and these studies showed that a Cry toxin had activity against T. solanivora, Premnotrypes vorax, Asymmathetes vulcanorum (potato pests) and Hypothenemus hampei (coffee crops pest). The projects have involved culturing insect populations in clean conditions for biological approaches and has involved considerable natural and artificial diets. Currently, Dr. Lopez-Pazos is focused in directed evolution of proteins for new applications in Biotechnology, and genetically modified organisms development for biochemical studies and applications in agriculture.