Ismael Aguirre-Maclennan

Ismael is a passionate and experienced cell biologist specialised in mammalian stem cell culture, including derivation, maintenance and differentiation of iPSCs. Originally from Peru, he graduated with a Bachelor of Biological Sciences from the National University of San Marcos and then relocated to Melbourne (Australia) to complete his Master of Clinical Embryology and Master of Biotechnology and Bioinformatics at Monash University and La Trobe University, respectively. In 2018, he received his PhD in Genetics from La Trobe University. His thesis entitled “Generation of induced pluripotent stem cells from the endangered Tasmanian devil” explored different reprogramming methods and culture conditions for deriving marsupial iPSCs.

Following his PhD completion, Ismael went overseas to work as a Research Scientist for a private stem cell start-up in Bangkok (Thailand) and returned to Australia in 2019 to work as a Research Assistant for the Stem cell Production Facility at the Victor Chang Cardiac Research Institute Innovation Centre. There, he helped to establish the facility workflows’, oversaw the day-to-day operations, trained new users and engaged in method development and automation using state-of-the-art robotics. In 2021, Ismael joined the Stem Cell and Organoid Facility as a Research Assistant to support its current services and research projects, and to develop novel methods for stem cell differentiation.

When he is not growing stem cells in the lab, you may find him eating chocolate, playing the guitar, browsing the news, playing video games, going to the gym or just watching Netflix.