Research interests
• Drug design
•
Biomaterials design
•
Receptor-ligand interactions
Profile
Dr. Iris Natzielly Serratos Álvarez works in the Department of Chemistry at Universidad Autónoma Metropolitana, Iztapalapa Campus. She holds Level I membership in Mexico’s National System of Researchers, has earned the PRODEP Profile recognition, and belongs to the Surface Physical Chemistry Research Group at UAM, where she serves as Technical Coordinator (since 2022). She coordinated the Biotechnology and Bioengineering Network from October 12, 2023, to February 3, 2026.
Her research focuses on electrostatic receptor–ligand interactions, which she studies using experimental techniques and computational tools to describe molecular mechanisms involved primarily in degenerative diseases, as well as in technologically and environmentally relevant systems, including water treatment, corrosion, tissue engineering, and biotechnology.
She has authored 30 articles in indexed journals, 17 articles in the UAM Azcapotzalco Journal, 5 book chapters, and 12 full conference proceedings. She has also presented her work at more than 100 national and international conferences.
Dr. Serratos has served as reviewer for Current Pharmaceutical Design (2019–2024) and for the Revista Mexicana de Ingeniería Química (2020). She has also evaluated research proposals for SECIHTI and has participated in peer-review committees for research projects, academic groups, and PRODEP desirable-profile evaluations.
She has secured research funding through several competitive projects, including:
1 - CAEN funds, Committee for Aid and Education in Neurochemistry, Research supplies for use in the applicant’s home laboratory, $2400 USD (2011).
2 - PROMEP New Full-Time Faculty Support Program, September 2013 – August 2014.
3 - Basic Science Project 2011, Young Researcher category, CONACyT No. 168692 (August 29, 2013 – August 28, 2015).
4 - DCBI Special Program for Support of Teaching and Research Projects 2020: Real-time measurement of insulin release by pancreatic beta cells through Raman signal amplification using gold nanoparticles.
5 - DCBI Special Program for Support of Teaching and Research Projects 2021: Protocol for the study of molecular receptor–ligand interactions.
6 - DCBI Special Program for Support of Teaching and Research Projects 2024: Study of compostable biopolymer materials developed from banana peel (collaborator).
7 - MP012 BIO-POLI-UAM Project: Agricultural and aquaculture applications of compostable biopolymers derived from banana peel, UAM–IPN Innova Metro Politec Interinstitutional Collaboration Call (2024–2026).
8 - OTOMECAMOL Project: Ototoxicity as a side effect in Mexico City residents receiving antibiotics and anticancer drugs: molecular mechanisms, search for otoprotective compounds, and high-risk genetic associations, UAM–IPN Innova Metro Politec Interinstitutional Collaboration Call (2024–2026).
9 - UAM Rectoría funded project: Diabetes and hearing loss: two public health challenges in Mexico with a molecular basis in protein–ligand interactions.
Dr. Serratos actively contributes to human resource training and participates in teaching, research, scientific outreach, and science communication activities with strong social commitment. In recognition of her academic, scientific, and educational trajectory, the Organización Internacional para la Inclusión y Calidad Educativa (OIICE) awarded her an Honorary Doctorate in Cusco, Peru, on January 17, 2026.
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