Obtuvo los grados de Bachiller en Biología en 1996 y Magister Scientiae en Biología con énfasis en Genética y Biología Molecular en el 2007, ambos en la Universidad de Costa Rica. Desarrolló su tema de maestría en torno al estudio del hongo Rhytidhysteron rufulum (ascomycetes, Patellariales) en Costa Rica, encontrando cuatro linajes distintos mediante el análisis de marcadores moleculares y químicos. Actualmente es Profesora en el Departamento de Bioquímica, Escuela de Medicina e investigadora del Centro de Investigación en Estructuras Microscópicas (CIEMIC) de la Universidad de Costa Rica.
Ecología Microbiana (microorganismos asociados a hospederos).
Biología molecular.
2. Swanson AC, Schwendenmann L, Allen MF, Aronson EL, Artavia‐León A, Dierick D, Fernandez‐Bou AS, Harmon T.C, Murillo‐Cruz C, Oberbauer SF, Pinto‐Tomás AA, Rundel PW, Zelikova TJ. 2019. Welcome to the Atta world: A framework for understanding the effects of leaf‐cutter ants on ecosystem functions. Functional Ecology 33:1386–1399. doi.org/10.1111/1365-2435.13319
3. Cambronero-Heinrichs JC, Matarrita-Carranza B, Murillo-Cruz C, Araya-Valverde E, Chavarría M, Adrián A. Pinto-Tomás AA. 2019. Phylogenetic analyses of antibiotic producing Streptomyces sp. isolates obtained from the stingless-bee Tetragonisca angustula (Apidae: Meliponini). Microbiology doi: 10.1099/mic.0.000754
4. Abarca JG, Vargas G, Zuniga I, Whitfield SM, Woodhams DC, Kerby J, McKenzie VJ., Murillo-Cruz C, Pinto-Tomás A. 2018. Assessment of Bacterial Communities Associated with the Skin of Costa Rican Amphibians at La Selva Biological Station. Frontiers in Microbiology 9:2001. doi:10.3389/fmicb.2018.02001.
5. Abarca JG, Zuniga I, Ortiz-Morales G, Lugo A, Viquez-Cervilla M, Rodriguez-Hernandez N, Vázquez-Sánchez F, Murillo-Cruz C, Torres-Rivera EA, Pinto-Tomás AA and GodoyVitorino F. 2018. Characterization of the Skin Microbiota of the Cane Toad Rhinella cf. marina in Puerto Rico and Costa Rica. Frontiers in Microbiology 8:2624. doi: 10.3389/fmicb.2017.02624.
6. Matarrita-Carranza B., Moreira-Soto R.D., Murillo-Cruz C., Mora M., C.R. Currie & A. Pinto-Tomás. Evidence for Widespread Associations Between Neotropical Hymenopteran Insects and Antibiotic-producing Actinobacteria. Frontiers in Microbiology. 8: 2016, doi:10.3389/fmicb.2017.02016.
7. Cheng K; Rong X; Pinto-Tomás AA; Fernández-Villalobos M; Murillo-Cruz C, Huang Y. 2015. Population genetic analysis of Streptomyces albidoflavus reveals habitat barriers to homologous recombination in the diversification of streptomycetes. Appl. Environ.Microbiol. 81:966-975.
8. Vargas-Asensio G; Pinto-Tomas A; Rivera B; Hernandez M; Hernandez C; Soto-Montero S; Murillo C; Sherman DH; Tamayo-Castillo G. 2014. Uncovering the cultivable microbial diversity of Costa Rican beetles and its ability to break down plant cell wall components. PLoS One 9:e113303.
9. Cao S; Cryan L; Habeshian KA; Murillo C; Tamayo-Castillo G; Rogers MS; Clardy J. 2012. Phenolic compounds as antiangiogenic CMG2 inhibitors from Costa Rican endophytic fungi.Bioorganic & Medicinal Chemistry Letters 22:5885–5888.
10. Murillo, C; Albertazzi, F; Carranza, J; Lumbsch, T; Tamayo, G. 2009. Molecular data indicate that Rhytidhysteron rufulum (ascomycetes, Patellariales) in Costa Rica consists of four distinct lineages corroborated by morphological and chemical characters. Mycological Research 113:405-416.
11. Falk Warnecke, F; Luginbühl, P; Ivanova, N; Majid Ghassemian, M; Richardson, TH; Stege, JT; Cayouette, M; McHardy, AC; Djordjevic, G; Aboushadi, N; Sorek, R; Tringe, SG; Podar, M; Garcia-Martin; H; Kunin, V; Dalevi, D; Madejska, J; Kirton, E; Platt, D; Szeto, E; Salamov, A; Barry, K; Mikhailova, N; Kyrpides, NC; Matson, EG; Ottesen, EA; Zhang, X; Hernández, M; Murillo, C; Acosta, LG; Rigoutsos, I; Tamayo, G; Green, BD; Chang, C; Rubin, EM; Mathur, EJ; Robertson, DE; Hugenholtz, P; Leadbetter, JR. 2007. Metagenomic and functional analysis of hindgut microbiota of a wood-feeding higher termite. Nature 450: 560-565.