As a graduate student in UPR- Rio Piedras, she became experienced in the isolation and structure elucidation of secondary metabolites belonging to different terpenoid skeletal classes. She discovered and characterized nearly 40 new compounds, some of them belonging to new classes of diterpene natural products. In collaboration with other laboratories and institutions, they found that many of those novel secondary metabolites were also biologically active, some of them exhibiting a variety of anti-plasmodic, anti-tuberculosis, and anti-inflammatory activities.
Now as an independent researcher, she has focused toward Puerto Rican endemic environments (including plants and microorganisms) for bioprospection to discover new antibiotics in nature. As part of her growing scientific career, she has focused toward learning techniques that can help her develop new projects. Since 2013, Dr. Rodríguez has been training and becoming confident in general aseptic techniques used in Microbiology. In addition she has participated in various workshops with the goal of becoming more proficient in the knowledge of areas out of her expertise: Microbiology, Genomics, Metabolomics and Ethnobotany.
Education – Professional Preparation
University of Puerto Rico – Rio Piedras, 1998, B.S. Chemistry
University of Puerto Rico – Rio Piedras, Ph.D, 2008, Organic Chemistry
Appointments
2013-present Associate Professor, Department of Chemistry, University of Puerto Rico at Humacao
2008-2013 Assistant Professor, Department of Chemistry, University of Puerto Rico at Humacao
2007-2008 Instructor, Department of Science and Technology, UMET, San Juan, Puerto Rico
2006-2007 Instructor, Department of Chemistry, University of Puerto Rico at Cayey
1999-2006 Research Assistant, Department of Chemistry, University of Puerto Rico at Rio Piedras
1998-1999 Teacher Assistant, Department of Chemistry, University of Puerto Rico at Rio Piedras
Languages
English and Spanish
Graduate Advisor
- Abimael D. Rodriguez, PhD. – Organic Chemistry– University of Puerto Rico,
Rio Piedras
Current and Former Trainees
- Rafael Maldonado – Lab alumni – Currently a Doctoral student at UPR Rio Piedras
- Valerie Ortiz – Lab alumni – Currently a Doctoral student at UPR Rio Piedras
- Elisa Ramos – Lab alumni – Currently a Medicine student at the University of Guadalajara
- Odalys Torres – Lab alumni – Currently a Doctoral student at Purdue University
- Ashley A. Sanchez – Lab alumni – Currently a Pharmacy student at UPR – RCM
- Erick X. Bayala – Lab alumni – Currently a Doctoral student at the University of Chicago
- Luis A. Cedeño – Lab alumni – Currently a Doctoral student at the University of Toledo
- Marie Claudio – Lab alumni – Currently a Doctoral student at the University of Illinois
- George Ma Cao – Lab alumni – Accepted in the UPR Medical Technology School, RCM O
- Over 10 undergraduates working on different research projects
Awards and other professional activities
- Elected to the Academic Senate – UPR – Humacao, 2015-present
- President of the Faculty Affairs Committee, Academic Senate – UPR – Humacao, 2016-present
- UPRH SACNAS Chapter Counselor, UPR – Humacao, 2014-2017
- Coordinator, Industrial Chemistry Bachelor Program, UPR – Humacao, 2011-2016
- Coordinator, Organic Chemistry Class and Laboratory, UPRH, 2011-2016
- PR Young Scientist Award, IUPAC, San Juan, 2011
- Tutoring program mentor, Chemistry Program Independent Studies Development Workshops (TADDEI in Spanish) instructor; UPR – Humacao, 2010-present
- Coordinator and Liaison, Puerto Rico Louis Stokes Activities for Minority Participation, UPR – Humacao, 2009-2012
- Academic Counselor, Chemistry Department, UPR – Humacao, 2008-2010
Synergistic Activities
- NIH IPERT Faculty, Development of Interactive Learning Modules in Ethnobotany and Natural Products Chemistry, UPRH, 2017-2018.
- Member of “Comité Timón de Bioprospección”, Puerto Rico Science and Research Trust, San Juan, P.R. 2015-2017.
- Researcher, Development of research projects with BS students from the Chemistry and Biology Departments at UPR – Humacao, 2011-present.
- Consultant and Mentor, Development of research projects with High school students for the Scientific Fair, UPR – Humacao, 2011-present.
- STEM Institute Faculty, Instructional Module Development, Opening Doors for High School Hispanic Students from the Puerto Rico Eastern Region Program (USDE Grant), UPR – Humacao, 2011-2014.
1. Zayas-Cruz, J. I., Rodríguez, I. I., Nieves,-Mendez, D. E., Castillo-Ramirez, J. 2012. Chapter: Cromatografía de Adsorción, in Book: Módulos Educativos de Ciencia.
2. Marrero, J., Rodríguez, I. I., Rodríguez, A. D. in Book: Comprehensive Natural Products II Chemistry and Biology; Mander, L., Lui, H.-W., Eds.; Elsevier: Oxford, 2010; volume 2, pp. 363–428.
3. Rodríguez, I. I., Rodríguez, A. D., Zhao, H. 2009, Aberranone: a Gorgonian-Derived Diterpene from Pseudopterogorgia elisabethae, J. Org. Chem. 74, 7581-7584.
4. Rodríguez, I. I., Rodríguez, A. D. 2009, Elisapterosin F: a Polycyclic Gorgonian-Derived Diterpene with a Facially Amphiphilic Structure, Tetrahedron Lett. 50, 5493-5496.
5. Shi, Y. P., Wei, X., Rodríguez, I. I., Rodríguez, A. D., Mayer, A. M. S. 2009, New Terpenoid Constituents of the Southwestern Caribbean Sea Whip Pseudopterogorgia elisabethae (Bayer), Including a Unique Pentanorditerpene, Eur. J. Org. Chem. 493-502.
6. Wei, X., Rodríguez, I. I., Rodríguez, A. D., Barnes, C. L. 2007, Caribenols A and B, Sea Whip-Derived Norditerpenes with Novel Tricarbocyclic Skeletons, J. Org. Chem. 72, 7386-7389.
7. Rodríguez, I. I., Rodríguez, A. D., Wang, Y., Franzblau, S. G. 2006, Ileabethoxazole: A Novel Benzoxazole Alkaloid with Antimycobacterial Activity, Tetrahedron Lett. 47, 3229-3232.
8. Rodríguez, I. I., Shi, Y. P., García, O. J., Rodríguez, A. D., Mayer, A. M. S., Sánchez, J. A., Ortega-Barria, E., González, J. 2004, New Pseudopterosin and seco-Pseudopterosin Diterpene Glycosides from Two Colombian Isolates of Pseudopterogorgia elisabethae and their Diverse Biological Activities, J. Nat. Prod. 67, 1672-1680.
9. Rodríguez, I. I., Rodríguez, A. D. 2003, Homopseudopteroxazole, a New Antimycobacterial Diterpene Alkaloid from Pseudopterogorgia elisabethae, J. Nat. Prod. 66, 855-857.
10. Shi, J. P., Rodríguez, I. I., Rodríguez, A. D. 2003, Elisapterosins D and E: Complex Polycyclic Diterpenes of the Rare Elisapterane Class of Natural Products from the Caribbean Sea Whip Pseudopterogorgia elisabethae (Bayer), Tetrahedron Lett. 44, 3249-3253.
11. Baran, P., Raptis, R. G., Rodríguez, A. D., Rodríguez, I. I., Shi, Y. P. 2003, Structural Characterization of Elisabatins B and C, J. Chem. Chryst. 33, 711-718.
12. Rodríguez, A. D., Rodríguez, I. I. 2002, Ileabethin: Isolation and Structure of a New Class of Perhydroacenaphthene Diterpene from the Caribbean Sea Whip Pseudopterogorgia elisabethae, Tetrahedron Lett. 43, 5601-5604.
13. Rodríguez, A. D., Ramírez, C., Rodríguez, I. I., Barnes, C. L. 2000, Novel Terpenoids from the West Indian Sea Whip Pseudopterogorgia elisabethae (Bayer). Elisapterosins A and B: Rearranged Diterpenes Possessing an Unprecedented Cagelike Framework, J. Org. Chem. 65, 1390-1398.
14. Rodríguez, A. D., Ramírez, C., Rodríguez, I. I. 1999, Sandresolides A and B: Novel nor-diterpenes from the Sea Whip Pseudopterogorgia elisabethae, Tetrahedron Lett. 40, 7627-7631.
15. Rodríguez, A. D., Ramírez, C., Rodríguez, I. I. 1999, Elisabatins A and B: New Amphilectane Type Diterpenes from the West Indian Sea Whip Pseudopterogorgia elisabethae, J. Nat. Prod. 62, 997-999.
16. Rodríguez, A. D., Ramírez, C., Rodríguez, I. I., González, E. 1999, Novel Antimycobacterial Benzoxazole Alkaloids from the West Indian Sea Whip Pseudopterogorgia elisabethae, Organic Lett. 1, 527-530.
Contributions to Science
Her career as a researcher has been very productive, achieving the publication of fourteen peer reviewed articles in recognized Journals as Organic Letters, Journal of Organic Chemistry, Journal of Natural Products and Tetrahedron Letters. In her early career she performed a chemotaxonomic analysis of an octocoral species, which resulted in the discovery of several new chemical entities. These structurally and biologically important secondary metabolites were used for the development of new research projects, in search of effective synthetic routes for their production in the laboratory. Also, her studies shed light into the complex biosynthetic machinery present in this organism. In addition, she was part of a privileged group invited to write a review in her research area. Their contribution for the scientific community in this area was appreciated as they were able to summarize approximately 25 years of active research. Her expertise in the discipline has prepared her to seek for novel molecules with antibiotic activities. Training of undergraduate students was also central during her development as a graduate student and it continues to be in her present academic role.