de Pablo Group

Cintia Menendez

Cintia was born in General San Martin, La Pampa, Argentina. She obtained her BS degree in Chemistry from Universidad Nacional del Sur. She conducted her PhD thesis on the design of new biomolecular tools and their application on systems of therapeutic interest, under advisor of Prof. Gustavo A Appignanesi (physical chemistry) and Prof. Dario C. Gerino (organic chemistry). She have graduated in November 2018. Currently, Cintia is a postdoctoral scholar in the de Pablo group at the Pritzker School of Molecular Engineering.

Cintia’s research career in Chemistry began in 2014 when she joined Gustavo Appignanesi and Dario Gerbino research groups at Universidad Nacional del Sur (Bahia Blanca, Argentina). Her PhD thesis work arises from the explicit recognition of the fact that understanding local modulation of different non-covalent interactions in nanometric environments is cornerstone in diverse biological contexts. In this sense, Cintia used atomistic molecular dynamics simulations to the study of non-covalent interactions relevant in biological systems, with the aim of understanding the underlying mechanisms of molecular recognition and their implications in bioengineering, as in the development of new tools for rational drug design.
In the de Pablo group, Cintia’s research centers on molecular description through atomistic molecular dynamics simulations of liquid crystal /amphihpile /water interfaces, small organic amphiphile self-assembly behavior and their response to external stimuli, in this sense, special efforts are done in increase understanding with regard to AZO-modified lipids bilayer and their dynamics associated with optical stimulation.

Modeling the Binding Mechanism of Remdesivir, Favilavir, and Ribavirin to SARS-CoV-2 RNA-Dependent RNA Polymerase

Byléhn, F., Menéndez, C.A., Perez-Lemus, G.R., Alvarado, W. and De Pablo, J.J., 2021. Modeling the binding mechanism of remdesivir, favilavir, and ribavirin to SARS-CoV-2 RNA-dependent RNA polymerase. ACS central science, 7(1), pp.164-174.

Molecular characterization of ebselen binding activity to SARS-CoV-2 main protease

Menéndez, C.A., Byléhn, F., Perez-Lemus, G.R., Alvarado, W. and de Pablo, J.J., 2020. Molecular characterization of ebselen binding activity to SARS-CoV-2 main protease. Science Advances, 6(37), p.eabd0345.