RNA biologist, bioinformatician, photographer

Hi, I’m Miguel. I’m a Postdoctoral Fellow in the laboratory of Dr. Rachel Green at Johns Hopkins. I’m passionate about using genomic approaches to explore the complex biology of cellular RNAs. My curiosity about nature extends beyond the lab, where I seek to capture the beauty of people, our planet, and the cosmos through photography.

The ribosome: A sentinel for cellular stress

As a graduate student, I became captivated by RNA biology. During my tenure as a student in the Green Lab at JHMI, I focused my studies on the signaling roles carried out by the translational machinery of the cell, using yeast genetics and bioinformatic analyses to assemble a case study at the intersection of translational control and cellular stress.

RNA expertise from bench to command line

My graduate work highlights nuances in mechanisms of Integrated Stress Response (ISR) activation. By employing a combination of RNA-seq, mass spectrometry, and polysome profiling, I identify novel connections between ribosome collisions and the Integrated Stress Response. I show that induction of ribosome collisions using the translation inhibitor cycloheximide (CHX) leads to a partial mobilization of ISR-target genes:

Gcn4-dependent gene lists defined by analysis of data from Natarajan et al. 2001; displayed RNA-seq data is my own.