Investigación

Overview

 

I am interested in understanding the mechanisms that drive obesity and metabolic syndrome in the context of circadian disruption. Our 24/7 society has created an environment where the daily cycles of activity/rest, feeding/fasting, and light/dark exposure are no longer naturally aligned. Working at night, eating at night, and being exposed to light at night all increase the risk of having metabolic and cardiovascular diseases. Therefore, I study the relationship between the circadian system and metabolism in healthy and diseased conditions, focusing on the role of the nervous system.

Currently, I am working as a postdoctoral fellow at the de Lartigue lab at Monell Chemical Senses in Philadelphia, PA, USA, supported by a fellowship from the American Heart Association. At the de Lartigue lab, we study the neurobiology of interoception, the process by which organisms can sense their internal state. In particular, I am studying how feedback signals from the body are communicated to the brain to influence circadian rhythms.

 

 

Links

List of publications
ORCID
ResearchGate
deLartigue Lab
Monell

Publications

Last updated: January 2026.

  1. Yang M, de Araujo A, Shakir J, Braga I, Mendez-Hernandez R, Tofani GSS, Bali A, de Lartigue J, Song H, McCutcheon JE, Morrison CD, de Lartigue G. Vagal sensory neurons encode internal protein status to guide eating. Mol Metab. 2025 Dec 16:102303. doi: 10.1016/j.molmet.2025.102303. Epub ahead of print.
  2. Hurtado-Alvarado, G., Mendez-Hernandez, R., Avila-Soto, K. I., Salazar-Juárez, A., Espinoza-Rojo, M., Escobar, C., Vázquez-Moreno, M., & Cruz, M. (2025). Serum S100β and neuron-specific enolase correlate with obesity parameters in Mexican children. International Journal of Obesity. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41366-025-01942-y
  3. Mendez-Hernandez R, Braga I, Bali A, Yang M, de Lartigue G. Vagal Sensory Gut-Brain Pathways That Control Eating-Satiety and Beyond. (2025) Comprehensive Physiology Apr; 15 (2):e70010. https://doi.org/10.1002/cph4.70010
  4. Scott KA, Tan Y, Johnson DN, Elsaafien K, Baumer-Harrison C, Méndez-Hernández R, Kirchner MK, Eikenberry SA, Sa JM, Stern JE, de Lartigue G, de Kloet AD, Krause EG.(2025) Mechanosensation of the heart and gut elicits hypometabolism and vigilance in mice. Nature Metabolism. 7: 263–275;. https://doi.org/10.1038/s42255-024-01205-6.
  5. McDougle, M., de Araujo A., Singh, A., Yang, M., Braga, I., Paille, V., Mendez-Hernandez, R., Vergara, M., Woodie, L., Gour, A., Sharma, A., Urs, N., Warren, B., de Lartigue, G. (2024) Separate gut-brain circuits for fat and sugar reinforcement combine to promote overeating. Cell Metabolism; Feb 6; 36 (2) :393-407.e7 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cmet.2023.12.014
  6. Guzmán-Ruiz, M.A., Guerrero-Vargas, N.N., Lagunes-Cruz, A., González-González, S., García-Aviles, E., Hurtado-Alvarado, G., Mendez-Hernández, R, Chavarría-Krauser, A., Arriaga-Avila, V., Buijs, R., & Guevara-Guzmán, R. (2023) Circadian modulation of microglial physiological processes and immune responses. Glia 71 (2), 155-167. https://doi.org/10.1002/glia.24261.
  7. Méndez-Hernández, R.,Rumanova, V., Guzmán-Ruiz, M.A, Foppen, E., Moreno-Morton, R., Hurtado-Alvarado, G., Escobar C, Kalsbeek, A., Buijs R.M. (2023) Minor changes in daily rhythms induced by a skeleton photoperiod are associated with adiposity and glucose intolerance Advanced Biology (Weinh) Nov 2023; 7 (11):e2200116. https://doi.org/10.1002/adbi.202200116. Epub 2022 Jul 11.
  8. García-Aviles, J. E., Méndez-Hernández, R., Guzmán-Ruiz, M.A., Cruz, M., Guerrero-Vargas, N.N., Velázquez-Moctezuma, J., Hurtado-Alvarado, G. (2021) Metabolic disturbances induced by sleep restriction as potential triggers for Alzheimer’s disease. Frontiers in Integrative Neuroscience 15, https://doi.org/10.3389/fnint.2021.722523
  9. Méndez-Hernández, R., Escobar C, Buijs RM (2020). Suprachiasmatic Nucleus–Arcuate Nucleus Axis: Interaction Between Time and Metabolism; Essential for Health. Obesity 28 (S1), S10–17, https://doi.org/10.1002/oby.22774
  10. Buijs, R.,Guzman-Ruiz, M.A., Mendez-Hernandez, R., & Rodriguez-Cortes,B. (2019). The suprachiasmatic nucleus; a responsive clock regulating homeostasis by daily changing the setpoints of physiological parameters. Autonomic Neuroscience 218, 43-50, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.autneu.2019.02.001
  11. Moran-Ramos, S., Guerrero-Vargas, N. N., Mendez-Hernandez, R., Basualdo, M. d. C., Escobar, C. and Buijs, R. M. (2017). The suprachiasmatic nucleus drives day-night variations in postprandial triglyceride uptake into skeletal muscle and brown adipose tissue. Experimental Physiology 102 (12), 1584–1595, http://doi.org/10.1113/EP086026
 
Capítulos de libro
  1. Mendez-Hernandez, R.*, Martinez-Gomez, R., Tort-Enriquez, Y., Buijs, R. La regulación hipotalámica del metabolismo; el hipotálamo como centro integrador en el libro “Obesidad y metabolismo, una perspectiva integrativa: aportaciones desde la ciencia básica a la ciencia aplicada”. Tomo I. Universidad Iberoamericana. Accepted and in press. *Corresponding author

Awards and recognition

Nomination(2025) by Monell Chemical Senses Center for the prestigious postdoctoral Warren Alpert Scholarship.

Travel Award for Early Career Researchers (2025) awarded by the International Regulatory peptide Society.

Best poster presentation (2025) at the 20th Symposium of Diabetes, Obesity and Metabolism, University of Pennsylvania.

American Heart Association Postdoctoral Fellowship Two-year scholarship. Assessed among top 1% of applicants.

Early Career Researcher Virtual Attendance Award (2023) awarded by the Society for the Study of Ingestive Behavior

Travel Award for Early Career Researchers (2021) awarded by the International Regulatory peptide Society.

Travel Award for Early Career Researchers (2019) awarded by the European Biological Rhythms Society.

SFN Housing Award (2015) for attending the Society for Neuroscience meeting, awarded by the Mexican Chapter of the Society for Neuroscience.

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