University of Miami · Microbiology & ImmunologyThe T Cell Renewal Lab
Erietta Stelekati · Coral Gables, Florida
Research Focus
Dr. Erietta Stelekati's lab at the University of Miami focuses on understanding how certain immune cells, specifically CD8 T cells, become dysfunctional during chronic infections and cancer. The lab studies the role of microRNAs, particularly miR-29a, in regulating these cells' ability to react to cancer treatments. By exploring how miR-29a affects the genetic drivers of T cell exhaustion, the lab aims to uncover new strategies to enhance the effectiveness of immunotherapies.
CD8 T cellsT cell exhaustionmicroRNA-29aepigeneticsimmunotherapycheckpoint inhibitorsTET2
Research Aims
4AIM 01Identify how the miR-29a-TET2 axis regulates T cell differentiation.
AIM 02Investigate the pathways through which miR-29a enhances the efficacy of anti-PD-L1 therapy.
AIM 03Determine the TET2-dependent and independent effects of miR-29a on CD8 T cells.
AIM 04Explore the potential of using miR-29a to improve responses to immunotherapy in cancer treatment.
Skills the Lab Values
cell culturemouse modelsRNA extractionreal-time PCRWestern blotflow cytometryimmunological assaysdata analysisgenomicsmolecular cloning
Output against the department
Publications61bottom 16% of dept.408th of 486
this lab
most publishedleast published
Citations5.9kbottom 43% of dept.276th of 486
this lab
most citedleast cited
Career totals from OpenAlex, compared against labs that share a department. A department spans everything from one paper to tens of thousands, so bar heights are on a log scale — otherwise the largest lab would flatten every other bar to a line.