Stanford School of Medicine
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Key Documents

PDFCurriculum Vitae available Online

Christopher H. Contag

Contact Information

  • Clinical Offices
  • Academic Offices
    Personal Information
    Administrative Contact
    Lorraine Ceron Administrative Assistant Tel Work 650-725-6583

Administrative Appointments

  • Co-director, Molecular Imaging Program at Stanford (MIPS) , (2003– 2010 )
  • Director, Stanford Center for Innovation in In Vivo Imaging (SCI^3) , (2000– 2010 )
  • Director, Stanford Near Infrared Optics and FEL Center , (2008– present )
  • Member, Editorial Board--Molecular Imaging , (2001– 2010 )
  • Chair, Scientific Advisory Board--Xenogen Corp. , (1997– 2005 )

Honors and Awards

  • Achievement Award, Society for Molecular Imaging (2006)
  • President, Society for Molecular Imaging (2002-2003)
  • President elect, Society for Molecular Imaging (2001-2002)
  • Award, American Federation for Clinical Research (AFCR). Upjohn Infectious Disease Prize (1995)
  • Scholar, American Foundation for AIDS Research (AmFAR) (1991 -1994)
  • Bacaner Research Award, Minnesota Medical Foundation (1988)

Professional Education

  • Ph.D., University of Minnesota Microbiology (1988)
  • BS, University of Minnesota Biology (1982)

Postdoctoral Advisees

Graduate & Fellowship Program Affiliations

Research Interests

Mammalian biology occurs in complex environments of living tissues and complex organ structures where there is potential for rapid change, and therefore we use multimodality imaging approaches to study the dynamics of biological processes. These strategies have cellular resolution and molecular specificity, and can reveal dynamic changes as they occur in the living body. We have developed imaging approaches based on optical reporter genes and have used them to reveal immune cell trafficking patterns, regulation of gene expression, extent of tumor growth, stem cell biology, and nature of host responses to infection. Our initial experimental approach was based on the observation that light can pass through mammalian tissues, much the same as when light from a flashlight is shined through one's hand in a dark room. The source of light in our approach is internal; that is, we use genes originating from fireflies and other "glow-in-the-dark" (bioluminescent) organisms to mark mammalian cells and pathogens. These labeled entities are then used in animal models of human biology and disease, and the light that they produce is externally monitored to reveal levels of expression, growth rate, or movement within tissue and organs. The strength of this method is that it can be used to simultaneously reveal the nuances of biological processes, and the overall biological response in living animals. Recently, we have revealed the kinetics of stem cell engraftment and hematopoietic reconstitution, elucidated the nature of minimal residual disease states following cancer therapy and identified tissue sites that pathogens use to evade the host immune response. Optical methods of molecular imaging are extremely powerful in preclinical models and have tremendous potential, but a wide range of tools is becoming available for studying biology in vivo. We therefore use many of these tools and approach biological questions with multimodality strategies. The focus of our efforts is the cells and molecules that control the body’s response to insult and enable regeneration of damaged tissues and organs.

Publications