Alba Hernández Bonilla

Ponentes

ALBA HERNÁNDEZ BONILLA

Dr. Alba Hernández Bonilla (ORCID: 0000-0001-6938-1233) is Full Professor at the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona (UAB), Head of the UAB Mutagenesis Technical Service, and leader of the Environmental Mutagenesis in Health and Disease Group, a multidisciplinary team integrating mechanistic and molecular toxicology with clinical case studies and human biomonitoring. She holds an ICREA-Academia distinction (2022–2027), awarded to researchers demonstrating outstanding scientific leadership and international impact.

Her research focuses on environmental mutagenesis and health risk assessment, with particular emphasis on micro- and nanoplastics and other emerging contaminants. A defining strength of her work is the integration of mechanistic toxicology, advanced New Approach Methodologies and multi-omics approaches with structured clinical investigations in exposed and at-risk populations. This bidirectional experimental–clinical framework enables the translation of mechanistic findings into preventive strategies for public health and clinical practice.

Dr. Hernández has published 114 peer-reviewed articles (65% as corresponding author; 80% in Q1 journals, 45% in top-decile journals), including 72 publications in the last seven years, accumulating more than 5,500 citations and an h-index of 45. She has supervised 15 PhD theses (all Cum Laude; eleven with International Mention; two with Extraordinary Award; four more ongoing) and mentored eight postdoctoral researchers, contributing actively to the development of independent scientific leaders.

She has extensive experience in competitive funding and international project coordination, having served as PI, co-PI or collaborator in more than 20 projects and securing over €7.5M since 2022. She coordinated the Horizon 2020 project PLASTICHEAL  (€6M; 11 institutions), leading the integration of toxicology, omics, clinical biomonitoring and risk assessment, and positioning her research at the forefront of the European debate on emerging contaminants. She also chaired the €30M European CUSP cluster and was principal contributor to the CUSP Research Roadmap 2026–2032 shaping future Horizon Europe priorities. Her international engagement extends further through participation in OECD and EFSA expert groups, as well as contributions to WHO ministerial processes and European Commission policy dialogues, where she has played an active role in translating scientific evidence into preventive public‑health policies and improved healthcare standards.

Additionally, her research has achieved notable regulatory and policy impact, with key studies cited in CUSP Policy Brief 2  and 3, referenced in the European Comission’s Future Brief on Nanoplastics, and discussed at the CUSP Final Policy and Stakeholder Meeting with EC representatives and key stakeholders, helping to consolidate the prioritization of long-term MNPLs health impacts in European research agendas.

Beyond scientific excellence, Dr. Hernández has consolidated structured translational and innovation pathways. She directs the UAB Mutagenesis Service, which provides regulatory-aligned genotoxicity and biomonitoring support to hospitals and ISCIII-funded projects, and leads PLASTIKIT, a biomarker-based diagnostic platform recognised as “Market Ready” by the European Commission Innovation Radar. These initiatives illustrate her capacity to convert mechanistic knowledge into clinically and socially actionable tools.

Her commitment to Open Science further reinforces the impact and transparency of her research, with most datasets deposited in FAIR-compliant repositories (e.g., CORA.RDR, eNanoMapper, IPCHEM, GEO). Since 2022, her results have been disseminated through 24 national and 30 international conferences (ten as invited presentations) and 16 specialized workshops. This activity is complemented by sustained societal engagement, including outreach initiatives (e.g. EU researchers night, Pelagos expedition), the development of educational resources for schools (e.g. Plastichealers), and international media coverage (e.g., ARTE’s Homo Plasticus, The New York Times, National Geographic), contributing to informed public debate on emerging environmental risks.

Through this combined scientific, policy and societal engagement, Dr. Hernández has established herself as a leading figure advancing knowledge aimed at protecting human health and the environment. Some indicators of her scientific outputs are as follows:

  • Number of six-year recognized periods of research ‘sexenios’: 3 (last date: 2020)
  • PhD supervised: 15 (all Cum Laude, 2 PhD extraordinary award); 4 more ongoing
  • Postdoctoral mentoring: 8 (including Juan de la Cierva (2022-24), MSCA-Beatriu de Pinós (2022-25, 2023-26, 2024-27), Maria Zambrano (2022-24) and Margarita Salas (2022-24)).
  • Total Publications: 114 (72 of them in the last 7 years)
  • Publications as first author: 10
  • Publications as corresponding author: 74
  • Top-Quartile Q1 publications: 92
  • Top-Decile D1 publications: 52
  • Citations: 5744 (13 papers with ≥ than 100 citations)
  • H index: 45
  • i10 index: 90

Selection of Publications

  1. Hernández has published 72 SCI-indexed publications in the last seven years (2020–2026), including 56 in Q1 journals and 33 in top-decile journals. The following is a selection of 15 representative publications published in top-decile journals.
  2. Alaraby M., D. Abass, A. Velázquez, Hernández, R. Marcos. Polytetrafluoroethylene microplastics properties, pollution, toxicity and analysis: a review. 2026. Environmental Chemistry Letters,24: 27-59. [IF: 20,4; Q1; D1].
  3. Gutiérrez-García J., R. Egea, I. Barguilla, P. Nymark, A. García-Rodríguez, B. Guyot, V. Maguer-Satta, R. Marcos, L. Rubio, Hernández. 2025. Long-term exposure to real-life polyethylene terephthalate nanoplastics induces carcinogenesis in vitro. Environmental Science & Technology,59(22): 10891-10904.  [IF: 11,3; Q1; D1].
  4. Morataya-Reyes M., A Villacorta, J Gutiérrez-García, R. Egea, J. Martín-Pérez, I. Barguilla, R. Marcos, Hernández. 2025. The long-term in vitro co-exposure of polyethylene terephthalate (PET) nanoplastics and cigarette smoke condensates exacerbates the induction of carcinogenic traits. Journal of Hazardous Materials, 493: 138359. [IF: 11,6; Q1; D1).
  5. Alaraby M., D. Abass, A. Velázquez, Hernández, R. Marcos. Occurrence, analysis and toxicity of polyethylene terephthalate microplastics: a review. 2025. Environmental Chemistry Letters, 23: 1025-1059. [IF: 20,4; Q1; D1].
  6. Domenech J., A. Villacorta, J.F. Ferrer, R. Llorens, R. Marcos, Hernández, J. Catalán. 2024. In vitro cell-transforming potential of secondary polyethylene terephthalate and polylactic acid nanoplastics.Journal of Hazardous Materials, 469: 134030. [IF: 13,6; Q1; D1].
  7. Gutiérrez J., A. García-Rodríguez, A. Villacorta, J. Arribas Arranz, I. Romero-Andrada, A. Lacoma, R. Marcos, L. Rubio, Hernández. Polylactic acid nanoplastics (PLA-NPLs) induce adverse effects on an in vitro model of the human lung epithelium: the Calu-3 air-liquid interface (ALI) barrier. 2024. Journal of Hazardous Materials, 475: 134900. [IF: 13,6; Q1; D1].
  8. Villacorta A., C. Cazorla-Ares, V. Fuentes-Cebrian, I.H. Valido, L. Vela, F. Carrillo-Navarrete, M. Morataya-Reyes, K. Mejia-Carmona, S. Pastor, A. Velázquez, J. Arribas Arranz, R. Marcos, M. López-Mesas, Hernández. Fluorescent labeling of micro/nanoplastics for biological applications with a focus on “true-to-life” tracking. 2024. Journal of Hazardous Materials,476: 135134. [IF: 13,6; Q1; D1].
  9. Banaei G., A. García-Rodríguez, A. Tavakolpournegari, J. Martín-Pérez, A. Villacorta, R. Marcos, Hernández. 2023. The release of polylactic acid nanoplastics (PLA-NPLs) from commercial teabags. Obtention, characterization, and hazard effects of true-to-life PLA-NPLs. Journal of Hazardous Materials, 458: 131899 [IF: 13,6; Q1; D1].
  10. Alaraby M., A. Villacorta, D. Abass, R. Marcos, Hernández. 2023. The hazardous impact of true-to-life PET nanoplastics in Drosophila. Science of the Total Environment, 863: 160954. [IF: 9,8; Q1; D1].
  11. Collins A., …. Hernández, …. Azqueta A. (29/79 Coauthors). 2023. Measuring DNA damage with the comet assay: a compendium of protocols. Nature Protocols, 18: 929-989. [IF: 14,8; Q1; D1).
  12. Villacorta A., L. Rubio, M. Alaraby, M. López-Mesas, V. Fuentes-Cebrian, H. Moriones, R. Marcos, A. Hernández. 2022. A new source of representative secondary PET nanoplastics. Obtention, characterization, and hazard evaluation. Journal of Hazardous Materials, 439: 129593. [IF: 13,6; Q1; D1].
  13. Barguilla I., J. Domenech, S. Ballesteros, L. Rubio, R. Marcos, Hernández. 2022. Long-term exposure to nanoplastics alters molecular and functional traits related to the carcinogenic process. Journal of Hazardous Materials, 438: 129470. [IF: 13,6; Q1; D1].
  14. Ballesteros S., J. Domenech, A. Velázquez, R. Marcos, Hernández. 2021. Ex vivo exposure to different types of graphene-based nanomaterials consistently alters human blood secretome. Journal of Hazardous Materials, 414: 125471. [IF: 14,224; Q1; D1].
  15. Alaraby, M., Hernández, R. Marcos. 2021. Novel insights into biodegradation, interaction, internalization and impacts of high-aspect-ratio TiO2 nanomaterials: A systematic in vivo study using Drosophila melanogaster. Journal of Hazardous Materials, 409: 124474. [IF: 14,224; Q1; D1].
  16. Rubio L., I. Barguilla, J. Domenech, Marcos, A. Hernández. 2020. Biological effects, including oxidative stress and genotoxic damage, of polystyrene nanoparticles in different human hematopoietic cell lines. Journal of Hazardous Materials, 398: 122900. [IF: 10,588; Q1; D1].

Selection of Research Projects

Hernández participated in 13 projects in the last seven years (2020-2026). The following is a selection of ten of these projects:

  1. ICREA Academia to Alba Hernández Bonilla. Ac2232418. Institución Catalana de Estudios Avanzados (ICREA) (2023-2027). 000 €. Role: Principal Investigator.
  2. Mutagenesis Group. 2021SGR00731 (2022-2025). Dirección General de Investigación de la Generalitat de Catalunya. 000 €. Role: Principal Investigator.
  3. PLASTIKIT. Biomarker-based solution for enhanced protections against micro-nanoplastics exposure. Convocatòria d’Ajuts Indústria del Coneixement – Ajuts LLAVOR (2025-LLAV-00083) (2025-2026). 20.000 €. Role: Principal investigator.
  4. Innovative tools to study the impact and mode of action of micro and nanoplastics on human health: towards a knowledge base for risk assessment. EU Project No. 965196, Horizon 2020 Framework Programme (2021-2025). 5.999.571 €. Role: Consortium leader.
  5. CUSP – the European research cluster to understand the health impacts of micro- and nanoplastics (2021-2026). Role:Cluster co-leader.
  6. Plastics monitoring detection, remediation, and recovery. CA-20101 (2021-2025). Main proposer: Stefania Federici (University of Brescia). Role: Participant
  7. Towards harmonized test methods for nanomaterials. EU Project No. 885931, Horizon 2020 Framework Programme (2020-2023). 2.999.542,50 €. Role: Research participant.
  8. NAMs-WATER.Desarrollo de NAMs para la evaluación de los efectos para la salud de contaminantes emergentes presentes en las aguas residuales. Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación (PID2020-116789RB-C43) (2021-2024). 181.500 €. Role: Principal Investigator.
  9. Development of in vitro models to study the carcinogenic potential of nanomaterials. (BFU2016-76831-R) (2017-2019). 121.000 €. Role: Principal Investigator.
  10. CLEARALIGN-RISK. Progresando en el conocimiento de los riesgos Asociados a la exposición a micro y nanoplasticos: los alineadores dentales transparentes como modelo. Ministerio de Ciéncia e Innovación (PID2023-146489OB-100) (2024-2027). 151.500 €. Role: Research participant.

Selection of Congresses

Hernández participated in 24 national and 30 international conferences in the last seven years (2020-2026). The following is a selection of five congresses where the role was Invited chair/speaker:

 

  1. Hernández. Genotoxicity and Carcinogenicity of micro- and nanoplastics. 15th European Cytogenomics Conference (organized by European Cytogeneticists Association, ECA), Leuven, Belgium (2025). Role: Invited speaker.
  2. Hernández. SOT63rd Annual Meeting and ToxExpo, Utah, USA (2024). Platform session on Micro- and nanoplastics. Role: Invited chair and speaker.
  3. Hernández. Understanding the health risks of exposure to micro- & nano-plastics. 51st Meeting of the European Environmental Mutagenesis and Genomics Society (EEMGS), Málaga, Spain (2023). Role: Invited speaker.
  4. Hernández. The contribution of pan-European research collaboration to evidence-based zero pollution and health policy: The CUSP-research cluster. WHO 7th Ministerial Conference on Environment and Health, Budapest, Hungary (2023). Co-hosted by the WHO and the European Commission, the Directorate-General for Environment (DG ENV), the European Environmental Agency (EEA) and the Health and Environment Alliance (HEAL). Role: Invited speaker.
  5. Hernández. Understanding the health risks from exposure to micro- and nanoplastics in food. 12thGlobal Summit on Regulatory Science (GSRS22), Singapore (2022). Co-hosted by the Singapore Food Agency (SFA) and the Global Coalition of Regulatory Science and Research (GCRSR). Role: Invited speaker.

Contracts, technological and transfer merits

  • Director of the Mutagenesis Technical Service (SaMut) at the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona since 2019. The Service has generated an average annual revenue of €15,000.
  • Leader of the Exploitation Strategy of the EU Project PLASTICHEAL, managing 15 Key KERs in collaboration with the EU Results Booster, five of them with IP entirely to UAB.
  • Recognized as ‘Key Innovator’ by the EC’s Innovation Radar, for the development of a Key Exploitable Result from the EU H2020 Project PLASTICHEAL.

Scientific recognition

International Evaluation Panels

– Member of the International Evaluation Panel (EP) for the Water4all 2025 «Water & Health» Call, a major European partnership and global funding initiative for strategic water research.

– Grant Advisor for Agence Nationale de la Recherche (ANR), Francia (2019-present).

Participation in International Regulatory Boards & High-Level Expert Groups

– Appointed Experts of the OECD Working Party on Manufactured Nanomaterials Steering Groups (2020–present).

– International Member of the Expert Panel of INRAE (France) for the Collective Scientific Assessment on the use, properties, and impacts of plastics in the agri-food sector (2021–2023).

Policy Advocacy, Strategic Foresight & EU Roadmap Development

–Invited Strategic Expert at the WHO 7th Ministerial Conference on Environment and Health (Budapest, 2023). Actively engaged in this forum co-hosted by the European Commission (DG ENV) and the European Environmental Agency (EEA) to translate scientific evidence into the pan-European «Zero Pollution» political agenda.

– Lead Author of the CUSP Research Roadmap 2026-2032 (DOI 10.5281/zenodo.17467124). This document defines the mandatory priorities for future EU research investments (Horizon Europe) and health-safety regulations regarding MNPLs.

– High-level stakeholder in the EU FHERITALE Project, contributing to the project’s Gap Analysis and Technology Needs assessment, supporting the identification of major scientific, technological and societal challenges related to artificial materials across food systems, human health and the environment. Her contribution is formally documented in the project’s official deliverable FHERITALE Gap analysis and technology needs, evidencing her role in shaping EU-level strategic foresight activities.

Executive Leadership in Scientific Societies

– Elected President of the Spanish Society for Environmental Mutagenesis and Genomics (SEMA) (2025–present).– Expert Member of the Scientific Committee of the Sentiatech Congress (Sentiatech Platform), providing strategic guidance on technological and environmental innovation (2025-present).-Organizer of the 29th SEMA Scientific Meeting, Barcelona, Spain (2025). -Scientific member of the consortium of excellence CIBERESP, ISCIII, Spain (2003-2020). Awards-Award (2012): Premio APOSTA para jóvenes investigadores con un futuro prometedor, UAB.-Award (2022): ICREA-Academia Programme for research intensification, Institución Catalana de Investigación y Estudios Avanzados (ICREA). Other

-Grant Advisor for Agencia Nacional de Evaluación y Prospectiva (ANEP), Spain (2014-present).

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