Dr. Irene Romero holds a degree in Biological Sciences from the Complutense University of Madrid (UCM) in 2002 and a degree in Food Science and Technology from the UCM in 2005. In 2003, she joined the "Science and Technology of Plant Products" group at the Instituto del Frío (IF-CSIC, Madrid) with a project-associated contract. She obtained an I3P grant and an I3P contract before completing her PhD. The research focused on the beneficial effect of high-level CO2 pretreatment on improving the quality of Cardinal table grapes during low-temperature storage. Specifically, she studied the metabolic response to phenylpropanoids and pathogenesis-related proteins (PRs). She received the Extraordinary PhD Award in 2009. She is currently the IP2 of a National Plan project where she is going to study the role of high-level CO2 treatment in reversing RDR in blackberries, as well as in maintaining postharvest quality. In 2019, she obtained the I3 certificate and the ANECA accreditation (PEP). She has been a member of COST Action FA1106 as well as COST CA18210. She has been an Associate Professor at the Faculty of Biology, UCM, Madrid, in the Department of Genetics, Physiology, and Microbiology (2021) and has participated in presenting seminars at the Faculty of Biology of the UCM and at the European University since 2014.