Cesar A. Arias is an internationally known physician-scientist, whose major contributions involve characterization of novel aspects of antibiotic resistance in Gram-positive pathogens, thus furthering our understanding of the biology, molecular epidemiology, and mechanisms of bacterial multidrug-resistance. He has also been pivotal in promoting antimicrobial resistance research in developing countries and his contributions have had a direct, significant impact on the practice of infectious diseases. Dr. Arias leads the University of Texas Medical School at Houston Laboratory for Antimicrobial Research, attempting to understand the complex mechanisms by which superbugs become resistant to antibiotics and then designing new strategies to fight them. He is also the founder and scientific director of the Molecular Genetics and Antimicrobial Resistance Unit and The International Center for Microbial Genomics at Universidad El Bosque in Bogota, Colombia. Collaborative work derived from these two institutions has identified novel trends in antimicrobial resistance and has characterized the emergence of particular superbugs in the region. Dr. Arias completed an MD from Universidad El Bosque in Colombia, received an MSc in clinical microbiology from the University of London, and earned a PhD in molecular biology and microbial chemistry from the University of Cambridge. He completed his residency in internal medicine and his fellowship in infectious diseases at The University of Texas Medical School and The University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center. Dr. Arias has been the recipient of the NIH K99/R00 pathway to Independence Award and IDSA Oswald Avery Award for Early Achievement, among others