Dr. Luján received his Ph.D. in biochemistry from the School of Chemistry, National University of Córdoba, Argentina, in 1991. Until 1996 he performed postdoctoral work in the United States at the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of Health. He is a full professor of biochemistry and cell biology in the School of Medicine, Catholic University of Córdoba, Argentina. He also is an independent investigator at the National Council for Science and Technology of Argentina. In 2010, he was awarded a fellowship in the Guggenheim Foundation’s Latin American and Caribbean program for his work on a vaccine against Giardia lamblia. Dr. Luján studies basic molecular and cellular processes in primitive eukaryotic cells. This is his second HHMI award.

Giardia, a parasitic protozoan of humans, is a major source of waterborne diarrheal disease. Belonging to the earliest branch of the eukaryotic lineage, Giardia is an excellent system in which to study the evolution of cellular processes. The aim of Hugo Luján's work is to gain a better understanding of the basic molecular mechanisms involved in intracellular protein trafficking and antigenic variation in Giardia.