Herrera-Estrella Lab

Research Subjects. Identification and characterization of gene regulatory and metabolic networks involved in desiccation tolerance in plants. Identification of the sensors and signaling pathways that activate the systemic and local responses to phosphate deprivation in plants. Genomics of plant species with nutraceutical or medicinal properties. Development genetic and genomic strategies to modulate root architecture to enhance carbon sequestration in plants.

 

Research Assistant Professors

Gerardo Alejo Jacuinde
Research Focus: Functional genomics and gene regulatory network analysis to understand plant abiotic stress adaptations. Vegetative desiccation tolerance; the evolution of this trait and the study of the protection mechanisms involved in extreme water loss tolerance
galejoja@ttu.edu

 

Chanda Trivedi
Research Focus: My research focuses on using computational and mathematical approaches to analyze large biological datasets and model biological systems, with an emphasis on plant–microbiome interactions. I investigate omics and environmental data to uncover the molecular basis of adaptive traits that shape these interactions in changing environments.
chanda.trivedi@ttu.edu

Lab Manager

Gabriela Castillo Estrada
cas81977@ttu.edu

Research Scientist

Lenin Yong-Villalobos
Research Focus: Genetic and epigenetic analysis of cotton fiber development
lenin.yong@ttu.edu

Postdoctoral Research Associates

Gabriela Cabrales Orona
Research Focus: Transcriptomic response from Arabidopsis thaliana to phosphorous deficiency
gabriela.orona@ttu.edu

 

Thelma Y Rico Cambron
Research Focus: Unearthing the genetics of sorghum root penetration in compact soils for enhanced deep rooting, nutrient acquisition and underground carbon sequestration
thericoc@ttu.edu

 

Rogelio Najera Gonzalez
Research Focus: I am doing chemical genomics to find important interactors of the phosphorus sensing pathway that can be manipulated to increase phosphate uptake and usage efficiency in crops
hnajerag@ttu.edu

 

Frausto Moises
Research Focus: Development of synthetic biology tools to program plant root responses to nutrient limitation, with a focus on CRISPR-based circuits that improve phosphate acquisition through cell-type-specific control of root development and metabolism.
mofraust@ttu.edu

 

Ph.D. Students

Valeria Flores Tinoco
Research Focus: Understanding transposon movement in response to chemical stress
vflorest@ttu.edu

 

Lois (Chidinma) Nwoko
Research Focus: Comparative genomics of desiccation tolerance across resurrection plant lineages, aimed at translating natural desiccation-survival mechanisms into crops
chnwoko@ttu.edu

 

Benjamin Perez Sanchez
Research Focus: Development of tissue culture-free technologies for gene editing and transgenesis in flowering plants
bperezsa@ttu.edu

 

Pablo Silva Villatoro
Research Focus: Understanding the mechanisms that regulate desiccation tolerance in vascular plants
pablo.silva@ttu.edu

 

Alumni

Dr. Jonathan Ojeda Rivera, Senior Postdoctoral Fellow Cornell University, New York
Dr. Elohim Bello Bello, Senior Postdoctoral Fellow, The Salk Institute, San Diego, California
Dr. Dolores Gutierrez Alanis, CEO and Founder of Libertree Science Center
Dr. Hector Rogelio Najera Gonzalez, Research Associate, Texas Tech University
Dr. Moises Frausto, Postdoctoral Fellow, Texas Tech University