معرفی
Maria Magdalena Araya Quezada is a Full Professor at the Institute of Nutrition and Food Technology, Professor Doctor Fernando Mönckeberg Barros, within the Faculty of Medicine at the University of Chile. With over 50 years of academic experience since earning her Physician-Surgeon degree in 1970 and her Doctorate from the University of Sydney in 1977, she has established herself as a leading expert in nutrition science with particular focus on celiac disease, food allergies, and copper metabolism.
Her research interests span multiple critical areas of nutritional science including celiac disease pathogenesis, gluten-free diet management, food intolerances, and the role of copper in human nutrition. She has published over 120 indexed scientific articles with significant contributions to understanding the immunological aspects of digestive disorders, particularly how dietary components interact with the gut microbiome and immune system in celiac disease.
Analysis of her 15 most recent publications reveals a consistent focus on practical challenges faced by individuals with gluten-related disorders, including dining-out experiences, availability and cost of gluten-free foods, and the safety of alternative ingredients like rice and oats in gluten-free diets. Her work bridges basic science with clinical applications, incorporating modern approaches like telemonitoring for dietary management and molecular biomarkers for disease detection.
Professor Araya has supervised multiple graduate students, including Karla Bascuñán Gamboa (2017) who researched microRNA expression in celiac disease and Cristina Morales Pezoa (2008) who studied copper metabolism. She has led significant research projects funded by FONDECYT, particularly investigating copper metabolism and its biomarkers. Her teaching portfolio includes graduate courses on digestive immunology, celiac disease updates, and restrictive diets for food intolerances, demonstrating her commitment to training the next generation of nutrition specialists.
