Host: Prof. Dina Zilberg
Current Position: Senior Scientist in Fish Health, Nofima, Norway
I am Carlo C. Lazado, and I specialize in fish health with a strong focus on the physiology and immunology of mucosal barriers. I obtained my PhD in Aquatic Biosciences from Nord University (Norway). I did my first postdoctoral training at the Technical University of Denmark and moved to Israel for my second postdoc upon receiving the prestigious Jacob Blaustein Postdoctoral Fellowship. At present, I am a Senior Scientist in Fish Health at Nofima, The Norwegian Institute of Food, Fisheries and Aquaculture Research. My small research team of students and postdocs addresses fundamental questions about the structures, organization, and functions of fish mucosal immune systems and explores them in the context of aquaculture, especially regarding how biological factors, production systems, environmental parameters, and operational practices affect the first line of defense.
I first visited Israel in 2013, and I told myself I would be coming back, though I never thought it would be as a postdoc. My experience in the Negev opened my eyes to the opportunities and challenges of rearing fish in areas where resources are scarce. This has been instrumental in the development of my research career, especially in building a name in the field of mucosal health. When I was at BGU, I was supervised by Prof. Dina Zilberg and Prof. Inna Khozin-Goldberg—two exceptional women scientists.
Not many people can say they have lived and performed research in the tropics (I am originally from the Philippines), the Arctic (I did my PhD in northern Norway), and the desert. I can.
