Juan C. Sáez studies the regulation and function of membrane channels (gap junction channels and hemichannels) composed of proteins called connexins or pannexins. The studies are conducted under physiological and pathophysiological conditions using exogenous expression systems or in primary cells of the nervous or immune system.
During the last decade, he has contributed to understand the involvement of these in the inflammatory response. Since opening of hemichannels is directly involved in the development of inflammatory responses that underlie tissue dysfunction he is searching for potent and selective blockers that could be used as therapeutic agents in diverse chronic diseases with an important inflammatory component.