Orlando Arguello-Miranda
Cell Biology Through Data Science
My lab studies how cells divide — and just as importantly, how they stop dividing. Understanding this balance is key to tackling diseases like cancer and improving wound healing. In microbes and pests, stopping division helps them survive harsh conditions, leading to antibiotic and pesticide resistance.
My lab combines biochemistry and machine learning to explore these questions. We develop algorithms to track individual cells in real time and analyze the data to uncover how cells make decisions about division. We test our data-driven hypotheses using genetic tools in model organisms like Saccharomyces cerevisiae (budding yeast).
Current Research
- How cells exit the cell cycle and enter a dormant state called quiescence
- Creating new biosensors to monitor internal cell processes
- Building tools to visualize entire signaling networks in single cells
Featured In
- GEN News: “Researchers Uncover What Causes Stress to Give the Red Light to Cell Division”
- News-Medical.net: “Protein plays a previously unknown role in halting cell cycle in response to stressful conditions”
- Phys.org: “Scientists identify protein that stops cell cycle in response to stress”
- Technology Networks: “Protein That Stops Cell Cycle in Response to Stress Identified”
Awards
- NIH K99/R00 Pathway to Independence Award
- Impact score: 21 (first submission)
- National Institute of General Medical Sciences
Education
- B.S. – National University of Costa Rica, 2008
- Ph.D. – Max Planck Institute for Cell and Molecular Biology & Max Planck Institute for Biochemistry, Germany, 2015
- Postdoc – UT Southwestern Medical Center, 2020
Areas of Expertise
- Molecular Biology & Microbiology
- Machine Learning & AI
- Image Analysis
- Cellular Quiescence & Proliferation
