Rafael Luiz Vieira Mercuri

Holds a degree in Biotechnology from the Federal University of Bahia (UFBA). During his undergraduate studies, he worked for three years as a research fellow in the Laboratories of Tissue Biology and Histotechnology and Immunopathology at the Institute of Health Sciences (UFBA), conducting research in the field of head and neck malignant neoplasms, with a focus on the analysis of cells, proteins, and microRNAs in the tumor microenvironment of patients with oral squamous cell carcinoma. He is a PhD from the Interunit Program in Bioinformatics at the University of São Paulo (USP), also affiliated with the Sírio-Libanês Hospital, under the supervision of Dr. Pedro Galante. His research was focuses on the characterization of fixed retroelements and their role in the emergence of genetic innovations in humans and other model species. He also served as a PhD Visitor at the Broad Institute (Claussnitzer Lab), investigating the contribution of retroelements to cellular development in various biological contexts. He has experience in programming (Python, Bash, R), SQL databases, transcriptome analysis based on RNA-seq, and the investigation of structural genomic variations. (Source: Lattes Curriculum)