Eva Mar铆a Br煤 Tar铆
Eva Mar铆a Br煤 Tar铆
Dr Eva Brú Tarí is a translational islet biologist specialising in pancreatic alpha-cell biology and diabetes. She holds a BSc in Biotechnology and a MSc in Biotechnology and Bioengineering from Miguel Hernández 玉美人传媒 (Spain), where she also earned her PhD in 2020. Her doctoral work focused on the adaptive responses of alpha-cells in Type 1 Diabetes.
Following her PhD, she joined the laboratory of Prof. Pedro Herrera at the 玉美人传媒, where she investigates the molecular mechanisms of islet cell function and plasticity. Her research integrates primary human islet cultures with advanced multi-omics approaches to dissect and manipulate alpha-cell behaviour for potential therapeutic applications. To reinforce the translational trajectory of her work, she is currently finalising the MAS in Translational Medicine and Biomedical Entrepreneurship at the 玉美人传媒 of Bern. Dr Brú Tarí is also engaged in academic teaching and student supervision, and in 2025 was appointed as a committee member of the Early Career Academy of the European Association for the Study of Diabetes (EASD), where she supports the development of early-career scientists and clinicians. Her research has been recognised by the Fondation pour la Recherche sur le Diabète award (2023) and the EFSD/Lilly Young Investigator Award (2024).
RESEARCH AIMS
Pancreatic alpha-cells, which produce glucagon, are highly abundant in the diabetic pancreas and increasingly recognised as key contributors to dysregulated glucose homeostasis. Despite this, the mechanisms driving their dysfunction in diabetes remain poorly understood. In parallel, ground-breaking work from Prof. Pedro Herrera’s group has shown that alpha-cells exhibit notable plasticity and can, under specific conditions, be reprogrammed into insulin-producing cells. This dual role—as both drivers of disease and candidates for cellular conversion—makes alpha-cells a promising target for therapeutic intervention.
Dr Brú Tarí’s research focuses on two primary objectives:
- To uncover how alpha-cells lose their functional identity in diabetes.
- To harness alpha-cell plasticity to promote their conversion into insulin-producing cells, particularly in settings of severe beta-cell loss, such as Type 1 Diabetes.
Her approach combines the purification of alpha- and beta-cells from human islets with functional assays and multi-omics platforms, including transcriptomics, proteomics, metabolomics and chromatin accessibility profiling. She also employs CRISPR-Cas9 gene editing and adenoviral systems to interrogate gene function and reprogramming pathways. The long-term goal of her research is to translate these mechanistic insights into targeted, cell-based interventions for restoring glycemic control in people with diabetes.
EXPERTISE
- Pancreatic islet cell biology
- Alpha-cell function and alterations in diabetes
- Cellular plasticity and reprogramming
- Human primary islet cell culture, omics technologies, gene editing and functional genomics.
- Translational and clinically oriented diabetes research
KEY PUBLICATIONS
1. Perez-Frances, M., Bru-Tari, E., Cohrs, C. et al. Regulated and adaptive in vivo insulin secretion from islets only containing β-cells. Nat Metab 6, 1791–1806 (2024).
2. Bru-Tari E, Oropeza D, Herrera PL. Cell Heterogeneity and Paracrine Interactions in Human Islet Function: A Perspective Focused in β-Cell Regeneration Strategies. Front Endocrinol (Lausanne). 2021 Feb 3;11:619150.
3. Bru-Tari, E., Cobo-Vuilleumier, N., Alonso-Magdalena, P. et al. Pancreatic alpha-cell mass in the early-onset and advanced stage of a mouse model of experimental autoimmune diabetes. Sci Rep 9, 9515 (2019).
Link to the full list of publications in the UNIGE Archives Ouvertes:
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