J. Cesar Cardenas

Dr. J. Cesar Cardenas is an Associate Professor affiliated with the University of Chile and holds an Adjunct Professor position at UC Santa Barbara. He leads the Cardenas Lab, part of the Geroscience Center for Brain Health and Metabolism within the Faculty of Sciences at Universidad Mayor, Santiago, Chile. His research focuses on inter-organellar calcium communication mediated by the inositol 1,4,5-trisphosphate receptor (InsP3R), with implications in cancer metabolism, neurodegenerative diseases, and aging.

Research interests include:

• Calcium signaling in cellular bioenergetics and autophagy
• ER-mitochondrial calcium cross-talk in cancer cell survival
• Pharmacological modulation of mitochondrial function
• Senescence-associated calcium reprogramming

His work has revealed critical dependencies of cancer cells on calcium signaling pathways, which selectively targetable for therapy. He collaborates with the Center for Aging and Longevity Studies (CALS) and Neuroscience Research Institute at UCSB.