Rate My Professor Manuel Miranda-Arango

Manuel Miranda-Arango is an Associate Professor in the Department of Biological Sciences at the University of Texas at El Paso, where he also serves as Co-Director of the Neuroscience and Metabolic Disorder Project within the Border Biomedical Research Center since 2011. He earned his B.S. in Biology from the National University of Mexico in 1990, M.S. in Basic Biomedical Research from Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México in 1993, and Ph.D. in Biochemistry from the National University of Mexico in 1996. Following his doctorate, he completed a postdoctoral fellowship in the Department of Genetics at Yale University School of Medicine from 1996 to 1999. His career includes positions as Instructor of Molecular Biology at the National University of Mexico from 1992 to 1995, Associate Research Scientist in the Department of Genetics at Yale University School of Medicine from 2000 to 2002, and Senior Scientist in the Department of Pharmacology at the University of Colorado Health Science Center from 2003 to 2007. He joined UTEP as Assistant Professor in Biological Sciences and the Border Biomedical Research Center in 2007, advancing to Associate Professor in 2013.

Dr. Miranda-Arango's research specializes in the neuroscience of neuronal glycine and dopamine transporters, focusing on their localization, regulation, trafficking pathways, and the organization of neurons expressing these transporters in the brain. His laboratory investigates molecular mechanisms regulating glycine transporter activity, glycinergic neurotransmission efficacy, endocytosis, and posttranslational modifications, using biochemical approaches, microscopy imaging, fluorescent tracers, and viruses. Studies have identified glycinergic circuits in the brainstem, forebrain, and a novel circuit in the basal ganglia involved in voluntary movements, emotion, vision, and memory. In 2020, he led a $1.3 million National Institutes of Health grant to characterize glycinergic neurons modulating basal ganglia functions. Key publications include "Early-life adversity increases anxiety-like behavior and modifies synaptic protein expression in a region-specific manner" (Frontiers in Behavioral Neuroscience, 2022), "Identification of amacrine neurons with a glycinergic and GABAergic phenotype" (Medical Research Archives, 2022), "The beta-gamma subunit of heterotrimeric G proteins interacts with actin filaments during neuronal differentiation" (Biochemical and Biophysical Research Communications, 2021), and "Discovery of GlyT2 Inhibitors Using Structure-Based Virtual Screening" (ACS Medicinal Chemistry Letters, 2019). He has received awards such as Best Poster Presentation at the UTEP Bioscience Doctoral Program Symposium (2023), NSF-Bridge to the Doctorate (2018), and HHMI short course awards (2018, 2016).