Ginés Morata was born in Rioja, Almería (Spain) in 1945. He earned a degree in biological sciences from Madrid´s Complutense University in 1968 and in 1973 he gained his doctorate degree cum laude. He is a permanent member of the scientific staff of the Spanish National Research Council (CSIC) since 1975. He has been the deputy director of CSIC´s Institute of Molecular Biology (1986-1989), the deputy director of the CSIC-Autonomous University of Madrid Centre of Molecular Biology (1989-1990) and the director of the Centre of Molecular Biology (1990-1992). He is currently a research professor at the CSIC-UAM Centre of Molecular Biology and is the president of Doñana National Park´s Management Council. He is an expert in developmental genetics, more specifically, in the study of the biological architecture of the Drosophila melanogaster fly. The genetic study of this fly has allowed us to know the biology of human development and will unveil information on organ regeneration at a cellular level. Theses developments could be beneficial in bringing about new cancer treatments and possibly, control the human aging process. He has received numerous awards, including the Spanish Academy of Exact Sciences, Physics and Natural Sciences´ Award (1992), the King James I Research Award (1996), the Santiago Ramón y Cajal National Research Prize (2002), a Gold Medal conferred by Andalucía (2003) and the Prize Mexico of Research and Technology (2004).