Antera Martel Quintana


Additional information: 
Description: 

Dr. Antera Martel Quintana is a researcher in Algal Biotechnology at the Institute of Oceanography and Global Change and the Spanish Bank of Algae, Master in Applied Algology and Ph.D. in Marine Sciences (1993). She did her scientific training at the Department of Physiology Botany (University of Uppsala, Sweden) and the University of Florida (Miami, USA). Currentl, she is Co-Director and Curator of Spanish Bank of Algae and has experience in biotechnology, physiology, cultivation and conservation of biodiversity of microalgae and cyanobacteria.

Research interest: Algal Biotechnology. In the last years, the interest focused on the development of biotechnological processes of algae in general, and microalgae and cyanobacteria in particular, is high. The Spanish Bank of Algae (BEA) holds an authorized culture collection of tropical and subtropical microalgae, cyanobacteria and extremophiles, particularly from the Macaronesian region. General objectives of the collection include sampling and bio-prospecting, isolation, identification, characterization, conservation and supply of strains, extracts and genomic DNA for scientific and industrial purposes, based on culture techniques. The biotechnological potential for the development of industrial applications of these strains, many of them not assayed before and therefore considering access to unique genetic resources, is interesting for fields like food and feed, nutraceuticals, biomedicine, cosmetics, aquaculture and agriculture.

Considering this idea, research lines include: (1) development of biodiversity conservation techniques for microalgae and cyanobacteria; (2) strains identification combining morphological features, chemotaxonomy, phylogeny and metagenomics; (3) development of biomarkers for biochemistry, molecular biology and flow cytometry; (4) Harmful Algal Blooms (HABs): detection, control and prevention; (5) technological developments for the production and identification of bioactive compounds; and (6) biotechnological characterization of strains for industrial applications.

Through a wide experience in laboratory and pilot-scale cultivation of marine macroalgae, microalgae and cyanobacteria, research objectives include also physiological and biochemical studies on biomass production, transformation and the development of wastewaters and CO2 biofiltration systems by using algae.

Research interests: 
  • Phycology
  • Algology
  • Biotechnology
  • Taxonomy
  • Culture Collections

Recent publications

Righini, H., Roberti, R., Cetrullo, S., Flamigni, F., Martel Quintana, A., Francioso, O., Panichi, V., Cianchetta, S. Galletti, S. 2022. Jania adhaerens Primes Tomato Seed against Soil-Borne Pathogens https://
doi.org/10.3390/horticulturae8080746

Righini, H., Francioso, O., Martel Quintana, A., Roberti, R. 2022. Cyanobacteria: A Natural Source for Controlling Agricultural Plant Diseases Caused by Fungi and Oomycetes and Improving Plant Growth https://doi.org/10.3390/horticulturae8010058

Righini, H., Francioso, O., Di Foggia, M., Martel Quintana, A., Roberti, R., 2021. Assessing the Potential of the Terrestrial Cyanobacterium Anabaena minutissima for Controlling Botrytis cinerea on Tomato Fruits. Horticulturae, 7 (8), 210. https://doi.org/10.3390/horticulturae7080210

Righini, H., Francioso, O., Di Foggia, M., Prodia, A., Martel Quintana, A., Roberti, R., 2021. Tomato seed biopriming with water extracts from Anabaena minutissima, Ecklonia maxima and Jania adhaerens as a new agro-ecological option against Rhizoctonia solani. Scientia Horticulturae, 281, 109921. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scienta.2021.109921

Gastineau, R., Hansen, G., Poulin, M-, Lemieux, C., Turmel, M., Bardeau, J. F., Leignel, V., Hardivillier, V., Hardivillier, Y., Morançais, M., Fleurence, J., Gaudin, P., Méléder, V., Cox, E. J., Davidovich, N. A., Davidovich, O. I., Witwoski, A., Kaczmarska, I., Ehrman, J. M., Soler Onís, E., Martel Quintana, A., Mucho, M., Mordret, S., Sarno, D., Jacquette, B., Falaise, C., Séveno, D., Lindquist, N. L., Kemp, P. S., Eker-Develi, E., Konucu, M., Mouget, J. L., 2021. Haslea silbo, A Novel Cosmopolitan Species of Blue Diatoms. Biology, 10 (4), 328. https://doi.org/10.3390/biology10040328

Righini, H., Francioso, O., Di Foggia, M., Martel Quintana, A., Roberti, R., 2020. Preliminary Study on the Activity of Phycobiliproteins against Botrytis cinerea. Marine, 18 (12), 600. https://doi.org/10.3390/md18120600

Tena Pérez, V., Apaza Ticona, L., Cabanillas, A. H., Maderuelo Corral, S., Rosero Valencia, D. F., Martel Quintana, A., Ortega Domenech, M., Rumbero Sánchez, A., 2020. Anti-inflammatory activity of glycolipids isolated from cyanobacterium Nodularia harveyana. Natural Product Research, 1-6. https://doi.org/10.1080/14786419.2020.1837808

Righini, H., Somma, A., Cetrullo, S., D'Adamo, S., Flamigni, F., Martel Quintana, A., Roberti, R., 2020. Inhibitory activity of aqueous extracts from Anabaena minutissima, Ecklonia maxima and Jania adhaerens on the cucumber powdery mildew pathogen in vitro and in vivo. Journal of Applied Phycology, 32 (5), 3363-3375. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10811-020-02160-x

Fernandes, T., Martel Quintana, A., Cordeiro, N., 2020. Exploring Pavlova pinguis chemical diversity: a potentially novel source of high value compounds. Scientific reports, 10 (1), 1-11. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-019-57188-y

Tena Pérez, V., Apaza Ticona, L., Cabanillas, A.H., Maderuelo Corral, S., Perlese, J., Rosero Valencia, F.R., Martel Quintana, A., Ortega Domenech, M., Rumbero Sánchez, R., 2020. Antitumoral potential of carbamidocyclophanes and carbamidocylindrofridin A isolated from the cyanobacterium Cylindrospermum stagnale BEA 0605B. Phytochemistry, 180, 112529. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.phytochem.2020.112529

Righini, H., Baraldi, E., García Fernández, Y., Martel Quintana, A., Roberti, R., 2019. Different Antifungal Activity of Anabaena sp., Ecklonia sp., and Jania sp. against Botrytis cinerea. Marine drugs, 17 (5), 299. https://doi.org/10.3390/md17050299

Nóbrega, V., Faria, M., Martel Quintana, A., Kaufmann, M., Ferreira, A., Cordeiro, N., 2019. From a basic microalga and an Acetic Acid Bacterium cellulose producer to a living symbiotic biofilm. Materials, 12 (14), 2275. https://doi.org/10.3390/ma12142275

Cabanillas, A., Tena-Pérez, V., Maderuelo-Corral, S., Rosero-Valencia, D. F., Martel-Quintana, A., Ortega-Domenech, M., Rumbero-Sánchez, A., 2018. Cybastacines A and B: Antibiotic Sesterterpenes from a Nostoc sp. Cyanobacterium. J. Nat. Prod. 81, 2, 410-413. https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.jnatprod.7b00638

Gomez Pinchetti, J. L., Martel, A., 2016. Algae Production and Their Potential Contribution to a Nutritional Sustainability. Journal of Environment and Health Sciences 2(3): 1- 3. http://www.ommegaonline.org/article-details/Algae-Production-and-Their-Potential-Contribution-to-a-Nutritional-Sustainability/1101

Caisova, L., Pérez Reyes, C., Cruz Álamo, V., Martel Quintana, A., Surek, B., Melkonian, M., 2015. Barrancaceae: A new green algal lineage with structural and behavioral adaptations to a fluctuating environment. American Journal of Botany, 102(9):1482-1492. http://dx.doi.org/10.3732/ajb.1500199

de la Jara, A., Mendoza, H., Martel, A., Molina, C., Nordströn, L., de la Rosa, V., Díaz, R., 2003. Flow cytometric determination of lipid content in a marine dinoflagellate, Crypthecodinium cohnii. Journal of Applied Phycology, 15 (No.5), 433-438. http://dx.doi.org/10.1023/A:1026007902078