Sonia Herraiz, Ph.D.

Biography

Dr. Sonia Herraiz is a full-time scientist at IVI Foundation-IIS la Fe through a type I Miguel Servet contract leading the Ovarian rejuvenation and Fertility Preservation research group, visiting scholar at Stanford University Medical School in the Department of OB/GYN, member of the Reproductive Medicine group at the Instituto Investigación Sanitaria La Fe, and part of the Fertility Preservation Unit at La Fe University Hospital in Valencia.

She obtained her Bachelors degree, majoring in Biology at the University of Valencia in 2003, and joined IVI Foundation in 2006, obtaining her PhD degree, also from the University of Valencia in 2010 with distinction as Magna Cum laude. As part of her post-doctoral training, she spent a year at the University of Edinburgh with Dr. Evelyn E. Telfer to learn in vitro follicle culture and oocyte maturation. In addition, she had several short term stays to improve her skills. These include Infertility Center of St. Louis (MI, US), hosted by Prof. Sherman Silber, St. Marianna University School of Medicine, Kanagawa (Japan) hosted by Dr. Kawamura, and Stanford University, CA, USA, under the supervision of Prof. Aaron Hsueh.

The primary focus of her laboratory is ovarian rejuvenation. She tackles this question using a number of cutting-edge approaches, including autologous bone marrow-derived stem cell transplantation and ovarian fragmentation. She is also intersted in the development of new alternatives for Fertility Preservation in cancer patients where the ovarian transplantation is contraindicated. She has been funded by the Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness (SAF and FIS projects), and the Valencian Health Agency (PROMETEO project), as well as private institutions. She has also been awarded the highly competitive Sara Borrell postdoctoral grant from the Spanish Government in 2012 and from Valencian Education agency in 2016.

She has authored over 20 peer-reviewed scientific papers and review articles in international journals and presented over 30 communications in meetings. She received the Spanish Fertility Society Award in 2016. Dr. Herraiz is ad-hoc reviewer for a number of leading reproductive journals and has been recognized as a Star reviewer by Fertility and Sterility.

Dr. Sonia Herraiz is the co-director of 4 Thesis projects and 3 Master projects at University of Valencia and is Faculty of the Master’s Degree Program in Biotechnology of Assisted Human Reproduction (University of Valencia)

Education and Training

BSc	University of Valencia, Spain (2003)
PhD (Biology)	University of Valencia, Spain (2010)
Fellowship	University of Edinburgh (2012)
Fellowship	Stanford University School of Medicine (2016)

Honors and recognition

Torres Quevedo Contract. Ministry of Economy, Industry and Competitiveness	2017-2020
BEST program Grant for postdoctoral stay at Stanford University, from the Valencian Regional Government	2016
Spanish Fertility Society Award	2016
Fertility and Sterility Star Reviewer Award – Dr. Jacques Donnez Associate Editor	2016
Fertility and Sterility Star Reviewer Award – Dr. Nicolás Garrido Associate Editor	2016
Sara Borrell post-doctoral contract granted by the Spanish National Institute of Health Carlos III	2011-2013
Top five abstract at International Society of Ultrasound in Obstetrics and Gynecology (ISUOG)	2009
Miguel Servet contract of the National Institute of Health Carlos III (CP19/00141)	2020-2025
BEST program Grant for postdoctoral stay at Yale University, from the Valencian Regional Government	2020

Publications

Mitochondrial enrichment in infertile patients: a review of different mitochondrial replacement therapies.
Rodríguez-Varela C, Herraiz S, Labarta E

Ther Adv Reprod Health. 2021 doi:

The cyto-protective effects of LH on ovarian reserve and female fertility during exposure to gonadotoxic alkylating agents in an adult mouse model.
Del Castillo LM, Buigues A, Rossi V, Soriano MJ, Martinez J, De Felici M, Lamsira HK, Di Rella F, Klinger FG, Pellicer A, Herraiz S

Hum Reprod. 2021 doi:

Pathways and factors regulated by bone marrow-derived stem cells in human ovarian tissue.
Buigues A, Diaz-Gimeno P, Sebastian-Leon P, Pellegrini L, Pellicer N, Pellicer A, Herraiz S

Fertil Steril. May. 2021 doi: 10.1016/j.fertnstert.2021.04.009

Emerging follicular activation strategies to treat women with poor ovarian response and primary ovarian insufficiency.
Reig A, Herraiz S, Pellicer A, Seli E

Curr Opin Obstet Gynecol. Jun. 2021 doi: 10.1097/GCO.0000000000000703

Disease-inducing potential of two leukemic cell lines in a xenografting model.
Manavella DD, Herraiz S, Soares M, Buigues A, Pellicer A, Donnez J, Diaz-Garcia C, Dolmans MM

J Assist Reprod Genet. Mar. 2021 doi: 10.1007/s10815-021-02169-2

Stem Cell Paracrine Signaling for Treatment of Premature Ovarian Insufficiency
Polonio AM, Garcia-Velasco J A, Herraiz S

Front Endocrinol. Mar. 2021 doi: 10.3389/fendo.2020.626322

Stem cell secreted factor therapy regenerates the ovarian niche and rescues follicles
Buigues A, Marchante M, Miguel-Gómez L, Martinez J, Cervello I, Pellicer A, Herraiz S

Am J Obst & Gyn. Feb. 2021 doi: 10.1016/j.ajog.2021.01.023

Emerging follicular activation strategies to treat women with poor ovarian response and primary ovarian insufficiency
Reig A, Herraiz S, Pellicer A, Seli E,

Curr Opin Obstet Gynecol. Jun. 2021 doi: 10.1097/GCO.0000000000000703

Disease-inducing potential of two leukemic cell lines in a xenografting model
Manavella D D, Herraiz S, Soares M, Buigues A, Pellicer A, Donnez J, Diaz-Garcia C, Dolmans M M,

J Assist Reprod Genet. Mar. 2021 doi: 10.1007/s10815-021-02169-2

Stem cell-secreted factor therapy regenerates the ovarian niche and rescues follicles
Buigues A, Marchante M, de Miguel-Gomez L, Martinez J, Cervello I, Pellicer A, Herraiz S,

Am J Obstet Gynecol. 1-Feb. 2021 doi: 10.1016/j.ajog.2021.01.023

Use of dopamine agonists to target angiogenesis in women with endometriosis
Pellicer N, Galliano D, Herraiz S, Bagger Y Z, Arce J C, Pellicer A,

Hum Reprod. 2021 18-Mar. doi: 10.1093/humrep/deaa337

Correction to: Diminished Ovarian Reserve Chemotherapy-Induced Mouse Model: A Tool for the Preclinical Assessment of New Therapies for Ovarian Damage
Buigues A, Marchante M, Herraiz S, Pellicer A,

Reprod Sci. 2021 Feb. doi: 10.1007/s43032-020-00379-0

Stem Cell Paracrine Signaling for Treatment of Premature Ovarian Insufficiency
Polonio A M, Garcia-Velasco J A, Herraiz S,

Front Endocrinol (Lausanne). 2020 doi: 10.3389/fendo.2020.626322

New insights for fertility preservation by ovarian tissue cryopreservation and transplantation in pediatric cancer patients
Herraiz S, Cervello I,

Fertil Steril. 2020 Dec. doi: 10.1016/j.fertnstert.2020.07.057

Optimizing ovarian tissue quality before cryopreservation: comparing outcomes of three decortication methods on stromal and follicular viability
Herraiz S, Monzo S, Gomez-Gimenez B, Pellicer A, Diaz-Garcia C,

Fertil Steril. 2020 Mar. doi: 10.1016/j.fertnstert.2019.10.030

Dexamethasone does not prevent malignant cell reintroduction in leukemia patients undergoing ovarian transplant: risk assessment of leukemic cell transmission by a xenograft model
Diaz-Garcia C, Herraiz S, Such E, Andres M D M, Villamon E, Mayordomo-Aranda E, Cervera J V, Sanz M A, Pellicer A,

Hum Reprod. 2019 Aug 1. doi: 10.1093/humrep/dez115

Treatment potential of bone marrow-derived stem cells in women with diminished ovarian reserves and premature ovarian failure
Herraiz S, Pellicer N, Romeu M, Pellicer A,

Curr Opin Obstet Gynecol. 2019 Jun. doi: 10.1097/GCO.0000000000000531

Diminished Ovarian Reserve Chemotherapy-Induced Mouse Model: A Tool for the Preclinical Assessment of New Therapies for Ovarian Damage
Buigues A, Marchante M, Herraiz S, Pellicer A,

Reprod Sci. 2019 21-Feb. doi: 10.1177/1933719119831784

Mitochondria as a tool for oocyte rejuvenation
Labarta E, de Los Santos M J, Escriba M J, Pellicer A, Herraiz S,

Fertil Steril. 2019 Feb. doi: 10.1016/j.fertnstert.2018.10.036

Autologous mitochondrial transfer as a complementary technique to intracytoplasmic sperm injection to improve embryo quality in patients undergoing in vitro fertilization-a randomized pilot study
Labarta E, de Los Santos M J, Herraiz S, Escriba M J, Marzal A, Buigues A, Pellicer A,

Fertil Steril. 2019 Jan. doi: 10.1016/j.fertnstert.2018.09.023

Autologous stem cell ovarian transplantation to increase reproductive potential in patients who are poor responders
Herraiz S, Romeu M, Buigues A, Martinez S, Diaz-Garcia C, Gomez-Segui I, Martinez J, Pellicer N, Pellicer A,

Fertil Steril. 2018 Aug. doi: 10.1016/j.fertnstert.2018.04.025

Fertility rescue and ovarian follicle growth promotion by bone marrow stem cell infusion
Herraiz S, Buigues A, Diaz-Garcia C, Romeu M, Martinez S, Gomez-Segui I, Simon C, Hsueh A J, Pellicer A,

Fertil Steril. 2018 May. doi: 10.1016/j.fertnstert.2018.01.004

3D NIR-II Molecular Imaging Distinguishes Targeted Organs with High-Performance NIR-II Bioconjugates
Zhu S, Herraiz S, Yue J, Zhang M, Wan H, Yang Q, Ma Z, Wang Y, He J, Antaris A L, Zhong Y, Diao S, Feng Y, Zhou Y, Yu K, Hong G, Liang Y, Hsueh A J, Dai H,

Adv Mater. 2018 Mar. doi: 10.1002/adma.201705799

Oocyte vitrification versus ovarian cortex transplantation in fertility preservation for adult women undergoing gonadotoxic treatments: a prospective cohort study
Diaz-Garcia C, Domingo J, Garcia-Velasco J A, Herraiz S, Mirabet V, Iniesta I, Cobo A, Remohi J, Pellicer A,

Fertil Steril. 2018 Mar. doi: 10.1016/j.fertnstert.2017.11.018

Basic and Clinical Approaches for Fertility Preservation and Restoration in Cancer Patients
Medrano J V, Andres M D M, Garcia S, Herraiz S, Vilanova-Perez T, Goossens E, Pellicer A,

Trends Biotechnol. 2018 Feb. doi: 10.1016/j.tibtech.2017.10.010

Three-Dimensional Angiogenic Evaluation of the Effect of Mifepristone in early gestation: pilot study
Pellicer-Iborra B, Herraiz S, Morales A, Martinez S, Garrido N, Pellicer A,

Gynecol Obstet. 2018 doi:

[Fertility preservation in the oncology patient]
Scarella Chamy A, Diaz-Garcia C, Herraiz S, Kliemchen Rodrigues J,

Medwave. 2017 16-Nov. doi: 10.5867/medwave.2017.09.7090

Live imaging of follicle stimulating hormone receptors in gonads and bones using near infrared II fluorophore
Feng Y, Zhu S, Antaris A L, Chen H, Xiao Y, Lu X, Jiang L, Diao S, Yu K, Wang Y, Herraiz S, Yue J, Hong X, Hong G, Cheng Z, Dai H, Hsueh A J,

Chem Sci. 2017 1-May. doi: 10.1039/c6sc04897h

Three-dimensional NIR-II molecular imaging distinguishes targeting organs with high-performance NIR-II bioconjugates.
Zhu S, Herraiz S, Yue J, Zhang M, Wan H, Yang Q, Ma Z, Wang Y, He J, Antaris A, Zhong Y, Feng Y, Zhou Y, Liang Y, Hsueh AJ, Dai HWang Y,

2017 doi:

Ovarian Tissue Cryopreservation: Slow Freezing
Herraiz S, Diaz-Garcia C, Pellicer A,

Gonadal Tissue Cryopreservation in Fertility Preservation. 2016 doi:

New methods to improve the safety assessment of cryopreserved ovarian tissue for fertility preservation in breast cancer patients
Rodriguez-Iglesias B, Novella-Maestre E, Herraiz S, Diaz-Garcia C, Pellicer N, Pellicer A,

Fertil Steril. 2015 Dec. doi: 10.1016/j.fertnstert.2015.08.009

Short-Term PTEN Inhibition Improves In Vitro Activation of Primordial Follicles, Preserves Follicular Viability, and Restores AMH Levels in Cryopreserved Ovarian Tissue From Cancer Patients
Novella-Maestre E, Herraiz S, Rodriguez-Iglesias B, Diaz-Garcia C, Pellicer A,

PLoS One. 2015 doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0127786

Single site laparoscopy for fertility preservation: a cohort study
Nunez Valera M J, Padilla Iserte P, Higueras Garcia G, Herraiz S, Rubio J M, Romeu Villarroya M, Pellicer A, Diaz-Garcia C,

J Minim Invasive Gynecol. 2015 Feb. doi: 10.1016/j.jmig.2014.10.018

Improving ovarian tissue cryopreservation for oncologic patients: slow freezing versus vitrification, effect of different procedures and devices
Herraiz S, Novella-Maestre E, Rodriguez B, Diaz-Garcia C, Sanchez-Serrano MMirabet V, Pellicer A,

2014 doi:

Effect of antiangiogenic treatment on peritoneal endometriosis-associated nerve fibers
Novella-Maestre E, Herraiz S, Vila-Vives J M, Carda C, Ruiz-Sauri A, Pellicer A,

Fertil Steril. 2012 Nov. doi: 10.1016/j.fertnstert.2012.07.1103

Sildenafil citrate improves perinatal outcome in fetuses from pre-eclamptic rats
Herraiz S, Pellicer B, Serra V, Cauli O, Cortijo J, Felipo V, Pellicer A,

BJOG. 2012 Oct. doi: 10.1111/j.1471-0528.2012.03430.x

Mid-term neurodevelopmental outcome in isolated mild ventriculomegaly diagnosed in fetal life.
Gomez-Arriaga P, Herraiz S, Puente J M, Zamora-Crespo B, Núñez-Enamorado N, Galindo A,

Diagn Ther. 2012 doi:

Prenatal brain damage in preeclamptic animal model induced by gestational nitric oxide synthase inhibition
Pellicer B, Herraiz S, Leal A, Simon C, Pellicer A,

J Pregnancy. 2011 doi: 10.1155/2011/809569

Haemodynamic effects of long-term administration of sildenafil in normotensive pregnant and non-pregnant rats
Pellicer B, Herraiz S, Cauli O, Rodrigo R, Asensi M, Cortijo J, Serra V, Morcillo E, Felipo V, Simon C, Pellicer A,

BJOG. 2011 Apr. doi: 10.1111/j.1471-0528.2010.02839.x

Presentations

Cozzolino M Titus S Herraiz S Pellicer A Scott RT Seli E P-608 IN YOUNG WOMEN WITH POOR OVARIAN RESPONSE (POR), MICRORNA EXPRESSION IN PERIPHERAL BLOOD MONONUCLEAR (PBMN) CELLS IS ALTERED COMPARED TO NORMO-RESPONDER CONTROLS. Presented at 76th American Society of Reproductive Medicine Scientific Congress, Virtual congress, October 17-21,2020

Cozzolino M Titus S Herraiz S Pellicer A Scott RT Seli E P-723 TRANSCRIPTOMIC LANDSCAPE OF GRANULOSA CELLS AND PERIPHERAL BLOOD MONONUCLEAR (PBMN) CELLS IN WOMEN WITH PCOS AND POOR OVARIAN RESPONSE (POR). Presented at 76th American Society of Reproductive Medicine Scientific Congress, Virtual congress, October 17-21,2020

Castillo LM Soriano MG Martinez J Pellicer A Herraiz S O-260 LH PREVENTS FOLLICULAR DAMAGE AND PRESERVES THE MEIOTIC POTENTIAL OF OOCYTES EXPOSED TO CHEMOTHERAPY AT THE PRIMORDIAL STAGE. Presented at the 36th annual meeting of the European Society of Human Reproduction and Embryology, Copenhagen,Denmark, July 5-8, 2020

Soriano MG Martínez J Lopez R Herraiz S Díaz-García C O-038 A new strategy to assess safety of controlled ovarian stimulation protocols for oocyte vitrification as a fertility preservation technique in breast cancer patients. . Presented at the 36th annual meeting of the European Society of Human Reproduction and Embryology, Copenhagen,Denmark, July 5-8, 2020

Pellicer N Herraiz S Martínez RM Buigues A Gómez-Seguí I Martínez J Pellicer A O-088 Bone marrow derived stem cells restore ovarian function and fertility in premature ovarian insufficiency women. Interim report of a randomized trial: mobilization versus ovarian injection. . Presented at the 36th annual meeting of the European Society of Human Reproduction and Embryology, Copenhagen,Denmark, July 5-8, 2020

Buigues A Marchante M Martínez J Pellicer A Herraiz S 0-143 G-CSF Mobilized Plasma Regenerate Ovarian Stroma and Restore Ovarian Function.. Presented at the 67th Annual Meeting of the Society for Reproductive Investigation, Vancouver ,Canada, March 10-14, 2020

Marchante M Buigues A Pellicer A Herraiz S T-208 Stem Cell Secreted Factors-Enriched Plasma Promotes DNA Repair and Protects Against Chemotherapy-Induced Cell Death in Ovarian Tissue. Presented at the 67th Annual Meeting of the Society for Reproductive Investigation, Vancouver ,Canada, March 10-14, 2020

Pellicer N Buigues A Dominguez F Susana Martinez-cuenca Pellicer A Herraiz S P-787 Autologous stem cell ovarian transplantation (ASCOT) revitalized the aged blood-borne secretome in Poor responder (PR) women. Presented at the 35th annual meeting of the European Society of Human Reproduction and Embryology, Vienna, Austria, 14-16 October 2019

Castillo LM Buigues A Buigues A Marchante M Rossi V Martinez J Klinger FG Pellicer A Herraiz S P-446: LH in vitro treatment promotes DNA repair of mouse apoptotic follicles damaged by alkylating agents.. Presented at the 74th Scientific Congress & Expo of the American Society for Reproductive Medicine, Denver, CO, USA, 23-26 June 2019

Pellegrini L Buigues A Sebastián-León P Diaz-Gimeno P Pellicer A Herraiz S Transcriptomic Changes and Paracrine Factors Involved in Ovarian Rejuvenation Induced by Stem Cell_. Presented at the 34rd annual meeting of the European Society of Human Reproduction and Embryology, Barcelona, Spain, March 12-16, 2019

Castillo LM Buigues A Pellegrini L Rossi V Klinger F Pellicer A Herraiz S LH gonadoprotection against ovarian damage induced by alkytaing drugs in adult mouse ovaries. 2018

Labarta E Herraiz S De Los Santos MJ Marzal A Jose Escribá M Buigues A Pellicer A Autologous mitochondrial transfer (AugmentSM) as a complementary technique to ICSI to improve oocyte and embryo quality in IVF patients. A Randomized Pilot Study. 2018

Labarta E Herraiz S De Los Santos MJ Marzal A Jose Escribá M Buigues A Pellicer A Autologous stem cell ovarian transplant to improve ovarian response and reproductive outcomes in poor responder patients 2018

Buigues A Herraiz S Marchante M Hsueh A J Pellicer A Fertility Rescue by Bone Marrow Derived Stem Cell Infusion 2018

Díaz-García C Domingo J Herraiz S Iniesta I Cobo A Garcia-Belda A Rubio JM Garcia-Velasco JA Pellicer A O-083 Fertility preservation by oocyte vitrification or ovarian cortex cryopreservation. A prospective cohort study 2017

García Camuñas N Vázquez S Pellicer N Jesica S Garcia Belda A Andres M Herraiz S Pellicer A Díaz García C Fertility preservation. Anatomopathological analysis of ovarian cortex metastasis in a large cohort of patient undergoing fertility preservation through ovarian cortex cryopreservation 2017

Herraiz S Romeu M Martínez S Solves P Gómez I Martínez J Buigues A Galliano D Simón C Díaz-García C Pellicer A Two live birth after Stem cell ovarian auto-transplantation in Poor Responder women 2017

Herraiz S Buigues A Romeu M Díaz-García C Hsueh A Pellicer A Infusion Of Human Bone Marrow-Derived Stem Cells Improved Ovarian Function In Chemotherapy-Damaged Ovaries In Mice 2017

Herraiz S Romeu M Martínez S Díaz-García C Solves P Gómez I Martínez J Anna Buigues Simón C Galliano D Pellicer A Two Live Birth After Stem Cell Ovarian Auto-Transplantation In PR Women 2017

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