Rona Giffard
Academic Appointments
- Professor, Anesthesia
- Member, Bio-X
Key Documents
Contact Information
- Academic Offices
Personal Information Email Tel (650) 725-8482Alternate Contact William Magruder Research Administrator Email Tel Work (650) 725-5875
Professional Overview
Administrative Appointments
- Vice-Chair for Research, Dept. of Anesthesia (1999 - present)
Honors and Awards
- NIH Clinical Investigator Award, NIH (1990-1995)
- Young Investigator Award, Foundation for Anesthesia Education and Research (1991-1992)
- Ellen Weaver Award, Association for Women in Science, Northern California Chapters (1997)
- Frontiers in Anesthesia Research Award, International Anesthesia Research Society (1998-2003)
- AHA/Bugher Award, American Heart Association (2000-2004)
- Ellis Cohen Achievement Award, Stanford Department of Anesthesia (2009)
Professional Education
| Ph.D.: | Stanford University, Structural Biology |
| M.D.: | Stanford University, Medicine |
Graduate & Fellowship Program Affiliations
Internet Links
Scientific Focus
Current Research Interests
Brain injury from stroke, head trauma, and chronic neurologic degenerative diseases, is a major cause of morbidity and mortality. We are particularly interested in the cellular consequences of brain injury. To study this problem we work with primary cultures of neurons and astrocytes from mice in addition to employing rodent models of stroke. Current work focuses on: 1) the role of astrocytes in brain injury; 2) the interaction of neurons and glia during injury; 3) the role of specific microRNAs in ischemia 4)protection using heat shock proteins and other protective proteins 4) changes in mitochondrial function and signaling in injury and ways to protect mitochondria; 5) the interaction of oxidative stress and inflammation in stroke; 6) computational modeling of cell death.
We use gene transfer techniques to express genes and miRNAs of interest in brain cells and intact brain and analyze ways in which these can provide protection. We use fluorescent probes for pH, intracellular calcium, ROS, mitochondrial membrane potential, as well as morphologically evaluate outcome, and quantitate injury. We also use transgenic mice to analyze the effects of overexpression or loss of expression of specific genes on outcome from stroke. Mitochondria are central to both energy metabolism and the regulation of inflammation and cell death. We study changes in mitochondria with stress. We are also interested in the interaction of oxidative stress and inflammation in stroke.
A new area for us is computational modeling of cell death and the effects of heat shock proteins. We are working on an ODE control model.
Publications
- Genomic analysis of reactive astrogliosis. J Neurosci. 2012; (18): 6391-410
- Neuroprotection from stroke in the absence of MHCI or PirB. Neuron. 2012; (6): 1100-7
- miR-181 regulates GRP78 and influences outcome from cerebral ischemia in vitro and in vivo. Neurobiol Dis. 2012; (1): 555-63
- Astrocyte targeted overexpression of Hsp72 or SOD2 reduces neuronal vulnerability to forebrain ischemia. Glia. 2010; (9): 1042-9
- Mitochondrial protection attenuates inflammation-induced impairment of neurogenesis in vitro and in vivo. J Neurosci. 2010; (37): 12242-51
- Inflammatory response of microglial BV-2 cells includes a glycolytic shift and is modulated by mitochondrial glucose-regulated protein 75/mortalin. FEBS Lett. 2013; (6): 756-62
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