Once I graduated in Biology (Biochemistry and Molecular Biology) at Universidad Autónoma de Madrid (UAM, Spain, 1986), I joined the Department of Pharmacology at the School of Medicine of the Universidad Complutense de Madrid (UCM) with a PhD fellowship and studied how high glucocorticoid levels generated by stress and depression provoked changes in the gene expression of brain opioids, contributing this way to hypertension development. After obtaining my PhD (1991), I moved to the Instituto de Investigaciones Biomédicas Alberto Sols (CSIC-UAM, Madrid, 1991-1995) as postdoctoral fellow where I investigated thyroid hormone regulated gene expression in brain, glial precursors and neurons, isolating new genes critical for mental retardation and other pathological signs of hypothyroidism. For my second postdoctoral training I was initially funded by an EMBO long-term fellowship and later by a contract from the Imperial Cancer Research Fund (ICRF, London, UK, 1995-2000). There I worked on the functional characterization of PKD (Protein Kinase D) and deciphered the first mechanisms of PKD activation and those regulating its intracellular localization. These initial investigations on PKD led me to identify and clone its first physiological substrate, Kidins220 (Kinase D interacting substrate of 220 kDa) as a novel evolutionary conserved transmembrane protein highly enriched in brain. Kidins220 is an effector of multiple neuronal signaling pathways such as those downstream neurotrophin, ephrin and glutamate receptors. KIDINS220 variants causing a novel rare syndrome with spastic paraplegia, intellectual disability and nystagmus (SINO syndrome) have been identified, increasing the interest of investigating this gene and the pathological mechanisms underlying this recently discovered disease. I obtained a tenured lab-head position at the Spanish Research Council (CSIC, Spain, 2000), and formed my group “Novel Targets in Neurodegeneration and Neuroprotection” at the Instituto de Investigaciones Biomédicas Alberto Sols (Madrid, Spain). I am also principal investigator (PI) in the Network Center for Biomedical Research in Neurodegenerative Diseases (CIBERNED, ISCIII, Spain), where our group joined in 2008. Our research is focused on understanding cellular and molecular mechanisms underlying neurodegeneration and cognitive impairment, and searching for neuroprotection strategies. I have received continuous funding as PI by several Institutions: 8 grants from the Spanish Government; 2 individual and 3 consortium biomedicine grants from “Comunidad de Madrid”; 5 collaborative projects with Companies; CIBERNED funding since 2008, including 3 collaborative intraCIBERNED projects. I have also participated in one European COST Action. I am main inventor in two patents, one of them international. I have developed high peer review and evaluator activity in national and international Evaluation Committees (EU Commission, MINECO/MICINN, ANEP/AEI) and I am member of BT-CIEN Scientific Committee, Coordinator of CIBERNED Scientific Training Program and Program Coordinator in CIBERNED Steering Committee.