Enrique Jaimovich

Enrique Jaimovich was born in Santiago, Chile and studied biochemistry at the University of Chile graduate studies in physiology both in Chile and Rochester, USA where he made a postdoctoral stage, his early career was devoted to both research and teaching. In this last area led the formation of a team to teach Biophysics and Cellular Physiology in the Faculty of Medicine.

In his research work he became known internationally for his works on ion channels in the membrane of the transverse tubules of muscle cells and their role in the process of muscle excitation-contraction coupling. These works were carried out in Chile as well as in France (invited Professor of the University of Nice, invited researcher CNRS, Gif sur Yvette) and United States (invited researcher at NIH).

In the 1990s he first described slow calcium signals not associated with contraction in muscle cells and a number of papers published since 2000 have gained him international recognition as a pioneer in the subject of excitation-transcription coupling in skeletal muscle (adaptation of muscle to exercise) and regulation of gene expression in muscle cells. The alterations that present these mechanisms in aging and muscular pathologies like the dystrophies and insulinresistance have originated numerous publications of high impact.

This research has been developed in Chile and has promoted the formationof various laboratories in the Faculty of Medicine, other faculties in Chile and abroad. Numerous graduate students have been trained in the Laboratory of Muscle Cell Physiology, graduating about 20 doctors and more than 15 scientists have made post doctoral stages.

Enrique Jaimovich has benefited from funding from national agencies (FONDECYT, FONDAP, Rings of Science and Technology) and international (Muscular Dystrophy Association of America, European Association against Myopathies); Belongs to diverse societies and scientific organizations; Including the American Physiological Society, Biophysical Society, The Society for Neuroscience, Chilean Biology Society (president Biophysics Section 1978-79, 1992-93), Society of Latin American Biophysicists, Chilean Society of Physiological Sciences (president 2000-2002), network Of laboratories AMSUD-Pasteur (Chilean delegate). He has been a member of the Editorial Committee of the Journal of Biological Chemistry.

In the field of academic administration, his periods include Director of the Department of Physiology and Biophysics (1983-1990) and the Directorate of the Institute of Biomedical Sciences (2002-2006), both from the Faculty of Medicine, University of Chile and University Senator (2013-2014).