Dr. Veronica Molina-Hernandez
Universidad de Córdoba (Spain)
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Academic Career Length
18Years (2009-Present)
(Calculated once Scilit publication data is synced: current year − year of first publication + 1)
Representative Publications
View All Publications1 February 2015 in Veterinary Parasitology
Journal Article
Veronica Molina-HernandezGMGrace Mulcahy
Grace MulcahyJPJosé Pérez
José PérezAMALVARO MARTINEZ-MORENO
ALVARO MARTINEZ-MORENOSDSheila Donnelly
Sheila Donnelly
Krystyna Cwiklinski +2
Major advances have been made in identifying potential vaccine molecules for the control of fasciolosis in livestock but we have yet to reach the level of efficacy required for commercialisation. The pathogenesis of fasciolosis is associated with liver damage that is inflicted by migrating and feeding immature flukes as well as host inflammatory immune responses to parasite-secreted molecules and tissue damage alarm signals. Immune suppression/modulation by the parasites prevents the development of protective immune responses as evidenced by the lack of immunity observed in naturally and experimentally infected animals. In our opinion, future efforts need to focus on understanding how parasites invade and penetrate the tissues of their hosts and how they potentiate and control the ensuing immune responses, particularly in the first days of infection. Emerging 'omics' data employed in an unbiased approach are helping us understand liver fluke biology and, in parallel with new immunological data, to identify molecules that are essential to parasite development and accessible to vaccine-induced immune responses.
Journal Article
LRLourdes Alcaide Ruggiero
Lourdes Alcaide RuggieroVeronica Molina-HernandezMGMaría del Mar Granados-Machuca
María del Mar Granados-MachucaJPJuan Manuel Dominguez Perez
Juan Manuel Dominguez PerezSeveral collagen subtypes have been identified in hyaline articular cartilage. The main and most abundant collagens are type II, IX and XI collagens. The minor and less abundant collagens are type III, IV, V, VI, X, XII, XIV, XVI, XXII, and XXVII collagens. All these collagens have been found to play a key role in healthy cartilage, regardless of whether they are more or less abundant. Additionally, an exhaustive evaluation of collagen fibrils in a repaired cartilage tissue after a chondral lesion is necessary to determine the quality of the repaired tissue and even whether or not this repaired tissue is considered hyaline cartilage. Therefore, this review aims to describe in depth all the collagen types found in the normal articular cartilage structure, and based on this, establish the parameters that allow one to consider a repaired cartilage tissue as a hyaline cartilage.
1 November 2011 in Veterinary Immunology and Immunopathology
Journal Article
MRMaria A Risalde
Maria A RisaldeVeronica Molina-HernandezPSP.J. Sánchez-Cordón
P.J. Sánchez-CordónMPMiriam Pedrera
Miriam PedreraRPRosario Panadero
Rosario PanaderoJGJ.C. Gómez-Villamandos
J.C. Gómez-Villamandos
+1
28 January 2021 in Veterinary Research
Journal Article
RZRafael Zafra
Rafael Zafra
Leandro Buffoni PerazzoRPRaúl Pérez-Caballero
Raúl Pérez-Caballero
Veronica Molina-HernandezMRMaría T. Ruiz-Campillo
María T. Ruiz-Campillo
FMFrancisco J. Martínez Moreno
Francisco J. Martínez Moreno
+2
In this work we report the protection found in a vaccination trial performed in sheep with two different vaccines composed each one by a cocktail of antigens (rCL1, rPrx, rHDM and rLAP) formulated in two different adjuvants (Montanide ISA 61 VG (G1) and Alhydrogel®(G2)). The parameters of protection tested were fluke burden, faecal egg count and evaluation of hepatic lesions. In vaccinated group 1 we found a significant decrease in fluke burden in comparison to both unimmunised and infected control group (37.2%; p = 0.002) and to vaccinated group 2 (Alhydrogel®) (27.08%; p = 0.016). The lower fluke burden found in G1 was accompanied by a decrease in egg output of 28.71% in comparison with the infected control group. Additionally, gross hepatic lesions found in vaccine 1 group showed a significant decrease (p = 0.03) in comparison with unimmunised-infected group. The serological study showed the highest level for both IgG1 and IgG2 in animals from group 1. All these data support the hypothesis of protection found in vaccine 1 group.
11 December 2023 in Frontiers in Veterinary Science
Journal Article
LFLuis Miguel Flores-Velázquez
Luis Miguel Flores-Velázquez
MRMaría Teresa Ruiz-Campillo
María Teresa Ruiz-Campillo
GHGuillem Herrera-Torres
Guillem Herrera-Torres
ÁMÁlvaro Martínez-Moreno
Álvaro Martínez-Moreno
FMFrancisco Javier Martínez-Moreno
Francisco Javier Martínez-Moreno
JPJosé Pérez
José Pérez
+4
Fasciola hepatica is distributed worldwide, causing substantial economic losses in the animal husbandry industry. Human fasciolosis is an emerging zoonosis in Andean America, Asia, and Africa. The control of the disease, both in humans and animals, is based on using anthelmintic drugs, which has resulted in increased resistance to the most effective anthelmintics, such as triclabendazole, in many countries. This, together with the concerns about drug residues in food and the environment, has increased the interest in preventive measures such as a vaccine to help control the disease in endemic areas. Despite important efforts over the past two decades and the work carried out with numerous vaccine candidates, none of them has demonstrated consistent and reproducible protection in target species. This is at least in part due to the high immunomodulation capacity of the parasite, making ineffective the host response in susceptible species such as ruminants. It is widely accepted that a deeper knowledge of the host-parasite interactions is needed for a more rational design of vaccine candidates. In recent years, the use of emerging technologies has notably increased the amount of data about these interactions. In the present study, current knowledge of host-parasite interactions and their implication in Fasciola hepatica vaccine development is reviewed.
5 June 2017 in Scientific Reports
Journal Article
MRMaría Teresa Ruiz-Campillo
María Teresa Ruiz-CampilloVeronica Molina-Hernandez
Alejandro Escamilla-SánchezMSMichael Stevenson
Michael Stevenson
JPJose Perez
Jose Perez
Krystyna Cwiklinski +3
Immune signatures of sheep acutely-infected withFasciola hepatica, an important pathogen of livestock and humans were analysed within the peritoneal compartment to investigate early infection. Within the peritoneum,F. hepaticaantibodies coincided with an intense innate and adaptive cellular immune response, with infiltrating leukocytes and a marked eosinophilia (49%). However, while cytokine qPCR analysis revealed IL-10, IL-12, IL-13, IL-23 and TGFβ were elevated, these were not statistically different at 18 days post-infection compared to uninfected animals indicating that the immune response is muted and not yet skewed to a Th2 type response that is associated with chronic disease. Proteomic analysis of the peritoneal fluid identified infection-related proteins, including several structural proteins derived from the liver extracellular matrix, connective tissue and epithelium, and proteins related to the immune system. Periostin and vascular cell adhesion protein 1 (VCAM-1), molecules that mediate leukocyte infiltration and are associated with inflammatory disorders involving marked eosinophilia (e.g. asthma), were particularly elevated in the peritoneum. Immuno-histochemical studies indicated that the source of periostin and VCAM-1 was the inflamed sheep liver tissue. This study has revealed previously unknown aspects of the immunology and pathogenesis associated with acute fascioliasis in the peritoneum and liver.
About Me
My basic research interest is focused on the pathogenesis and immune response induced by the parasite F. hepatica in ruminants to develop effective vaccines to control fasciolosis. Nowadays, I am the principal investigator of a project (VACUFAS) funded by FEDER budget searching new vaccine prototypes against F. hepatica. Apart from this, I am participating actively in four Spanish funded projects (Inter-Fas, MYCOTRAINING, ATTILA, COVID-19). Moreover, I have participated in 5 European (HELIVAC, FLUKVAC, PARAGONE, PARAVAC, ASFRIK). Along my scientific career, I have published 35 peer-reviewed articles (D1: 21; Q1: 9; Q2: 5) in relevant journals mainly in the Area of Veterinary Sciences, 12 in public veterinary specialised journals and 4 book chapters. My h-index is 10 with 326 total citations (SCOPUS). Additionally, I have supervised two Theses (2017 and 2018), two Master project (2017 and 2020) and one End of degree project (2019) at UCO, and, currently, I am the main supervisor of one Master project and two End Degree projects as well as the co-supervisor of one Master project. My work has been presented in 73 international/national congresses participating as Congress organiser in two of them. I am teaching (lectures and practical teaching) in the Veterinary Medicine degree at University of Cordoba (Subjects: Cytology and Histology, General Anatomical Pathology and Systemic Anatomical Pathology) accumulating more than 500 hours so far.