Dr. José Rafael Villafgán Bernal. Investigador por México de la SECIHTI

Es egresado de la licenciatura en Médico Cirujano y Partero por la Universidad de Guadalajara. Obtuvo los grados de Maestría en Ciencias en Biología Molecular en Medicina y Doctorado en Ciencias en Biología Molecular en Medicina en la Universidad de Guadalajara. Actualmente, es investigador por México adscrito al Laboratorio de Inmunogenómica y Enfermedades Metabólicas del Instituto Nacional de Medicina Genómica. Es miembro del Sistema Nacional de Investigadoras e Investigadores (SNII) Nivel 1.

Desde 2020 colabora en líneas de investigación sobre biomarcadores en enfermedades de importancia nacional, estudio de enfermedades poco comunes no diagnosticadas, microbioma intestinal, NGS e integración multiómica, e integra las herramientas de medicina basada en evidencias, revisiones sistemáticas y metanálisis en su práctica de investigación. 

Su producción científica incluye 56 artículos de investigación en revistas internacionales, 10 capítulos de libro, acumulando 994 citas. Ha dirigido 15 tesis de licenciatura, especialidad, maestría y doctorado. Ha sido profesor de licenciatura y posgrado en diversas instituciones de educación superior. Es tutor acreditado de los posgrados de Doctorado en Ciencias Biomédicas de la UNAM, Biociencias de la Universidad Autónoma de Guerrero y de la Universidad Autónoma Benito Juárez de Oaxaca. 

Su trayectoria ha sido reconocida con 10 premios y distinciones. Participa activamente como revisor de revistas de alto impacto como Molecular Medicine Reports, Gene, Diabetes Research and Clinical Practice, Frontiers in Endocrinology, Scientific Reports, entre otras. 

Artículos

• Rosales-Chavez G, Martinez-Ayala P, Ambriz-Alarcon MA, Rubio-Mora BR, Arcos-Jimenez JC, Lopez-Yanez AM, Marin-Castaneda-Baron A, Briseno-Hernandez AA, Villafan-Bernal JR, Sanchez-Gutierrez JA, Briseno-Ramirez J. Adjunctive corticosteroids in non-HIV immunocompromised patients with Pneumocystis jirovecii pneumonia: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Ther Adv Infect Dis. 2026 Jan-Dec; 13:20499361261468451.

• Flores-Huacuja M, Snow M, Ramos-Madrigal J, Contreras-Cubas C, Barajas-Olmos F, Gonzalez-Oliver A, Mendoza-Caamal E, Ciceron-Arellano I, Centeno-Cruz F, Cordova EJ, Baca P, Flores-Martinez SE, Ortiz-Lopez R, Reynolds AW, Kostic AD, Villafan-Bernal JR, Galaviz-Hernandez C, Garcia-Zapien AG, Miranda-Ortiz H, Lazalde-Ramos BP, Loeza-Becerra F, Carnevale A, Rangel-Villalobos H, Sosa-Macias M, Rojas-Martinez A, Martinez-Hernandez A, Garcia-Ortiz H, Orozco L. Demographic History of Indigenous Populations in Mexico Explored Through Whole Mitogenome Analysis. Genome Biol Evol. 2026 Apr 24; 18(5):.

• Huerta-Avila EE, Martinez-Hernandez A, Barajas-Olmos F, Lopez-Escobar TA, Ramirez-Martinez D, Contreras-Cubas C, Gonzalez-Villalpando ME, Villafan-Bernal JR, Centeno-Cruz F, Quiroz-Pineda JA, Gonzalez-Villalpando C, Garcia-Ortiz H, Orozco L. Association study uncovers obesity-linked variants in mobile elements as potential regulators of gene expression. iScience. 2026 Mar 16; 29(4):115376.

• Zaragoza-Garcia O, Gutierrez-Perez IA, Villafan-Bernal JR, Delgado-Floody P, Alarcon-Paredes A, Sanchez-Aleman MA, Rodriguez-Garcia R, Caamano-Navarrete F, Guzman-Guzman IP. Prevalence of metabolically unhealthy phenotype in obese and non-obese subjects and associated risk factors in a Mexican population: a cross sectional study. J Diabetes Metab Disord. 2026 Jun; 25(1):109.

• Villafan-Bernal JR, Martinez-Hernandez A, Garcia-Ortiz H, Contreras-Cubas C, Guerrero-Contreras I, Frias-Cabrera JL, Centeno-Cruz F, Morales Rivera MI, Hernandez JR, Carnevale A, Barajas-Olmos F, Orozco L. Correlation of MLASA2 Clinical Phenotype and Survival with Mt-TyrRS Protein Damage: Linking Systematic Review, Meta-Analysis and 3D Hotspot Mapping. Curr Issues Mol Biol. 2026 Jan 16; 48(1):None.

• José Rafael Villafán-Bernal, Jhonatan Rosas-Hernández, Humberto García-Ortiz, Angélica Martínez-Hernández, Cecilia Contreras-Cubas, Israel Guerrero-Contreras, Hane Lee, Go Hun Seo, Alessandra Carnevale, Francisco Barajas-Olmos, Lorena Orozco. First Latin American Case of MLASA2 Caused by a Pathogenic Variant in the Anticodon-Binding Domain of YARS2. International Journal of Molecular Sciences. 2025 Dec 12; 26:None.

• Escalante-Araiza F, Martinez-Hernandez A, Garcia-Ortiz H, Huerta-Avila E, Villafan-Bernal JR, Contreras-Cubas C, Centeno-Cruz F, Gemm Family Study, Nava-Gonzalez EJ, Carrillo-Ruiz JD, Rodriguez-Ayala E, Bastarrachea RA, Barajas-Olmos F, Orozco L. Fasting and Postprandial DNA Methylation Signatures in Adipose Tissue from Asymptomatic Individuals with Metabolic Alterations. Int J Mol Sci. 2025 Dec 11; 26(23):None.

• Torres-Torres J, Rojas-Zepeda L, Villafan-Bernal JR, Martinez-Portilla R, Espino-Y-Sosa S, Cerda-Flores P, Moreno-Verduzco ER, Monroy-Munoz IE, Gonzalez-Guerrero AY, Solis-Paredes JM, Duran JP. Maternal RSV vaccination for infant protection: A systematic review and meta-analysis of phase 3 trials with an integrated economic evaluation. Int J Gynaecol Obstet. 2025 Nov 04; doi: 10.1002/ijgo.70641.:.

• Monroy-Munoz IE, Torres-Torres J, Rojas-Zepeda L, Villafan-Bernal JR, Espino-Y-Sosa S, Baca D, Camacho-Martinez ZA, Perez-Duran J, Solis-Paredes JM, Estrada-Gutierrez G, Moreno-Verduzco ER, Martinez-Portilla R. Liquid Biopsy and Single-Cell Technologies in Maternal-Fetal Medicine: A Scoping Review of Non-Invasive Molecular Approaches. Diagnostics (Basel). 2025 Aug 16; 15(16):None.

• Adriana Gutierrez-Perez I, Perez-Rubio G, Rafael Villafan-Bernal J, Buendia-Roldan I, Zaragoza-Garcia O, Chavez-Galan L, Rosendo-Chalma P, Fricke-Galindo I, Falfan-Valencia R, Paola Guzman-Guzman I. Circulating levels of PADs and citrullinated histone H3 in SARS-CoV-2 infection: Influence of genetic polymorphisms. Clin Chim Acta. 2025 Mar 1; 569:120180.

• Zaragoza-Garcia O, Briceno O, Villafan-Bernal JR, Rojas-Delgado HU, Gutierrez-Perez IA, Morales-Martinez C, Rodriguez-Reyes RR, Guzman-Guzman IP. sCD14 as a biomarker for the progression of kidney disease among patients with diabetes. J Diabetes Complications. 2025 Mar; 39(3):108980.

• Villafan-Bernal JR, Rivas-Carrillo JD, Guzman-Guzman IP, Frias-Cabrera JL, Rivera-Leon EA, Martinez-Portilla RJ, Sanchez-Enriquez S. Carboxylated Osteocalcin as an Independent Predictor of Mean Arterial Pressure and the Atherogenic Index in Adults. Int J Mol Sci. 2025 Feb 18; 26(4):None.

• Villafan-Bernal JR, Barajas-Olmos F, Guzman-Guzman IP, Martinez-Hernandez A, Contreras-Cubas C, Garcia-Ortiz H, Morales-Rivera MI, Martinez-Portilla RJ, Orozco L. Relevant Serum Endoplasmic Reticulum Stress Biomarkers in Type 2 Diabetes and Its Complications: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. Antioxidants (Basel). 2025 Jan 08; 13(12):None.

• Mendiola-Vidal NG, Contreras-Cubas C, Barajas-Olmos F, Villafan-Bernal JR, Yanez-Felix AL, Garcia-Ortiz H, Centeno-Cruz F, Mendoza-Caamal E, Alaez-Verson C, Jimenez-Ruiz JL, Monge-Cazares T, Lieberman E, Baca V, Lezana JL, Martinez-Hernandez A, Orozco L. Effect of the Complex Allele p.[Ile148Thr;Ile1023_Val1024del] in Cystic Fibrosis and Tracing of a Founder Effect in Mexican Families. Life (Basel). 2024 Nov 27; 14(11):None.

• Morales-Rivera MI, Alemon-Medina R, Martinez-Hernandez A, Contreras-Cubas C, Altamirano-Bustamante NF, Gomez-Garduno J, Mendoza-Caamal EC, Nunez-Gonzalez JO, Garcia-Alvarez R, Revilla-Monsalve C, Valcarcel-Gamino JA, Villafan-Bernal JR, Centeno-Cruz F, Garcia-Ortiz H, Barajas-Olmos F, Orozco L. Exome Sequence Data of Eight SLC Transporters Reveal That SLC22A1 and SLC22A3 Variants Alter Metformin Pharmacokinetics and Glycemic Control. Pharmaceuticals (Basel). 2024 Oct 17; 17(10):None.

• Bayram-Suverza M, Perez-Montano C, Villafan-Bernal JR, Rojas-Juarez S, Levine-Berebichez A, Ramirez-Estudillo JA. Characteristics and Prognostic Factors Associated With the Progression of Myopic Traction Maculopathy in Mexican Patients. Cureus. 2024 Jul; 16(7):e64036.

• Zaragoza-Garcia O, Briceno O, Villafan-Bernal JR, Gutierrez-Perez IA, Rojas-Delgado HU, Alonso-Silverio GA, Alarcon-Paredes A, Navarro-Zarza JE, Morales-Martinez C, Rodriguez-Garcia R, Guzman-Guzman IP. Levels of sCD163 in women rheumatoid arthritis: Relationship with cardiovascular risk markers. Clin Investig Arterioscler. 2024 May 9; :.

• Tirado-Aguilar OA, Martinez-Cruz N, Arce-Sanchez L, Borboa-Olivares H, Reyes-Munoz E, Espino-Y-Sosa S, Villafan-Bernal JR, Martinez-Portilla RJ, Estrada-Gutierrez G, Uribe-Torres R, Tirado Aguilar RD, Lopez-Torres MF, Ramos-Mendoza C, Camacho-Martinez ZA, Aguilar-Jaimes NY, Torres-Torres J. Earlier detection of gestational diabetes impacts on medication requirements, neonatal and maternal outcomes. Diabetes Obes Metab. 2024 May 3; :None.

• Martinez-Hernandez A, Mendoza-Caamal EC, Mendiola-Vidal NG, Barajas-Olmos F, Villafan-Bernal JR, Jimenez-Ruiz JL, Monge-Cazares T, Garcia-Ortiz H, Cubas CC, Centeno-Cruz F, Alaez-Verson C, Ortega-Torres S, Luna-Castaneda ADC, Baca V, Lezana JL, Orozco L. CFTR pathogenic variants spectrum in a cohort of Mexican patients with cystic fibrosis. Heliyon. 2024 Apr 15; 10(7):e28984.

• Gutierrez-Perez IA, Buendia-Roldan I, Zaragoza-Garcia O, Perez-Rubio G, Villafan-Bernal JR, Chavez-Galan L, Parra-Rojas I, Hernandez-Zenteno RJ, Fricke-Galindo I, Castro-Alarcon N, Bautista-Becerril B, Falfan-Valencia R, Guzman-Guzman IP. Association of PADI2 and PADI4 polymorphisms in COVID-19 host severity and non-survival. Heliyon. 2024 Mar 30; 10(6):e27997.

• Borboa-Olivares H, Estrada-Gutierrez G, Martinez-Portilla RJ, Espino-Y-Sosa S, Flores-Pliego A, Espejel-Nunez A, Camacho-Arroyo I, Solis-Paredes JM, Villafan-Bernal JR, Torres-Torres J. Impact of Protease Inhibitor-Based Highly Active Antiretroviral Therapy on Fetal Subcutaneous Fat Tissue in HIV-Pregnant Women in a Middle-Income Country. Viruses. 2023 Dec 20; 16(1):None.

• Anaya-Morua W, Villafan-Bernal JR, Ramirez-Moreno E, Garcia-Ortiz H, Martinez-Portilla RJ, Contreras-Cubas C, Martinez-Hernandez A, Centeno-Cruz F, Pedroza-Montoya FE, Orozco L, Barajas-Olmos F. Total Antioxidant Capacity in Obese and Non-Obese Subjects and Its Association with Anthropo-Metabolic Markers: Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. Antioxidants (Basel). 2023 Jul 28; 12(8):None.

• Zaragoza-Garcia O, Gutierrez-Perez IA, Briceno O, Villafan-Bernal JR, Navarro-Zarza JE, Parra-Rojas I, Falfan-Valencia R, Guzman-Guzman IP. IFABP2 as a new prognostic biomarker for secondary non-response in rheumatoid arthritis. Int Immunopharmacol. 2023 Jun; 119:110090.

• Rodriguez-Narciso S, Martinez-Portilla RJ, Guzman-Guzman IP, Careaga-Cardenas G, Rubio-Navarro BJ, Barba-Gallardo LF, Delgadillo-Castaneda R, Villafan-Bernal JR. Osteocalcin serum concentrations and markers of energetic metabolism in pediatric patients. Systematic review and metanalysis. Front Pediatr. 2022; 10:1075738.

Estancia Voluntaria

• Lilian Sofi Castelan Pacheco