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About the Center
Chronic diseases like obesity, diabetes, heart disease and certain cancers cause nearly 75% of deaths worldwide. Health researchers understand that Latino populations experience these chronic diseases at a disproportionate rate, but more research is needed to understand why and to develop more comprehensive treatment strategies for all patients.
OriGen Health Research Center brings together experts in genetics, obesity, human development, statistics, AI and machine learning to uncover the biological and social drivers of chronic disease. By using personalized, data-driven approaches, OriGen is developing targeted prevention and treatment strategies, advancing precision medicine and ultimately improving the lives of all patients.
OriGen Health Research Center is a partnership between The University of Texas at Austin and Tec de Monterrey.
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The center combines cutting-edge research, personalized medicine and community-driven approaches to transform disease prevention, understanding and treatment.
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To explore the root causes of diseases, researchers will leverage the OriGen Project biobank, a massive genomic and clinical/epidemiological databank based at Tec de Monterrey.
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Partners from the College of Natural Sciences, Dell Medical School and College of Pharmacy at UT Austin and from Tec de Monterrey’s Institute for Obesity Research, Center for Early Childhood and medical school collaborate to advance breakthroughs.
Leadership
Co-Directors
Gabriela Livas Stein, Ph.D.
Chair and Professor, Department of Human Development and Family Sciences, UT Austin
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Alexandro Martagon, MD, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor, School of Medicine and Health Sciences, Tecnológico de Monterrey
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Executive Committee
- Luis A. Hererra
Dean of the School of Medicine and Health Sciences
Tecnológico de Monterrey - Pablo Kuri
Director of Proyecto oriGen
Tecnológico de Monterrey - Andreas Matouschek
Interim Dean of the College of Natural Sciences
Professor of Molecular Biosciences, UT Austin - William Matsui
Vice Dean of Research, Dell Medical School
Professor of Oncology, UT Austin - Samuel M. Poloyac
Dean of the College of Pharmacy,
James T Doluisio Regents Chair, UT Austin - Guillermo Torre-Amione
Rector of TecSalud
Tecnológico de Monterrey
Current Research
Understanding the Genetic Determinants of Visceral Adiposity in Mexicans
Obesity is a growing health concern, but where fat is stored in the body may be just as important as how much fat a person has. Visceral fat—fat stored deep around internal organs—is particularly dangerous because it dramatically increases the risk of metabolic diseases even at lower levels of overall BMI. In this project, scientists work to examine how visceral fat is distributed differentially amongst individuals and across ancestries and whether a genetic basis may be at work.
The Team
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Vagheesh M. Narasimhan, Ph.D., Assistant Professor, Departments of Integrative Biology and Statistics and Data Sciences, UT Austin
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Luis Adrian Soto Mota, MD, Ph.D., FACP, Professor, School of Medicine and Health Sciences, Tecnológico de Monterrey
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Fabiola Mabel Del Razo Olavera
Adolescent Small Changes to Healthier Weight
Adolescent weight-loss programs are known to be more effective with family involvement, and adolescents benefit from learning behavioral and psychological strategies to support their changes in nutrition, physical activity and other lifestyle factors related to achieving and maintaining a healthier weight. In this project, experts work to adapt a Small Changes online nutrition program, so that participating adolescents in Austin and Monterrey can design their own meal plan while also providing options to eat with their family.
The Team
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Leah Whigham, Ph.D., Professor, Department of Nutritional Sciences, UT Austin
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Gabriela Livas Stein, Ph.D., Chair and Professor, Department of Human Development and Family Sciences, UT Austin
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Julieta Rodríguez, MD, Ph.D., Professor, School of Medicine and Health Sciences, Tecnológico de Monterrey
Development of a Life History Survey to Study Aging and Health in Mexico
There is currently a critical gap in understanding the social determinants of health in Mexican populations. In this project, experts are working to develop, administer and evaluate a Life History Survey (LHS) to examine how life course exposures shape cardiometabolic health in Mexican adults. The team will administer the LHS to at least 200 participants from Mexico City’s Metabolic Diseases Clinical Research Unit, who have previously provided blood samples for biomarker analysis. By integrating survey responses with metabolic markers (e.g., glucose, insulin, lipids, inflammation), the team will be able to evaluate how life histories relate to health risks.
The Team
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Liz Muñoz, Ph.D., Associate Professor, Department of Human Development and Family Sciences, UT Austin
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Mateo Farina, Ph.D., Assistant Professor, Department of Human Development and Family Sciences, UT Austin
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Gabriela Alejandra Galán Ramírez, Coordinadora del Laboratorio de Procesamiento y Almacenamiento de Muestras Unidad de Investigación de Enfermedades Metabólicas, Tecnológico de Monterrey
