Rate My Professor Ana Fernández-Mariño

Ana Fernández-Mariño, PhD, MSc, is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Physiology and Biophysics at the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus. As a key member of the Ion Channel Group, her research centers on ion channel biophysics, elucidating the structural and functional mechanisms of voltage-gated ion channels, with a particular emphasis on potassium (Kv) channels. Utilizing cutting-edge techniques such as cryo-electron microscopy, electrophysiology, and mass spectrometry, Fernández-Mariño investigates processes including channel gating, inactivation, and modulation. Her lab, the Fernandez-Mariño Lab, supports postdoctoral, graduate, and undergraduate training in these areas, and she has completed the university's Mentor Training Course, contributing to programs in Pharmacology, Neuroscience, Structural Biology, Biochemistry, and Biophysics.

Fernández-Mariño's scholarly contributions include high-impact publications in leading journals. In 2025, she co-authored 'Structural basis of fast N-type inactivation in Kv channels' in Nature, revealing the molecular basis of rapid inactivation in the Shaker Kv channel. Her 2023 Nature paper, 'Inactivation of the Kv2.1 channel through electromechanical coupling,' demonstrates the role of electromechanical coupling in Kv2.1 inactivation. Other notable works are 'Structures of the T cell potassium channel Kv1.3 with immunoglobulin modulators' (Nature Communications, 2022), which details Kv1.3 structures; 'Gating interaction maps reveal a noncanonical electromechanical coupling mode in the Shaker K+ channel' (Nature Structural & Molecular Biology, 2018); 'Structures of the Kv2.1 channel and mechanism of inactivation through electromechanical coupling' (Biophysical Journal, 2024); and studies on BK channel activation by tungstate ('Tungstate activates BK channels in a β subunit- and Mg2+-dependent manner: relevance for arterial vasodilatation,' Cardiovascular Research, 2012) and selectivity filter dilation ('Dilation of ion selectivity filters in cation channels,' Trends in Biochemical Sciences, 2024). Her research has accumulated over 400 citations on Google Scholar, underscoring her influence in molecular physiology. She engages in professional activities, including the JGP-SGP Junior Faculty Network and SOBLA postdoctoral councilor role.