James Orengo

Dr. James Orengo, Associate Professor at Baylor College of Medicine and Director of the Multi-disciplinary ALS Clinic at Michael E. DeBakey VA Medical Center, focuses his research on motor neuron degeneration in neurodegenerative diseases like Spinocerebellar Ataxia Type 1 (SCA1) and ALS. His lab employs mouse models, transgenic zebrafish lines, and human iNeurons to investigate disease mechanisms.

Key research areas include:

• Pathogenic drivers of bulbar dysfunction in SCA1
• Transcriptomics of motor neuron degeneration
• Cross-species modeling (Human, Mouse, Zebrafish)
• Collaborations with the Undiagnosed Diseases Network (UDN)

Dr. Orengo also contributes to clinical care through the BCM ALS Clinic and co-leads multidisciplinary teams at the Michael E. DeBakey VA Medical Center. His lab develops tools for CRISPRi screens and live imaging in zebrafish to accelerate therapeutic discovery.