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HONORIS CAUSA SANTIAGO MAS-COMA

HONORIS CAUSA SANTIAGO MAS-COMA

Professor, Human Parasitology Unit, Departamento de Parasitologia, Facultad de Farmacia, Universidad de Valencia, Valencia, Spain.

Born: 7-6-1949

- Director and Chairman

- President Elect of the International Federation of Tropical Medicine (IFTM)

- Expert Member of the World Health Organization (WHO/OMS)

- Member of the International Order of Merit (IOM)

- Past-President of the European Federation of Parasitologists (EFP)

- Coordinator of the EFP Parasitic Disease Threat Quick Response Committee

- Past-President of the Spanish Society of Parasitology (SEP)

- Director of the WHO Collaborating Centre on Fascioliasis and Its Snail Vectors

- Director of the FAO-United Nations Reference Centre for Parasitology

- Director of the International Master’s Course on Tropical Parasitic Diseases

- Human Parasitology Unit, Departamento de Parasitologia, Facultad de Farmacia, Universidad de Valencia

Professor of Parasitology (tenure chairman position) at the University of Valencia since 1981.

Expert Member of the World Health Organization and its WHO-STAG Committee (WHO Headquarters, Geneva) since 2001, currently holds the position of Director of the Human Parasitology Unit of the Valencia University, as well as the positions of Director of the “WHO Collaborating Centre on Fascioliasis and Its Snail Vectors” (WHO Headquarters, Geneva) and the “FAO-United Nations Reference Centre for Parasitology” (FAO Headquarters, Rome), whose designations as centers achieved in 2011 and 2013, respectively. His worth noting international positions include President-Elect and subsequent President of the International Federation of Tropical Medicine (2012-2020), President of the European Federation of Parasitologists (EFP) (2004-2012), Member of the Executive Board of the EFP (1992-2000), Member of the Executive Board of the World Federation of Parasitology (WFP) (2006-2014), General Coordinator of the Parasitic Disease Threat Quick Response Committee of the EFP (2012-act.), Adviser of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA Headquarters, Vienna) (2005-act.), Member of the Advisory Group on Neglected Zoonotic Diseases (WHO, Headquarters, Geneva) (2011-act.) and Member of the Board of the Latin American Federation of Parasitology (FLAP) (2001-act.), positions all crucial to carry out the global research lines of the centres he leads and facilitated by his dominance of English, French, German and Spanish languages at all levels. His extensive research career has focused primarily on helminth parasites and parasitic diseases, highlighting the public health interest but also in veterinary medicine. The objectives of his studies have focused and continue focusing on parasitic diseases, especially zoonotic and vector-borne diseases as fascioliasis and Chagas disease, but also on malaria, without forgetting several initial years of basic research in ecology and evolution in the model of helminths/small mammals. The multidisciplinary contributions on human fascioliasis should be highlighted because their impact led WHO to include this disease within the priorities for humanity. As results of such research his participation in numerous national and international projects should be mentioned, mostly as principal investigator, a total of 366 publications (h index = 38; 4185 citations - SCOPUS February 2015 - ranked No. 1 among best national researchers by h factor in the discipline of Parasitology in Spain and No. 2 by h factor among best researchers of all health science specialities in Valencia), including articles in speciality journals, the majority indexed, books, encyclopediae and similar, and over 770 communications presented in congresses, meetings and other national and international forums, including numerous invited keynote speaker at events of the highest level, without forgetting numerous additional lectures given in centres throughout the world. Member of countless international committees, of numerous centres and evaluation agencies of different countries, scientific journals and publishers. The enormous breadth of his international contacts is worth noting, including a international collaborative network in fascioliasis at worldwide level, and also in Chagas disease throughout Latin America. The importance of his support for international cooperation with developing countries, highlighting the control of parasitic diseases, conforms the background of his recognition as: Chamlong-Tranakchit Harinasuta Lecturer (Bangkok 2003); Doctor Honoris Causa (Cluj 2006); Prize "Important" of the city of Valencia (2008); “Crotalus Scolaris” (maximum mention of recognition) for his fascioliasis research trajectory (Mexico 2008); Recognition as "Elite Researcher in Health Sciences" Award (Valencia 2010); Recognition of "Long Achievement in Research Award" (Valencia 2011). Other awards received were: Extraordinary Price in Pharmacy Degree, Pharmacy Faculty, University of Barcelona (1974); Price of the Royal Academy of Pharmacy, Barcelona (1976); Silver Medal, Pharmacy Faculty, University of Barcelona (1982); "First Price on Teaching Activities" for the organization of the famous "International Master's course on Tropical Parasitic Diseases" (Valencia, 1997). Medals for the recognition of his scientific contributions also included: "Medaille du Centenaire du Laboratoire Arago" de la Univ. P.M. Curie de Paris VI (1989); Medal of the European Federation of Parasitologists (Valencia EMOP 2004); Medaille d’Argent, Société Française de Parasitologie (Paris 2008); Medal of the European Federation of Parasitologists (Cluj EMOP 2012).

Academic Titles: Licentiate in Biological Sciences by the University of Barcelona (obtained: 1971/72); Licentiate in Pharmacy by the University of Barcelona (1972/73); Extraordinary Pharmacy Licentiate Award given by the University of Barcelona (1974); PhD in Pharmacy by the University of Barcelona (1976, maximum qualification); Pharmacist Specialist in Microbiology and Parasitology (1986).

Research Lines: Helminthology; helminths of vertebrates, especially mammals; life cycles of digeneans; ecology of helminths from vertebrates, especially under geographical isolation conditions (insularity); parasite-host relationships; evolution of helminths and helminthfaunas parasitizing vertebrates; in vitro culture of digenean trematodes; ectoparasites of small mammals; Fasciola, lymnaeid snail vectors and human and animal fascioliasis; schistosomiasis; human protozooses, helminthiases and artropodiases; human food-borne trematodiases; vectors of parasitic diseases, mainly Chagas disease, malaria and leishmaniasis.

Research Techniques and Specialities: Trematodology, Cestodology, Nematodology and Acanthocephalogy: techniques and methods for the study of morphology, anatomy, systematics, taxonomy, faunistics, zoogeography, histology, biology, ecology, epidemiology, evolution, phylogeny, pathology, ultrastructure, in vitro culture, strain keeping in laboratory conditions, molecular biology, DNA analyses; Protozoology and Artropodology: methods and techniques for diagnosis; medical Malacology.

Editor of Scientific Journals: Editor-in-Chief of the international journal "Research and Reviews in Parasitology" (1991-2000). Editor of the international journal "Infection, Genetics and Evolution" (Elsevier) (2001-2007).

Author, Editor and/or Director of Books: of 20 books published and edited in different European countries.

Papers published: author or coauthor of over 1000 papers contributed, from 1974 to 2014, to professional journals, textbooks and encyclopaediae, and to professional congresses and conferences, in many countries.

E-mail: S.Mas.Coma@uv.es