Serving the Public Interest Through Science: The Case of Puerto Rico During the COVID-19 Pandemic

Dr. Aníbal J. Valentín-Acevedo is an assistant professor at Universidad Central del Caribe Medical School in Bayamón, Puerto Rico. He obtained a B.S. from the University of Puerto Rico and a Ph.D. in Molecular Biosciences from Rutgers University-Piscataway where he studied molecular immunology under the advice of Dr. Lori R Covey. After finishing his Ph.D., Dr. Valentín transitioned into the Biotechnology sector and worked as a post-doctoral research scientist at Humigen (Medical Diagnostics Laboratories) in Hamilton N.J. and later completed a certificate program in Pharmaceutical and Clinical Trials Management, also from Rutgers University.

In 2013 he moved back to his native Puerto Rico and joined the University of Puerto Rico and later in 2016 he started at his current position at Universidad Central del Caribe, where he studies signaling pathways in immune cells in response to viral antigens and teaches medical immunology. Dr. Valentín is a member of the American Association of Immunologists, where he also served as a Public Policy Fellow and he was recently selected as a 2020 Health Disparities Research Institute Scholar.

Anibal is an art enthusiast, a passionate science advocate and the proud parent of two dogs.