IIT Annual Academic Report CampaignCourse 2023 - 2024 - English Version
The information available of Dr.D.Mario Castro Ponce since September 01, 2023 to August 31, 2024 is showed below. This information will be used to develop the IIT Annual Academic Report and the Comillas Annual Report, so it is very important that it is correct and complete. All fields displayed in each reference must have information, unless otherwise stated (eg "Not Applicable"). Please, complete it. Also make sure the information is displayed in the correct section. If you find any errors or missing information, please send an email by clicking here indicating the section and incorrect or missing information. To send comments/suggestions/bugs... on the website, please click here. To view the Spanish Version, click here. To view the Full Version of the report, click here.
[Expand all | Collapse all] Chapter 1. Organizational structure [ |  ]- 1.1 Management
- 1.2 Council
- 1.3 Area coordinators
- 1.4 Scientific advisory board
- 1.5 Academic staff
| * | Name: | Mario Castro Ponce | | | Category: | Professor | | | Degree: | Ph.D. in Physics Science (UCM)
Physics Science degree (UCM) | | | Areas of Interest: | Statistical Mechanics, Nonlinear Physics, Theoretical Immunology, Bayesian Statistics and Epidemiology, Forest fires. | | | ICAI Department: | DTC | | | | |
- 1.6 Associated academic staff
- 1.7 Pre- and postdoctoral fellows
- 1.8 Areas of Research
- 1.8.1 MAC Coordinator
- 1.8.2 REDES Coordinator
- 1.8.3 RYE Coordinator
- 1.8.4 SADSE Coordinator
- 1.8.5 PCI Coordinator
- 1.8.6 ASF Coordinator
- 1.8.7 ASI Coordinator
- 1.8.8 BIO Coordinator
- 1.8.9 SMS Coordinator
- 1.9 Services staff
- 1.9.1 Systems Administrator Staff
- 1.9.2 Administrative Staff
Chapter 2. Research [ | ]- 2.1 Research Projects
- 2.1.1 Research and develop projects
- 2.1.1.1 Private funding
- 2.1.1.2 Public funding
| * | Abbreviated name: | IMMUNEPHYS | | | Project title: | Biophysics of immune response: receptors, cells and populations | | | Funding entity: | Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación (MCIN), Agencia Estatal de Investigación (AEI), 10.13039/501100011033 | | | Start date: | June 2020 | | | End date: | February 2024 | | | Researcher(s): | Mario Castro Ponce, Alberto Carnicero López, Miguel García Sánchez | | | Description: | The immune response involves multiple stages operating at different spatial and temporal scales. In recent years there has been increasing recognition of the role of physical processes in the effectiveness of the response, starting with the region of physical contact between cells (the so-called immunological synapse). In general, it is not possible to speak of the immune response at a scale but an interaction between scales. On the other hand, although the exact molecular structure of the T cell receptor was discovered in August 2019, this knowledge does not fully determine the immune response as it is a dynamic process out of equilibrium, which requires the use of the traditional tools of statistical physics.
The central objective of the project is to quantify through modeling, simulation, and data analysis the role of the biophysical aspects of the immune response operating at different scales, always focusing on the explanation of experimental data, discrimination between alternative theories and the generation of new hypotheses. To achieve this objective, a study is proposed separating these scales and choosing the methodology that best adapts to their characteristics (large/small concentrations, fluctuations, spatial properties versus well-mixed, etc...) and the available experimental data.
At the molecular level, we will model the cooperation of T-cell receptors (TCR) to determine the dominant mechanism in the amplification of sensitivity by TCR nanoclusters. Combining stochastic models, image analysis and Bayesian inference, we will quantify the dynamics and function of these nanoclusters. This approach will extend to cytokine-activated competition processes.
At the cellular level, we propose the quantitative study of cell deformation at the synapse. In the first phase, we will use an experimental model of a collaborating group (hydrothermal carbon) to validate simulation models based on finite elements and generate effective models of this deformation. In the second phase, we will model the cell membrane using the phase-field method. Finally, we will extend classical models of statistical physics (Smoluchowski model) to study the intracellular dynamics of organelles in viral infections.
At the population level, we will introduce compartmental models that allow us to contrast hypotheses on the maturation dynamics of T lymphocytes in the thymus, with special emphasis on symmetry/asymmetry in the selection of double negative cells, and we will use the models to extract the most parsimonious mechanism from the analysis of experimental data. Following the compartmental models, we will study the role of latency in the severity of HIV infection. The model will be contrasted with experimental data where the role of drugs reversing latency will be analyzed. At all levels, exhaustive use of statistical inference methods will be made, for which the transversal problem of the models' identifiability and new measures of sensitivity and synergy of the models' parameters will be analyzed.
The research team is multidisciplinary (Physics, Mathematics, and Mechanical engineering) and will have a work team made up of biologists, mathematicians and physicists and experimental collaborators who will provide us with empirical data to validate the models.
Grant PID2019-106339GB-I00 funded by MCIN/AEI/10.13039/501100011033/ 
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| | | | | | * | Abbreviated name: | RAYUELA | | | Project title: | RAYUELA. Empowering and educating young people for the internet by playing (Horizon 2020. Grant agreement No. 882828) | | | Funding entity: | European Commission | | | Start date: | October 2020 | | | End date: | October 2023 | | | Researcher(s): | Gregorio López López, Mario Castro Ponce, Álvaro Jesús López López, Javier Matanza Domingo, Sara Lumbreras Sancho, Yolanda González Arechavala, Carlos Rodríguez-Morcillo García, Rafael Palacios Hielscher, David Contreras Bárcena, Francisco Javier Herraiz Martínez, Jaime Pérez Sánchez, Luis Francisco Sánchez Merchante, Aarón Gómez Dorado, Gabriel Antonio Valverde Castilla | | | Description: | The RAYUELA project is a 3-years project beginning in October 2020 with a budget of 5M EUR. The consortium involves 17 partners from 9 countries and is co-ordinated by Universidad Pontificia Comillas. The project brings together experts from different areas of knowledge from all over Europe to develop an interactive story-like game that, on the one side, will allow minors to learn good practices on the use of the Internet and associated technology by playing, and, on the other side, will allow modelling, in a friendly and non-invasive manner, online habits and potential risk profiles related to cybersecurity and cybercriminality, providing Law Enforcement Agencies with scientifically sound foundations to define appropriate policies.
This project has received funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under grant agreement No 882828 
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| | | | | | * | Abbreviated name: | eFORT | | | Project title: | eFORT- Establishment of a FramewORk for Transforming current EPES into a more resilient, reliable and secure system all over its value chain (Horizon Europe. Grant agreement No. 101075665) | | | Funding entity: | European Commission | | | Start date: | September 2022 | | | End date: | August 2026 | | | Researcher(s): | Gregorio López López, José Pablo Chaves Ávila, Javier Matanza Domingo, Rafael Palacios Hielscher, Néstor Rodríguez Pérez, Miguel Ángel Sánchez Fornié, Lukas Sigrist, María del Valle Varo García, Mario Castro Ponce | | | Description: | Prompted by the need to comply with environmental and societal concerns, Electrical Power and Energy Systems are undergoing an unprecedented transformation, demanding urgent upgrades to make them more reliable, resilient and secure. Modernization of current grids will greatly reduce the frequency and duration of power blackouts, diminish the impact of disruptive events and restore service faster when outages occur, creating broad benefits to society and economy. eFORT approach will enable the further upgrading of the energy grid without affecting the security of supply and increasing their reliability and resiliency against extreme weather events, manmade hazards and equipment failures. eFORT addresses this complex challenge by gathering a consortium of 23 partners, from 10 EU countries, that provides the needed expertise. The project will put in place a set of solutions at the cyber and physical layers for detecting, preventing and mitigating vulnerabilities and threats. Among them, an interoperable Intelligent Platform will set a common foundation for grid characterization and vulnerability overseeing, as well as gather information from smart grid components and apply heavy-duty algorithms, whereas Asset Management developments will strengthen grid infrastructure robustness, which will be empowered by the addressed Digital Technologies. All these elements will be validated in relevant environments coming from 4 demo cases covering the whole grid value chain: (i) a transmission network (The Netherlands); (ii) a remote distribution grid (Italy); (iii) a digital substation in Ukraine; and (iv) a micro-grid in Spain. Moreover, eFORT relies on several horizontal actions aiming at empowering EPES players by establishing a common regulatory and standardisation framework, performing technical and cost-benefit analysis, and evaluating new related business models and replication potential, in the pathway towards a more sustainable energy system.
This project has received funding from the European Union’s Horizon Europe research and innovation programme under grant agreement No 101075665
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| | | | | | * | Abbreviated name: | ICRAD_EPICVIR | | | Project title: | Emerging porcine influenza and coronaviruses | | | Funding entity: | Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación (MCI)/Agencia Estatal de Investigación (AEI) | | | Start date: | September 2023 | | | End date: | August 2026 | | | Researcher(s): | Mario Castro Ponce | | | Description: | Influenza viruses and coronaviruses have caused some of the deadliest pandemics in humans, and pigs are natural reservoirs. Swine influenza A viruses (swIAV) and porcine respiratory coronavirus (PRCV) are enzootic in pigs, infecting airway epithelial cells. However, they differ in their pathogenicity and immune response. Cattle are the natural host for influenza D virus (IDV), but it is now an emerging virus in swine (swIDV), and its pathogenesis is unknown. The genetic diversity of the swine influenza virus is enormous and continues to increase, with many "reassortant" genotypes co-circulating and constituting a zoonotic threat with proven pandemic characteristics. The pandemic potential of PRCV and swIDV is not known.
We compare the transmission, pathogenesis, and host tropism of six different genotypes of swIAV, swIDV, and PRCV to answer the following four questions:
1) What are the transmission dynamics of swIVs and PRCV between pigs and from pigs to ferrets? The latter is a model for humans.
2) What key early events and immune mediators govern the outcome of swIV and PRCV exposure that may tip the balance toward mild or severe disease?
3) What is the zoonotic potential of swIV and PRCV? Do some new H1 swIAV genotypes pose a higher risk than those already known? How efficiently do swIDV and PRCV replicate in the human airways?
What viral traits can contribute to host switching?
4) Can an integrated mathematical model of viral replication, transmission, pathogenesis, and immune control identify key events in virus-host interaction to inform control strategies?
We perform in vivo studies (Q1, 2) in the porcine and ferret host and in vitro studies (Q3) in discrete cultures of the porcine, human, and ferret airways, with maximum similarity to the in vivo situation. Finally, we use novel mathematical models to provide quantitative information from the integrated data (Q4).
Our results help predict the zoonotic potential, transmission, and pathogenicity of existing and emerging swIVs and PRCVs. | | | | | | * | Abbreviated name: | PROBCOMPLEX | | | Project title: | Probabilistic modelling of complex systems with uncertainty: from molecules to human interactions | | | Funding entity: | Ministerio de Ciencia de Innovación (MCI) / Agencia Estatal de Investigación (AEI) | | | Start date: | September 2023 | | | End date: | August 2026 | | | Researcher(s): | Mario Castro Ponce, Juan Luis Gómez González, Jaime Pérez Sánchez | | | Description: | Some of the most exciting phenomena that have aroused scientific curiosity in recent decades (such as genomics, the emergence of pandemics, the collaborative economy, or the immune response to a pathogen) are collective phenomena out of equilibrium and result from the interactions of simple basic units. In these systems converge (although to different degrees) a set of similar problems common to Complexity science: they occur at different scales (many of them unobservable), they cannot be explained by knowledge of the essential components, and, finally, they are fluctuating, and uncertainty cannot be controlled experimentally. Although many of these problems have already been successfully addressed in recent years, pursuing a unifying theory that is universally valid in all situations is unrealistic. While some patterns can be transferred from one field to another, it is imprecise to generalize from pure metaphor to the quantitative, systematic, and rigorous scientific analysis that characterizes physics. However, it is possible to unify the methodology by considering the specific knowledge of the problem. The novelty of this project is to focus on the universality of the probabilistic description of uncertainty to systematically model each problem using the language of probability. Specifically, using Bayes' Theorem to capture the particular mechanism and the evolution of uncertainty. In the case of physicochemical phenomena, this is reduced to the probabilistic inference of the model parameters. However, as microscopic knowledge of the problem becomes less detailed, the weight of probabilistic modeling becomes more important. In particular, we propose to study diverse systems, from the physics of vapor reservoirs (which gives rise to fractal surfaces) to the dynamics of a sharing economy system, where modeling is based on the maximum entropy principle to determine the variability of mobility patterns in a bike-sharing system, Other examples are epidemiology or immunology. We combine Langevin equations and Markov chains to, through stochasticity, integrate experimentally unobservable degrees of freedom, again described by probability distributions compatible with empirical evidence. In summary, we propose a theoretical framework with uncertainty at the heart of the problem. However, we illustrate it (in the absence of genuinely universal models) using examples from various disciplines. The project team has established expertise in these problems to achieve the project objectives. We also introduce machine learning methodology to analyze experimental data and use it to generate new hypotheses. The project's ultimate goal is to realize models that can help to contrast alternative hypotheses of a problem and help, with the help of experiments, to falsify those contradictory to them. | | | | |
- 2.1.2 Consultancy and technological support
- 2.1.2.1 Private funding
- 2.1.2.2 Public funding
- 2.1.3 Services and analysis projects
- 2.1.3.1 Private funding
- 2.1.3.2 Public funding
- 2.2 Publications
- 2.2.1 Books
- 2.2.2 Chapters in books
- 2.2.3 Papers in Journals
| * | Author(s): | J.L. Gómez, A. Cantizano, R. Caro, M. Castro | | | Title: | Leveraging national forestry data repositories to advocate wildfire modeling towards simulation-driven risk assessment | | | Journal: | Ecological Indicators | | | Vol & Num: | vol. 158 | | | Pages: | 111306-1-111306-15 | | | ISSN: | 1470-160X | | | Publication date: | December 2023/January 2024 | | | | | | * | Author(s): | J. Pérez, M. Castro, E. Awad, G. López | | | Title: | Generation of probabilistic synthetic data for serious games: a case study on cyberbullying | | | Journal: | Knowledge-Based Systems | | | Vol & Num: | vol. 286 | | | Pages: | 111440-1-111440-10 | | | ISSN: | 0950-7051 | | | Publication date: | January 2024/February 2024 | | | | |
- 2.2.4 Papers in Congress
| * | Author(s): | M. Castro | | | Title: | Apología de la vaca esférica: modelos sencillos para sistemas complejos | | | Type: | Paper | | | Congress: | XXIV Congreso de Física Estadística - FisEs 2023 | | | City: | Pamplona | | | Country: | Spain | | | Date: | 25-27 October 2023 | | | ISBN: | | | | | | | * | Author(s): | J. Pérez, M. Castro, G. López, E. Awad, M. Reneses | | | Title: | Usando un juego serio e IA causal para estudiar el ciberbullying | | | Type: | Communication | | | Congress: | IX Jornadas Nacionales de Investigación en Ciberseguridad - JNIC 2024 | | | City: | Seville | | | Country: | Spain | | | Date: | 27-29 May 2024 | | | ISBN: | | | | | | | * | Author(s): | J.L. Gómez, E. Marcoulaki, M. Konstantinidou, A. Cantizano, R. Caro, M. Castro | | | Title: | Optimization of sensor networks for the detection of wildfires leading to natural and natech disasters | | | Type: | Communication | | | Congress: | 32nd Annual Conference of the Society for Risk Analysis Europe - SRA-E 2024 | | | City: | Athens | | | Country: | Greece | | | Date: | 02-05 June 2024 | | | ISBN: | | | | | | | * | Author(s): | J.L. Gómez, E. Marcoulaki, M. Konstantinidou, A. Cantizano, R. Caro, M. Castro | | | Title: | Sensor networks optimization for rapid detection of wildfires leading to Na-Tech disasters | | | Type: | Communication | | | Congress: | 8th International Symposium on Natural Hazard-Triggered Technological Accidents - Natech 2024 | | | City: | Trondheim | | | Country: | Norway | | | Date: | 01-02 July 2024 | | | ISBN: | | | | | | | * | Author(s): | M. Castro | | | Title: | Data-dependent limits to modeling viral dynamics and epidemic spreading | | | Type: | Communication | | | Congress: | 13th European Conference on Mathematical and Theoretical Biology - ECMTB 2024 | | | City: | Toledo | | | Country: | Spain | | | Date: | 22-26 July 2024 | | | ISBN: | | | | | |
- 2.2.5 IIT Technical Documents
- 2.2.6 Other Publications
- 2.3 Software Products
Chapter 3. Teaching [ | ]- 3.1 Supervised Bachelor Theses at IIT
- 3.1.1 Bachelor's Degree in Engineering for Industrial Technologies
- 3.1.2 Bachelor's Degree in Engineering in Telecommunications Technologies
- 3.2 Postgraduate Teaching
- 3.2.1 Master Courses
- 3.2.1.1 Official Master's Degree in Industrial Engineering (MII)
- 3.2.1.2 Official Master's Degree in Telecommunications Engineering (MIT)
- 3.2.1.3 Official Master's Degree in the Electric Power Industry (MEPI)
- 3.2.1.4 Master in Railway Systems (MSF)
- 3.2.1.5 Master in Project, Construction and Maintenance of High Voltage Electrical Transmission (On-line)
- 3.2.1.6 Master in Fire Protection Engineering (MIPCI)
- 3.2.1.7 MBA in the Global Energy Industry
- 3.2.1.8 Master's Degree in Smart Industry (MIC)
- 3.2.1.9 Master’s Degree in International Industrial Project Management
- 3.2.1.10 Master in Electricity Generation. Promotion, Technology and Operation (MGE) (On-line)
- 3.2.1.11 Master's Degree in Big Data Technologies and Advanced Analytics (MBD)
- 3.2.1.12 Master's Degree in Management Solutions (MCN)
- 3.2.1.13 Master's Degree in Smart Grids (MSG)
- 3.2.1.14 Master in Biomechanics Applied to Damage Assessment; Advanced Physical Therapy Techniques
- 3.2.1.15 Master in Mobility and Safety Engineering (MMS)
- 3.2.1.16 Master in Electrical Technology (MTE)
- 3.2.1.16 Master in smart agricultural industry and sustainability
- 3.2.1.17 Official Master's Degree in Biomechanics and Sports Physiotherapy
- 3.2.2 Master Theses supervised at IIT
- 3.2.2.1 Official Master's Degree in Industrial Engineering (MII)
- 3.2.2.2 Official Master's Degree in Telecommunications Engineering (MIT)
- 3.2.2.3 Official Master's Degree in the Electric Power Industry (MEPI)
- 3.2.2.4 Erasmus Mundus International Master in Economics and Management of Network Industries (EMIN)
- 3.2.2.5 Master in Railway Systems (MSF)
- 3.2.2.6 MBA in the Global Energy Industry
- 3.2.2.7 Master in Fire Protection Engineering (MIPCI)
- 3.2.2.8 Master's Degree in Smart Industry (MIC)
- 3.2.2.9 Master’s Degree in International Industrial Project Management
- 3.2.2.10 Master's Degree in Big Data Technologies and Advanced Analytics (MBD)
- 3.2.2.11 Master in Electricity Generation. Promotion, Technology and Operation (MGE) (On-line)
- 3.2.2.12 Master's Degree in Management Solutions (MCN)
- 3.2.2.13 Master in Project, Construction and Maintenance of High Voltage Electrical Transmission (On-line)
- 3.2.2.15 Official Master's Degree in Engineering Research (MIMSI)
- 3.2.2.16 Master's Degree in Smart Grids (MSG)
- 3.2.2.17 Master in Biomechanics Applied to Damage Assessment; Advanced Physical Therapy Techniques
- 3.2.2.18 Master in Mobility and Safety Engineering (MMS)
- 3.2.2.19 Master in Electrical Technology (MTE)
- 3.2.2.20 Official Master's Degree in Biomechanics and Sports Physiotherapy
- 3.2.2.21 Master in Environment and Energy Transition
- 3.3 Other Academic Activities
- 3.3.1 External Master Courses
- 3.3.2 Supervised Master Theses in other Universities
- 3.3.3 Developed Master Theses in other Universities
Chapter 4. Doctorate [ | ]- 4.1 ICAI Engineers' Association PhD Scholarship
- 4.2 Training complements
- 4.3 Training activities
| * | Subject title: | | | | Lecturer(s): | Pedro Linares Llamas | | | | |
- 4.4 Doctoral Theses
- 4.4.1 Comillas Submitted Theses
| * | Title: | Impact of Serious Games and causal Artificial Intelligence on social science research: a case study on cyberbullying | | | Author: | Jaime Pérez Sánchez | | | Supervisor(s): | Gregorio López López and Mario Castro Ponce | | | Dissertation date: | Junio 14 , 2024 | | | | |
- 4.4.2 Submitted Theses in other Universities
- 4.4.3 Comillas Ongoing Theses
Chapter 5. Other Activities [ | ]- 5.1 EES-UETP
- 5.2 International Exchanges
- 5.3 Visiting professors
| * | Name: | Ángela Jiménez Casas | | | Department: | | | | University: | | | | City: | | | | Country: | | | | Period of stay: | June 2024 | | | Host: | Mario Castro Ponce | | | Otra información: | | | | | |
- 5.4 Visiting students
- 5.5 Courses offered and coordinated to external companies and institutions
- 5.6 Conferences, Seminars, Roundtables and Workshops Contributions
- 5.7 Congress, Seminars and Journals Organization
- 5.8 Other Academic Activities Organization
| * | Author(s): | Mario Castro Ponce | | | Activity description: | Permanent member of Congress of Statistical Physics - FISES | | | Organizer: | RSEF / GEFENOL | | | Funding entity: | | | | City: | | | | Country: | | | | Date: | April 2014- Today | | | | |
- 5.9 Other Activities
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