Institute

Scientific Director

He completed his residency in general surgery and digestive system surgery at the Surgery I Department of the Hospital Clínico San Carlos, with a rotation in the Surgery Department of Beth Israel Hospital in Boston. His academic training includes a PhD from UCM in 1992, with a thesis on laparoscopic cholecystectomy, and a postdoctoral fellowship as a Research Fellow in Surgery at Harvard Medical School, where he conducted innovative research in the field of digestive diseases as part of the Harvard Digestive Diseases Center, particularly in the area of the pathobiology of the intestinal epithelium, barrier function, and chloride vectorial transport, with a special interest in the functioning and regulation of potassium channels in the basolateral membrane of the epithelial cell.

Additionally, he has been a visiting professor at various academic institutions in the United States, such as the University of Cincinnati and Wayne State University, as well as a visiting researcher at Harvard University and the University of Minnesota, in these cases with study extension grants from ISCIII.

All this experience allowed him to establish international collaborations with leading researchers, create a laboratory of epithelial physiology at the San Carlos Clinical Hospital, and gain a global perspective on the evolution of clinical and surgical practice. Additionally, at the Clinical Hospital, he has held other positions: Head of the General Surgery Section since 2010 and Medical Director from 2016 to 2023.

He has been the principal investigator of national and international projects and is currently involved in regional and European projects, significantly contributing to the scientific literature in the areas of intestinal epithelial physiology, minimally invasive surgery, innovation, and artificial intelligence.

In the editorial field, he has been a member of the editorial board of the BJS (British Journal of Surgery) since 2015 and served as secretary of the BJS Foundation in 2018, a non-profit organization based in Edinburgh that owns BJS, BJS Open, and BJS Academy. Additionally, in 2020, he was appointed editor of the journal Surgery, where he co-leads the “Digital Media and Innovations” team.

The commitment to innovation is reflected in his leadership of the Innovation Unit of IdISSC from 2010 to 2023, and in the co-direction of international projects such as the Madrid-MIT MVision Consortium.

Regarding the evaluation of his research career, he holds four six-year research periods and one transfer period awarded by CNEAI-ANECA.

In addition to several national professional and scientific organizations, he is an honorary member of the Association of Surgeons of Great Britain and Ireland (ASGBI) and the Brazilian College of Surgeons (CBC).

Funciones

• To propose to the Governing Council the Institute’s Strategic Plan and to monitor and evaluate the scientific programmes once they have been approved.
• To prepare and submit to the Governing Council the Institute’s annual research report.
• To collaborate with the head of the Management Body in the preparation of annual budgets and other mandatory reports.
• To make proposals for research infrastructures for the Institute.
• To make proposals for training and the promotion of research.
• To collaborate with the Management Body in the communication and dissemination of the Institute’s research activities.
• To collaborate with the Management Body in raising external resources.
• To be responsible for ensuring the quality of the research carried out at the Institute, and that it is conducted in accordance with ethical principles of behaviour, both in relation to research activities and to the obligations of research and technical support staff.
• To carry out the functions entrusted to it by the Governing Council and the Executive Committee.

Contact:  julioangel.mayol@salud.madrid.org