Oscar Medina

Position

Medical Sciences Researcher at Hospital Infantil de México, a National Health Institute

I am the head of the Immunometabolism laboratory in the Epidemiology, Endocrinology & Nutrition research unit.

My research primarily focuses on how intestinal immune cells regulate experimental models of Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis. Throughout my career, my research has been supported by prestigious organizations, including the National Council for Science and Technology and the Crohn’s and Colitis Foundation of America.

My journey in science began at the State of Mexico Autonomous University, where I earned my bachelor’s degree in Biology. I later completed my Ph.D. in Molecular Biomedicine at the Center for Research and Advanced Studies (Cinvestav) under the guidance of Vianney Ortiz-Navarrete. I further specialized through postdoctoral training at Emory University within the Departments of Pediatrics and Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, mentored by Tim Denning and Charles Parkos.

To date, I have served on the editorial boards of Gene Reports and Mediators of Inflammation. I am proud to be a member of several esteemed scientific communities, including The Mexican Academy of Sciences, The National Research System (SNII), The Society for Mucosal Immunology, The Mexican Society for Immunology, The American Association of Immunologists, and The American Society for Investigative Pathology.

Research Projects

Dirección de Investigación

Oscar Medina

1 min

Effect of gut microbiome metabolites on insulin resistance in pediatric patients with obesity and sarcopenia

Diana Villalpando, Paulina Zaldivar, Arleth Garibay, Oscar Medina

3 min

Role of IL-36 cytokines in the regulation of the immune response in intestinal mucosa

Laura Manzanares, Oscar Medina

2 min

Publications

Luvian-Morales, J., A. Rueda-Escalona, M. Delgadillo-González, et al. (2026). “Benefits of an anti-inflammatory diet compared to a low-residue diet during concurrent chemoradiation therapy for patients with locally advanced cervical cancer: A randomized clinical trial”. In: Front Nutr. AOP, pp. 1-32. DOI: 10.3389/fnut.2026.1835417.

De la Torre-Baez, R., M. Vizcarra-Soto, F. Valdez-Palomares, et al. (2026). “Colitogenic Environment Suppresses Notch/Mechanistic Target of Rapamycin-Mediated Epithelial Proliferation to Promote Goblet Cell Differentiation in the Colon”. In: Am J Pathol 196.4, pp. 900-919. DOI: 10.1016/j.ajpath.2025.12.011.

Olivera-Castillo, L., G. Grant, O. Medina-Contreras, et al. (2025). “Sea Cucumber (badionotus): Bioactivity and Wound Healing Capacity Vitro of Small Peptide Isolates from Digests of Whole-Body Wall or Purified Collagen”. In: Mar Drugs 23.11, p. 411. DOI: 10.3390/md23110411.

Hernández-Cuellar, E., K. Tsuchiya, O. Medina-Contreras, et al. (2025). “The Role of Inflammasomes in LPS and Gram-Negative Bacterial Sepsis”. In: J Clin Med 14.19, p. 7102. DOI: 10.3390/jcm14197102.

Prieto-Islas, M., E. Godoy-Dahbura, D. Villalpando-Sánchez, et al. (2025). “HPV vaccination improves immune response in children with respiratory papillomatosis”. In: Sci Rep 15.1, p. 29885. DOI: 10.1038/s41598-025-14787-2.

Jaimes-Ortega, G., T. Angeles-Floriano, G. Rivera-Torruco, et al. (2025). “Isthmin1 Upregulation in the Intestinal Microenvironment During Typhimurium Infection: Identification and Characterization of Isthmin1-Producing Cells”. In: Microorganisms 13.6, p. 1280. DOI: 10.3390/microorganisms13061280.

Castro-Manrreza, M., L. Romano, L. López-García, et al. (2025). “Persistent Stimulation of Human Mesenchymal Stem/Stromal Cells with TNF-\(\alpha\) and IFN-\(\gamma\) Affects the Release of Large Extracellular Vesicles with Immunoregulatory Phenotype”. In: Stem Cells Dev 34.13-14, pp. 291-303. DOI: 10.1089/scd.2025.0064.

Negrete-Méndez, H., G. Valencia-Toxqui, E. Martínez-Peñafiel, et al. (2025). “A Lambda-evo (\(\lambda\)) phage platform for Zika virus Eprotein display”. In: Appl Microbiol Biotechnol 109.1, p. 8. DOI: 10.1007/s00253-024-13380-3.

Jiménez-Pineda, A., J. Vique-Sánchez, O. Medina-Contreras, et al. (2024). “Screening of Leptin-LepR modulators using molecular docking and binding assay”. In: Bioinformation 20.5, pp. 404-411. DOI: 10.6026/973206300200404.

Cetina-Pérez, L. and O. Medina-Contreras (2024). “Editorial: Cervical cancer: updates from the Mexican national consensus”. In: Front Oncol 14, p. 1493334. DOI: 10.3389/fonc.2024.1493334.

Acevedo-Monroy, S., U. Hernández-Chiñas, L. Rocha-Ramírez, et al. (2024). “UNAM-HIMFG Bacterial Lysate Activates the Immune Response and Inhibits Colonization of Bladder of Balb/c Mice Infected with the Uropathogenic CFT073 coli Strain”. In: Int J Mol Sci 25.18, p. 9876. DOI: 10.3390/ijms25189876.

Maravelez Acosta, V., M. Crisóstomo Vázquez, L. Eligio García, et al. (2024). “Tumor-Suppressive Cross-Linking of Anti-. cruzi Antibodies in Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia”. In: Int J Mol Sci 25.15, p. 8307. DOI: 10.3390/ijms25158307.

Acevedo-Monroy, S., L. Rocha-Ramírez, D. Martínez Gómez, et al. (2024). “Polyvalent Bacterial Lysate with Potential Use to Treatment and Control of Recurrent Urinary Tract Infections”. In: Int J Mol Sci 25.11, p. 6157. DOI: 10.3390/ijms25116157.

Encarnacion-Garcia, M., R. De la Torre-Baez, M. Hernandez-Cueto, et al. (2024). “IFN-\(\gamma\) stimulates Paneth cell secretion through necroptosis mTORC1 dependent”. In: Eur J Immunol 54.9, p. e2350716. DOI: 10.1002/eji.202350716.

Vallejo-Ruiz, V., L. Gutiérrez-Xicotencatl, O. Medina-Contreras, et al. (2024). “Molecular aspects of cervical cancer: a pathogenesis update”. In: Front Oncol 14, p. 1356581. DOI: 10.3389/fonc.2024.1356581.

Hernández-Cuellar, E., K. Tsuchiya, R. Valle-Ríos, et al. (2023). “Differences in Biofilm Formation by Methicillin-Resistant and Methicillin-Susceptible aureus Strains”. In: Diseases 11.4, p. 160. DOI: 10.3390/diseases11040160.

Bose, T., O. Medina-Contreras, C. Fernandez, et al. (2023). “Editorial: Women in mucosal immunity”. In: Front Immunol 14, p. 1282709. DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2023.1282709.

Gutiérrez-Román, C., M. Meléndez Camargo, C. García Rojas, et al. (2023). “Rapid and Efficient Enrichment of Mouse Spinal Cord Microglia”. In: J Vis Exp. DOI: 10.3791/65961.

Angeles-Floriano, T., A. Sanjuan-Méndez, G. Rivera-Torruco, et al. (2023). “Leukocyte surface expression of the endoplasmic reticulum chaperone GRP78 is increased in severe COVID-19”. In: J Leukoc Biol 113.1, pp. 1-10. DOI: 10.1093/jleuko/qiac017.

Castellanos-Martínez, R., I. León-Vega, I. Guerrero-Fonseca, et al. (2023). “T cell functions and organ infiltration by leukemic T cells require cortactin”. In: J Leukoc Biol 113.3, pp. 315-325. DOI: 10.1093/jleuko/qiad001.

Torres-Arroyo, A., J. Martínez-Aguilar, A. Castillo-Villanueva, et al. (2023). “Immunoproteomics of cow’s milk allergy in Mexican pediatric patients”. In: J Proteomics 273, p. 104809. DOI: 10.1016/j.jprot.2022.104809.

Manzanares-Meza, L., C. Gutiérrez-Román, A. Jiménez-Pineda, et al. (2022). “IL-36\(\gamma\) is secreted through an unconventional pathway using the Gasdermin D and P2X7R membrane pores”. In: Front Immunol 13, p. 979749. DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2022.979749.

Avila-Bonilla, R., Á. López-Sandoval, J. Soto-Sánchez, et al. (2022). “Proteomic and Functional Analysis of the Effects of Quinoxaline Derivatives on histolytica”. In: Front Cell Infect Microbiol 12, p. 887647. DOI: 10.3389/fcimb.2022.887647.

Aparicio-Bautista, D., D. Chávez-Valenzuela, G. Ambriz-Álvarez, et al. (2022). “An Extremely Low-Frequency Vortex Magnetic Field Modifies Protein Expression, Rearranges the Cytoskeleton, and Induces Apoptosis of a Human Neuroblastoma Cell Line”. In: Bioelectromagnetics 43.4, pp. 225-244. DOI: 10.1002/bem.22400.

Rivera-Torruco, G., C. Martínez-Mendiola, T. Angeles-Floriano, et al. (2022). “Isthmin 1 is Expressed by Progenitor-Like Cells in the Lung: Phenotypical Analysis of Isthmin 1 Hematopoietic Stem-Like Cells in Homeostasis and during Infection”. In: J Immunol Res 2022, p. 2909487. DOI: 10.1155/2022/2909487.

Rodea, G., E. González-Villalobos, O. Medina-Contreras, et al. (2022). “Genomic characterization of two bacteriophages (vB_EcoS-phiEc3 and vB_EcoS-phiEc4) belonging to the genus Kagunavirus with lytic activity against uropathogenic Escherichia coli”. In: Microb Pathog 165, p. 105494. DOI: 10.1016/j.micpath.2022.105494.

Manzanares-Meza, L., R. Valle-Rios, and O. Medina-Contreras (2022). “Interleukin-1 Receptor-Like 2: One Receptor, Three Agonists, and Many Implications”. In: J Interferon Cytokine Res 42.2, pp. 49-61. DOI: 10.1089/jir.2021.0173.

Armenta-Medina, Y., I. Martínez-Vieyra, O. Medina-Contreras, et al. (2022). “Differentially expressed proteins in platelets derived from patients with hypertension”. In: J Hum Hypertens 36.7, pp. 640-650. DOI: 10.1038/s41371-021-00555-y.

Castro-Martínez, F., M. Encarnación-García, A. Candelario-Martinez, et al. (2021). “Evaluation and Quantification of Micro Epithelial Gaps in the Colonic Mucosa using Immunofluorescence Staining”. In: J Vis Exp. DOI: 10.3791/62204.

Martín-Hernández, R., R. Rodríguez-Canul, N. Kantún-Moreno, et al. (2021). “Comparative Transcriptomes of the Body Wall of Wild and Farmed Sea Cucumber badionotus”. In: Int J Mol Sci 22.8, p. 3882. DOI: 10.3390/ijms22083882.

Mancilla-Rojano, J., S. Ochoa, J. Reyes-Grajeda, et al. (2020). “Molecular Epidemiology of calcoaceticus-baumannii Complex Isolated From Children at the Hospital Infantil de México Federico Gómez”. In: Front Microbiol 11, p. 576673. DOI: 10.3389/fmicb.2020.576673.

Ngo, V., H. Abo, M. Kuczma, et al. (2020). “IL-36R signaling integrates innate and adaptive immune-mediated protection against enteropathogenic bacteria”. In: Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 117.44, pp. 27540-27548. DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2004484117.

Medina-Contreras, O., J. Luvián-Morales, F. Valdez-Palomares, et al. (2020). “IMMUNONUTRITION IN CERVICAL CANCER: IMMUNE RESPONSE MODULATION BY DIET”. In: Rev Invest Clin 72.4, pp. 219-230. DOI: 10.24875/RIC.20000062.

Manzanares-Meza, L. and O. Medina-Contreras (2020). “SARS-CoV-2 and influenza: a comparative overview and treatment implications”. In: Bol Med Hosp Infant Mex 77.5, pp. 262-273. DOI: 10.24875/BMHIM.20000183.

Alarcón-Sánchez, B., D. Guerrero-Escalera, S. Rosas-Madrigal, et al. (2020). “Nucleoredoxin interaction with flightless-I/actin complex is differentially altered in alcoholic liver disease”. In: Basic Clin Pharmacol Toxicol 127.5, pp. 389-404. DOI: 10.1111/bcpt.13451.

Olivera-Castillo, L., G. Grant, N. Kantún-Moreno, et al. (2020). “A Glycosaminoglycan-Rich Fraction from Sea Cucumber badionotus Has Potent Anti-Inflammatory Properties In Vitro and In Vivo”. In: Nutrients 12.6, p. 1698. DOI: 10.3390/nu12061698.

Alvarez-Herrera, S., R. Escamilla, O. Medina-Contreras, et al. (2020). “Immunoendocrine Peripheral Effects Induced by Atypical Antipsychotics”. In: Front Endocrinol (Lausanne) 11, p. 195. DOI: 10.3389/fendo.2020.00195.

Vásquez-Procopio, J., B. Osorio, L. Cortés-Martínez, et al. (2020). “Intestinal response to dietary manganese depletion in Drosophila”. In: Metallomics 12.2, pp. 218-240. DOI: 10.1039/c9mt00218a.

Calleja, L., J. Belmont-Díaz, O. Medina-Contreras, et al. (2020). “Omeprazole as a potent activator of human cytosolic aldehyde dehydrogenase ALDH1A1”. In: Biochim Biophys Acta Gen Subj 1864.1, p. 129451. DOI: 10.1016/j.bbagen.2019.129451.

Villagomez, F., O. Medina-Contreras, J. Cerna-Cortes, et al. (2020). “The role of the oncogenic Rab35 in cancer invasion, metastasis, and immune evasion, especially in leukemia”. In: Small GTPases 11.5, pp. 334-345. DOI: 10.1080/21541248.2018.1463895.

Jiménez-Osorio, A., A. Aguilar-Lucio, H. Cárdenas-Hernández, et al. (2019). “Polymorphisms in Adipokines in Mexican Children with Obesity”. In: Int J Endocrinol 2019, p. 4764751. DOI: 10.1155/2019/4764751.

Costa-Urrutia, P., A. Vizuet-Gámez, M. Ramirez-Alcántara, et al. (2019). “Obesity measured as percent body fat, relationship with body mass index, and percentile curves for Mexican pediatric population”. In: PLoS One 14.2, p. e0212792. DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0212792.

Jiménez-Osorio, A., C. Musalem-Younes, H. Cárdenas-Hernández, et al. (2019). “Common Polymorphisms Linked to Obesity and Cardiovascular Disease in Europeans and Asians are Associated with Type 2 Diabetes in Mexican Mestizos”. In: Medicina (Kaunas) 55.2, p. 40. DOI: 10.3390/medicina55020040.

Piedra-Quintero, Z., C. Serrano, N. Villegas-Sepúlveda, et al. (2019). “Myosin 1F Regulates M1-Polarization by Stimulating Intercellular Adhesion in Macrophages”. In: Front Immunol 9, p. 3118. DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2018.03118.

Antonio-Herrera, L., O. Badillo-Godinez, O. Medina-Contreras, et al. (2018). “The Nontoxic Cholera B Subunit Is a Potent Adjuvant for Intradermal DC-Targeted Vaccination”. In: Front Immunol 9, p. 2212. DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2018.02212.

Ngo, V., H. Abo, E. Maxim, et al. (2018). “A cytokine network involving IL-36\(\gamma\), IL-23, and IL-22 promotes antimicrobial defense and recovery from intestinal barrier damage”. In: Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 115.22, pp. E5076-E5085. DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1718902115.

Manzanares-Meza, L., C. Gutiérrez-Román, and O. Medina-Contreras (2017). “MALDI imaging: beyond classic diagnosis”. In: Bol Med Hosp Infant Mex 74.3, pp. 212-218. DOI: 10.1016/j.bmhimx.2017.03.004.

Camacho-Millán, R., E. Aguilar-Medina, H. Quezada, et al. (2017). “Characterization of Cry toxins from autochthonous Bacillus thuringiensis isolates from Mexico”. In: Bol Med Hosp Infant Mex 74.3, pp. 193-199. DOI: 10.1016/j.bmhimx.2017.03.002.

Guzmán-Ortiz, A., G. Aparicio-Ozores, R. Valle-Rios, et al. (2017). “Proteomic changes in a childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia cell line during the adaptation to vincristine”. In: Bol Med Hosp Infant Mex 74.3, pp. 181-192. DOI: 10.1016/j.bmhimx.2017.03.005.

Hernández-Trejo, J., D. Suárez-Pérez, I. Gutiérrez-Martínez, et al. (2016). “The pro-inflammatory cytokines IFN\(\gamma\)/TNF\(\alpha\) increase chromogranin A-positive neuroendocrine cells in the colonic epithelium”. In: Biochem J 473.21, pp. 3805-3818. DOI: 10.1042/BCJ20160390.

Gómez-Suárez, M., I. Gutiérrez-Martínez, J. Hernández-Trejo, et al. (2016). “14-3-3 Proteins regulate Akt Thr308 phosphorylation in intestinal epithelial cells”. In: Cell Death Differ 23.6, pp. 1060-1072. DOI: 10.1038/cdd.2015.163.

Medina-Contreras, O., A. Harusato, H. Nishio, et al. (2016). “Cutting Edge: IL-36 Receptor Promotes Resolution of Intestinal Damage”. In: J Immunol 196.1, pp. 34-38. DOI: 10.4049/jimmunol.1501312.

Nava, P., R. Kamekura, M. Quirós, et al. (2014). “IFN\(\gamma\)-induced suppression of \(\beta\)-catenin signaling: evidence for roles of Akt and 14.3.3\(\zeta\)”. In: Mol Biol Cell 25.19, pp. 2894-2904. DOI: 10.1091/mbc.E13-09-0512.

Geem, D., O. Medina-Contreras, M. McBride, et al. (2014). “Specific microbiota-induced intestinal Th17 differentiation requires MHC class II but not GALT and mesenteric lymph nodes”. In: J Immunol 193.1, pp. 431-438. DOI: 10.4049/jimmunol.1303167.

Weber, D., R. Sumagin, I. McCall, et al. (2014). “Neutrophil-derived JAML inhibits repair of intestinal epithelial injury during acute inflammation”. In: Mucosal Immunol 7.5, pp. 1221-1232. DOI: 10.1038/mi.2014.12.

Khounlotham, M., W. Kim, E. Peatman, et al. (2012). “Compromised intestinal epithelial barrier induces adaptive immune compensation that protects from colitis”. In: Immunity 37.3, pp. 563-573. DOI: 10.1016/j.immuni.2012.06.017.

Geem, D., O. Medina-Contreras, W. Kim, et al. (2012). “Isolation and characterization of dendritic cells and macrophages from the mouse intestine”. In: J Vis Exp, p. e4040. DOI: 10.3791/4040.

Medina-Contreras, O., D. Geem, O. Laur, et al. (2011). “CX3CR1 regulates intestinal macrophage homeostasis, bacterial translocation, and colitogenic Th17 responses in mice”. In: J Clin Invest 121.12, pp. 4787-4795. DOI: 10.1172/JCI59150.

Denning, T., B. Norris, O. Medina-Contreras, et al. (2011). “Functional specializations of intestinal dendritic cell and macrophage subsets that control Th17 and regulatory T cell responses are dependent on the T cell/APC ratio, source of mouse strain, and regional localization”. In: J Immunol 187.2, pp. 733-747. DOI: 10.4049/jimmunol.1002701.

Garay, E., G. Patiño-López, S. Islas, et al. (2010). “CRTAM: A molecule involved in epithelial cell adhesion”. In: J Cell Biochem 111.1, pp. 111-122. DOI: 10.1002/jcb.22673.

Medina-Contreras, O., G. Soldevila, G. Patiño-Lopez, et al. (2010). “Role of CRTAM during mouse early T lymphocytes development”. In: Dev Comp Immunol 34.2, pp. 196-202. DOI: 10.1016/j.dci.2009.09.009.

Valle-Rios, R., G. Patiño-Lopez, O. Medina-Contreras, et al. (2009). “Characterization of CRTAM gene promoter: AP-1 transcription factor control its expression in human T CD8 lymphocytes”. In: Mol Immunol 46.16, pp. 3379-3387. DOI: 10.1016/j.molimm.2009.07.016.