Posted on April 4, 2025 by College of Sciences
#FacultySpotlight
Carlos Bassetto, Ph.D, Department of Physics and Astronomy
What did your journey to UTSA look like and are you fixed-term track or tenure track?
I am tenure track. My journey started in Brazil. I always enjoyed physics and math and I got accepted to physics in college. I started, as an undergraduate, researching in optical properties of quantum wells and then enrolled in the master's program in the same subject. Halfway through my master's, I learned about ion channels in a class and at that time I decided to switch fields, from material sciences to biophysics for my PhD. After my PhD, I had a great opportunity to do postdoctoral research at the laboratory of Dr. Francisco Bezanilla at the University of Chicago.
What do you enjoy most about your area of study?
I like the excitement of new experiments, new recordings and new techniques that have not yet been performed. I enjoy thinking about ion channels and their implications in a physiological process, new ways to study and understand them. I believe that we can learn a lot by looking at the ways that nature has evolved.
What are some of the most notable research projects that you've been involved in?
Most of the projects that I worked on involved collaborations. There are two that stood out. One is a new technique to promote fast temperature changes and to measure them at the cell membrane. We called it Tstep. We used this to study thermodynamics of ion channels. This work was commented on by the New and Notable feature of the Biophysical Journal. The second is developing an assay to promote cellular excitability using light and lipids containing azobenzene, which can be used to promote membrane tension, inhibit and elicit action potential in artificial neurons. Both projects required a lot of tinkering, trial and error, but in the end, it paid off.
What is your proudest moment with the COS?
Since I just joined UTSA and the COS on August 2024, I would say that my proudest moment is being able to build my lab and my research program at this institution.
What do you enjoy most about your job?
The job now is very different from what I had done before. I used to spend most of my time on the bench performing experiments. Since I am building the lab, I still get to spend time on the bench, which is exciting. The most enjoyable part is the intellectual freedom. Being able to think about a research project and find the means of pursuing it is the most exciting part of the job.
How would you spend your ideal Saturday?
My ideal Saturday starts with a nice coffee, with beans from Brazil, and bread with butter, then watching TV with my son. Having a nice Brazilian barbecue lunch with my wife and my son. Going for a walk on a trail with them, and later watch soccer (Sao Paulo FC). In the evening, watching a movie with my family while eating popcorn.
What are your book recommendations?
Endurance by Alfred Lansing! By far, the best book I have ever read. It is such an amazing story about survival, resilience and leadership. There were several times during the book, that I thought, when will they be able to have a happy moment? I also like Dune, Lord of the Rings, Memorias postumas de Bras Cubas (The Posthumous Memoirs of Bras Cubas).
— College of Sciences
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