PhD Molecular Biology, Australian National University, AUSTRALIA
MPhil Bioscience Enterprise, University of Cambridge, UNITED KINGDOM
Postdoctoral Fellowship, University College London, UK
Postdoctoral Fellowship, Case Western Reserve University
School of Medicine, Ohio, USA
Areas of Current Research: lncRNAs and microRNAs in cancer, Functional characterization of novel mutations in the EGFR pathway among colorectal cancer patients, Tumor-released exosome diagnostics
Dr. Garcia has a dual background in biomedical research and in the management of technology and innovation. He did his PhD in Molecular Biology at the Australian National University and his life science-MBA (Master’s in Bioscience Enterprise) at the University of Cambridge in England, in collaboration with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s Sloan School of Management.
Dr. Garcia did postdoctoral work in New Zealand (University of Otago Medical School), Paris (Hopital de la Pitie-Salpetriere/Universite Pierre et Marie Curie), the United States (Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine) and London (University College London), before being appointed senior research scientist at Cancer Research UK’s Beatson Institute in Scotland. He has worked on Merck- and Roche-funded projects involving characterization of drug targets for pain and development of drug screening assays for disrupting cellular proliferation in cancer, respectively. After some 15 years in the laboratory, he went to business school and later became Manager at the London Biotechnology Network. In the latter role, he was also biotech and pharma adviser and consultant to UK Trade & Investment, the Canadian High Commission in London, Innovation Norway, the French Embassy in London and Think London (London’s inward investment agency), He has helped broker drug development partnerships between academia and industry, as well as company to company collaborations. Rey has published both scientific and business articles in refereed journals and has contributed chapters in several books.
Rey returned to the Philippines in 2010 as a Balik-Scientist. He was appointed later that year as a Full Professor at the National Institute of Molecular Biology and Biotechnology, University of the Philippines Diliman, and concurrently as UP System Director of the Technology Transfer and Business Development Office, a position he held for 3.5 years. He currently heads the multi-awarded Disease Molecular Biology and Epigenetics Laboratory.
RECENT PUBLICATIONS
Yu, R.T.D., Garcia, R.L. NRAS mutant E132K identified in young-onset sporadic colorectal cancer and the canonical mutants G12D and Q61K affect distinct oncogenic phenotypes. Sci Rep 10, 11028 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-020-67796-8
Ghodsinia, A.A.; Lego, J.-A.M.T.; Garcia, R.L. Mutation-Associated Phenotypic Heterogeneity in Novel and Canonical PIK3CA Helical and Kinase Domain Mutants. Cells 2020, 9, 1116. https://doi.org/10.3390/cells9051116
Roquid K.A.R., Alcantara K.M.M and Garcia R.L. (2020). Identification and validation of mRNA 3’untranslated regions of DNMT3B and TET3 as novel competing endogenous RNAs of the tumor suppressor PTEN. Int J. Oncol 56: 544-558. doi: 10.3892/ijo.2019.4947
Alcantara K.M.M., Malapit J.R.P., Yu R.T.D,; Garrido J.A.M.G., Rigor J.P.T., Angeles A.K.J., Cutiongco-de la Paz E.M. and Garcia R.L. (2019). Non-Redundant and Overlapping Oncogenic Readouts of Non-Canonical and Novel Colorectal Cancer KRAS and NRAS Mutants. Cells, 8, 1557. https://doi.org/10.3390/cells8121557
Alcantara K.M and Garcia R. (2019). MicroRNA-92a promotes cell proliferation, migration, and survival by directly targeting the tumor suppressor gene NF2 in colorectal and lung cancer cells. Oncology Reports 41: 2103-2106. DOI: 10.3892/or.2019.7020
Angeles A.K.J., Yu R.T., Cutiongco-dela Paz E.M. and Garcia R. (2019). Phenotypic characterization of the novel, non-hotspot oncogenic KRAS mutants E31D and E63K. Oncology Letters 18: 420-432. DOI: 10.3892/ol.2019.10325
Algodon S.M., Qui M.D., Estuart A. and Garcia R. (2019). SNPs in MEG3 lncRNA affect its tumor suppressive function via increased proliferative capacity and resistance to apoptosis. FEBS Open Bio 9: P-23-004. DOI:10.1002/2211-5463.12675
Uy A.G. and Garcia R. (2019). KRAS status-dependent sorting of lung cancer-associated long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) in exosomes released by A549 lung adenocarcinoma cells. FEBS Open Bio 9: P-35-129. DOI:10.1002/2211-5463.12675
Viola M.I. and Garcia R. (2019). The functional pseudogene INGX promotes cell cycle progression, survival and migration in HCT116 colorectal cancer cells. FEBS Open Bio 9: ShT-23-3. DOI:10.1002/2211-5463.12674
Bataclan C.C., Manongdo M.A., Martija A.A., Ong T., Roquid K.A. and Garcia R. (2018). Confirmatory and Orthogonal Assays for Eliminating Artefactual Drug Bioactivities. FEBS Open Bio 8: P.09-212. DOI: 10.1002/2211-5463.12453
REPRESENTATIVE PAPERS/POSTERS PRESENTED AT CONFERENCES
“SNPs in MEG3 lncRNA could alter its tumor suppressive capacity”. Martin Daniel Qui, Andrea Estuart and Reynaldo Garcia. The 13th International Congress of Human Genetics, Kyoto, Japan, 3-7 April 2016.
“A competing endogenous RNA (ceRNA) network regulates KRAS gene expression in human colorectal cancer cells”. Marian Abigaile Manongdo, John Paul Rigor, Liezel Tamon and Reynaldo Garcia. The 13th International Congress of Human Genetics, Kyoto, Japan, 3-7 April 2016.
“Phenotypic characterization of the putative KRAS mutant E31D”. Jonathan Chan, Arlou Kristina Angeles, Robert Lorenz Chua, Joshua Reginald Malapit and Reynaldo Garcia. The 13th International Congress of Human Genetics, Kyoto, Japan, 3-7 April 2016.
“MicroRNA regulation of the putative competitive endogenous RNAs PTEN, DNMT3B and TET3” [Winner of the Sigma-Aldrich Excellent Poster Award]. Kenneth Anthony Roquid, Mia Baquirin, Robert Lorenz Chua, Joshua Reginald Malapit, Brandon Mitchell Sy and Reynaldo Garcia. The 2014 International Conference of the Korean Society of Molecular and Cell Biology, Seoul, South Korea, October 2014.
“CRNDE Overexpression in HCT116 and Associated Changes in Transcript Levels of Stemness and Chemoresistance Markers” [Winner of the Sigma-Aldrich Excellent Poster Award]. Jose Lorenzo Ferrer, Robert Lorenz Chua, Joshua Reginald Malapit, Brandon Mitchell Sy, Fidel Emmanuel Serrano and Reynaldo Garcia. The 2014 International Conference of the Korean Society of Molecular and Cell Biology, Seoul, South Korea, October 2014.
“MicroRNA-Binding Site Single-Nucleotide Polymorphisms (miRSNPs) in the 3’ UTR affect protein expression levels of Pregnane X Receptor (PXR), a key regulator of xenobiotic metabolism” [Winner of the Sigma Aldrich Excellent Poster Award]. Jann Adriel Sy, Fidel Emmanuel Serrano, Jose Paulo Lorenzo and Reynaldo Garcia. The 2013 International Conference of the Korean Society of Molecular and Cell Biology, Seoul, South Korea, October 2013.
