Specializing in biological chemistry, he earned a Doctorate at the University's School of Exact and Natural Sciences in 1980 and received the National Medical Academy's recognition for his research into hormonal roles in diabetes.

Staying on as Professor from 1981, Barañao was subsequently given fellowships to the Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry in Munich and to the Milton S. Hershey Medical Center in Pennsylvania State University.

A researcher in Argentina's CONICET specializing in reproductive biology from 1984 to 1994, he received the Bernardo Houssay Prize in 1987 and became part of the UBA's Exact Sciences School Board of Directors in 1990.

[3] Becoming a member of CONICET's Advisory Board from 1999 to 2001, he continued research in the field of biotechnology and published 54 articles in international, peer-reviewed scientific journals and was named a fellow to the prestigious Endocrine Society, among others.

[4] Barañao's extensive experience in the field of veterinary science and agronomy has also made him an unofficial liaison between the administration and the agrarian sector in their often contentious relationship.