We are delighted to introduce an interview with Dr. Judit Castillo Corullón, a speaker at the 17th NYRA Meeting. Dr. Castillo is a Serra Húnter Lecturer at the Genetics Unit, Department of Biomedicine, University of Barcelona, and a member of the Molecular Biology of Reproduction and Development research group (IDIBAPS). Her research focuses on male reproductive biology, particularly sperm proteomics and male fertility. She has studied the role of sperm chromatin proteins in infertility and how epigenetic modifications, such as histone acetylation and butyrylation, influence sperm development. In addition, her work on epididymosomes has provided insights into post-testicular sperm maturation. Her expertise in mass spectrometry has contributed to a deeper understanding of sperm DNA packaging and protamines.
1. When and why did you decide to work in the field of reproductive biology?
I must confess that I found the field of reproductive biology by chance. I am a pharmacist, and a pharmacist usually ends up working in a pharmacy or in the private pharmaceutical sector. But my interests turned towards basic research when I collaborated with a research group that studied diabetes in a fish model. I loved the experience. So, after finishing the degree, although I was working in a pharmacy, I looked for research positions and found a job offer in Dr. Rafael Oliva’s laboratory for a project on sperm molecular biology. It was a topic that I did not know much about and that made it very attractive to me. After meeting Dr Oliva’s group, the topic fascinated me even more. I was selected for the position and left the pharmacy. Now I know that I was super lucky and made the best choice.
- Could you share a moment of challenge in your career, and the lessons you learned from it?
“Research” and “challenge” should be considered synonyms. During your research career you constantly face challenges, which evolve with you over the years, with their own characteristics and lessons. If I had to choose one, I would talk about the first project I did as a PI, for which we needed to use very sophisticated technology and we only had 24 hours to develop all our experiments. We needed to prepare all the samples a couple of days in advance, knowing that we only had one chance to perform the experiment. That was very stressful. But I was lucky because I had the best PhD student by my side. We turned the pressure and long hours of non-stop work into lots of laughter and motivation. We learned that our work makes sense only if we enjoy it and do what we really want to do, without losing focus. If you see that the situation is overwhelming you, stop, breathe and turn it around. Don’t let stress win.
- What has been the greatest success in your career so far?
As for recognition, I can say that the greatest successes so far are having obtained my first competitive national grant as a principal investigator, as well as having been recipient of the ISA Young Andrologist Award this year. But, as a great research success, I would also add having found the best people to be surrounded by. I have the privilege of maintaining colleagues for many years, with whom I fully connect in terms of research goals, values and way of understanding science. Your research team is the most important part of your success. I do not believe in individual research or individual successes.
- What advice would you give to young researchers?
Stay curious! Ask questions, look for answers, think about next steps, be critical. Don’t be passive and don’t be afraid to give your opinion. Research needs new ideas and points of view. Your supervisor will surely appreciate it. Also, remember that failure is inherent to our work and that it does not represent our value as researchers. Don’t give up!