Rogelio Hernández-López, Ph.D.

Research

The Hernández-Lopez lab is pioneering novel approaches for designing synthetic protein receptors for engineering cellular communication. Cell-surface receptor proteins are the primary tools cells use to detect and respond to environmental cues. These receptors can detect specific molecular signals outside the cell and trigger the appropriate response inside the cell, switching genes on or off, reconfiguring cell shape or movement, or altering cell metabolism. The ability to engineer synthetic receptors that sense user-defined signals and initiate a customized response would advance cell engineering and support the development of therapeutics. In previous work, by manipulating the design of immune-cell receptors, I programmed T cells to specifically target cancer cells rather than healthy tissue. Now, using a combination of cutting-edge techniques in synthetic biology, and protein and genome engineering, my lab will manipulate proteins that carry signals from the cell surface to different organelles, dissect the code for protein localization, and rewire these proteins so they are able to sense user-defined signals and respond by activating or inhibiting specific cellular programs. Our work will lead to the development of novel engineered proteins that can be programmed to perform a desired activity—for example, triggering the secretion of a therapeutic molecule for a range of diseases.