Bruno Lomonte Vigliotti

Researchers

  • Senior Professor, Clodomiro Picado Institute, Faculty of Microbiology.
  • Ph.D. Clinical Immunology Department, Goteborg University, Sweden. (1994)
  • Fulbright Research Scholar, Wisconsin-Madison University, USA. (1987)
  • M.Sc. Microbiology and Immunology, University of Costa Rica. (1986)
  • Lic. Microbiology and Clinical Chemistry, University of Costa Rica. (1981)

Bruno Lomonte Vigliotti

Bruno Lomonte studies the immunological and biochemical characteristics of the venoms from snakes in Costa Rica and their toxins. His research focuses mainly on the characterization of the phospholipase A2 group that damages muscle cells (myotoxins), and in the search and study of inhibitors for these toxins. 

He is also interested in antivenom serum therapy and in the preparation of polyclonal and monoclonal antibodies against toxins in general and other antigens, in the applications of synthetic peptide, and in the development and use of immunoassays in different biomedical areas. More recently, he started researching the use of proteomic analysis techniques through mass spectroscopy. In this subject he has described the proteomic composition of venoms from more than 35 species of snakes.

 His scientific production includes some 250 publications in international journals. He had directed 16 graduate thesis projects, and 8 postgraduate thesis projects (6 master's and 2 doctorates). He has held the position of coordinator of the Research Division and deputy director of the Clodomiro Picado Institute, as well as the director of the Master’s Program in Microbiology, and director (founder) of the Doctorate Program in Sciences of the University of Costa Rica.

 He is a member of the National Academy of Sciences of Costa Rica, and the International Society on Toxinology, and was granted the National Award in Science (1986), the King Baudouin Award of the International Foundation for Science (1994), the TWAS-CONICIT Award in Biological Science (1997), and the Researcher of the Year Award of the University of Costa Rica in Health Sciences (2010).
 

Publicaciones representativas de sus intereses de investigación

  • Lomonte, B., Cerdas, L., Gené, J. A., Gutiérrez, J. M. (1982). Neutralization of local effects of the terciopelo (Bothrops asper) venom by blood serum of the colubrid snake Clelia clelia. Toxicon, 20(3), 571-579.
  • Lomonte, B., & Kahan, L. (1988). Production and partial characterization of monoclonal antibodies to Bothrops asper (terciopelo) myotoxin. Toxicon, 26(7), 675-689.
  • Lomonte, B., & Gutiérrez, J. M. (1989). A new muscle damaging toxin, myotoxin II, from the venom of the snake Bothrops asper (terciopelo). Toxicon, 27(7), 725-733.
  • Lomonte, B., Moreno, E.,Tarkowski, A., Hanson, L. A., Maccarana, M. (1994). Neutralizing interaction between heparins and myotoxin II, a Lys-49 phospholipase A2 from Bothrops asper snake venom. Identification of a heparin-binding and cytolytic toxin region by the use of synthetic peptides and molecular modeling. Journal of Biological Chemistry, 269(47), 29867-29873.
  • Lomonte, B., Angulo, Y., Calderón, L. (2003). An overview of Lysine-49 phospholipase A2 myotoxins from crotalid snake venoms and their structural determinants of myotoxic action. Toxicon, 42(8), 885-901.
  • Lomonte, B., & Rangel, J. (2012). Snake venom Lys49 myotoxins: from phospholipases A2 to non-enzymatic membrane disruptors. Toxicon, 60, 520-530.
  • Lomonte, B., Fernández, J., Sanz, L., Angulo, Y., Sasa, M., Gutiérrez, J. M., Calvete, J. J. (2014). Venomous snakes of Costa Rica: biological and medical implications of their venom proteomic profiles analyzed through the strategy of "snake venomics". Journal of Proteomics, 13, 105, 323-339. doi: 10.1016/j.jprot.2014.02.020
  • Mora-Obando, D., Fernández, J., Montecucco, C., Gutiérrez, J. M., Lomonte, B. (2014). Synergism between basic Asp49 and Lys49 phospholipase A2 myotoxins of viperid snake venom in vitro and in vivo. PLoS One, 9(10), e109846. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0109846