
Meet the Team

Principal Investigator
Ben Orsburn, Ph.D.
Ben is a proteomics and multiomics researcher who has primarily been using mass spectrometry and protein informatics the last 20+ years. Beyond basic research, he is the sole inventor of multiple qualified routine assays currently in use today. Since 2020 is research has focused on using single cell proteomics to accelerate drug and diagnostic discovery. When he's not in the lab he's probably looking for weird gross bugs under rocks with a child who likes the activity a lot more than he does. Ben is also a well-known scientific communicator as the founder of ProteomicsNews and co-host of The Proteomics Show podcast series.

Postdoctoral fellow
Shelby Ruiz, Ph.D.
Shelby is a Postdoctoral Associate in the Orsburn lab. She earned her PhD in Neuroscience at the University of Pittsburgh under the mentorship of Dr. Matthew MacDonald. Her doctoral dissertation utilized mass spectrometry-based proteomics to investigate postmortem brain tissue. Primarily, her research focused on characterizing differences between the synaptic proteomes of Autism and Neurotypical individuals as well as validating an antibody-based proximity labeling approach. During her doctoral training, Shelby developed a strong interest in how the proteome varies between cell types in response to disease and aging. Her current projects in the Orsburn lab focus on how aging alters the proteome across diverse organ systems. Shelby’s favorite aspects of research include data visualization and science communication. Outside of the lab, she enjoys board games, hiking, painting, and hanging with her kiddo.

Lab Manager
Cameron Braswell
Cameron is the Lab Manager of the Orsburn Lab. Prior to working in the biomedical field, he spent nine years as a freshwater ecologist studying greenhouse gas emissions and disease dynamics, eventually earning his Master’s degree in ecotoxicology. During graduate school, Cameron was introduced to the applications of mass spectrometry. Using GCMS methods, he analyzed freshwater organisms to assess the severity of microplastic contamination and its toxicokinetic impacts. His Master’s thesis examined the anthropogenic influence of microplastics on symbiotic relationships between freshwater organisms, as well as the downstream effects these contaminants have on surrounding ecosystems.
