Bernardo Yáñez Soto, PhD

Bernardo Yáñez-Soto is a CONACyT Young Researcher at the Institute of Physics of Universidad Autonoma de San Luis Potosi.  Bernardo finished his undergraduate studies at the University of Mexico, and worked for over ten years in the leather manufacturing industry.  After that, he pursued his academic passion and completed a Ph.D. in Chemical and Biological Engineering at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.  His research interests lie in the area of biomaterials and tissue engineering.  During his Ph.D. he fabricated polymeric basement membranes for the corneal epithelium incorporating biomimetic characteristics and used them to investigate the role of biophysical cues on corneal epithelialization and wound healing.  As a chemical engineer with interfacial engineering expertise, he decided to focus on the intricate relation between the tear film and the ocular surface, and the development of new therapies and strategies to treat ocular surface diseases through the engineering of the epithelial surfaces for his postdoctoral research.  Bernardo is the father of three daughters under five, which has enhanced his expertise in tears.  Bernardo is also an avid runner and triathlete.