Department: Child Health Research Institute

Dialysis, kidney transplantation, continuous renal replacement therapy in pediatric patients; chronic kidney disease in pediatric patients.

My research is focused on attaining a better understanding of the initiation, maintenance, and progression of lymphoid tumors, and their response to immunochemotherapy toward improving current treatment strategies. In this effort, I employ tools from functional genomics, computational biology, molecular genetics, and mouse models. I hope to apply this knowledge towards the design of clinical trials in the treatment of patients with lymphoma, leukemia, and myeloma.

The overall objective of the Alvira Laboratory is to elucidate the mechanisms that promote postnatal lung development and repair, by focusing on three main scientific goals: (i) identification of the signaling pathways that direct the transition between the saccular and alveolar stages of lung development; (ii) exploration of the interplay between postnatal vascular and alveolar development; and (iii) determination of developmentally regulated pathways that mediate lung repair after injury.

The Developmental Physiology and Sudden Infant Death Syndrome Research Laboratory for Clinical Investigation was closed in 2008 when I became Emeritus Professor. My current focus is on improving maternal and infant health in resource limited environments. I became a Master Trainer in the American Academy of Pediatrics "Help Babies Breathe" program designed to bring knowledge and skills to community and medical birth attendants in resource limited countries.

Our laboratory investigates the pathogenesis of varicella zoster virus (VZV) infection, focusing on the functional roles of particular viral gene products in pathogenesis and virus-cell interactions in differentiated human cells in humans and in Scid-hu mouse models of VZV cell tropisms in vivo, and the immunobiology of VZV infections.

The Ashley lab is focused on the application of genomics to medicine. We develop methods for the interpretation of whole genome sequencing data to improve diagnosis of genetic disease and to personalize the practice of medicine. We also use RNA sequencing data to generate gene networks and link communities. Half of the lab is wet benches where we take advantage of cell systems, transgenic models and microsurgical models of disease to prove causality of our favorite targets.

Dr. Bejerano, co-discoverer of ultraconserved elements, studies the Human Genome. Through computation and experimentation we investigate the Systems Biology parts-list of many thousands genomic regions involved in gene transcription regulation during embryonic development. Major interests include (1) the origins and evolution of these regions, (2) how they encode their individual as well as combined roles, (3) their contribute to human disease, and (4) their contribute to species adaptation.

Neonatology, patent ductus arteriosus, pulmonary hypertension of the newborn, infant ventilation, neonatal clinical protocols/clinical pathways.

My research has involved the use of new technologies to create different types of patient-doctor transactions. I am also interested in how these new transactions impact clinical care processes. Current work includes the evaluation of a patient portal for children with cystic fibrosis, the use of telemedicine to bring asthma experts into the schools and the attitudes of teens and parents about the use of a secure patient portal for teens.

1. Role of the G protein coupled receptors in regulating mitochondrial structure and function. 2. Differences between R and L ventricular responses to stress, including gene expression and miR regulation. 3. Using iPSC-derived myocytes to understand heart failure and congenital heart disease. 4. Tools for evaluation of cardiac physiology in transgenic mice and isolated cardiomyocytes. 5. Anti-body mediated rejection. 6. Biomarkers for post-transplant lymphoproliferative disorder.

I am interested in the genetics of autism spectrum and other developmental disorders. In collaboration with the laboratories of Dr. Ricardo Dolmetsch and Joachim Hallmayer I am working to develop induced pluripotent stem cell (iPSC) models of genetic disorders associated with autism and developmental disability.

Dr. Bhalla's research interests are in the pathogenesis of diabetic kidney disease and salt-sensitive hypertension. Using molecular and transgenic approaches, the laboratory is interested in elucidating regulators of oxidative and carbonyl stress in glomeruli. We interface these studies with collaborative projects on biomarkers for human diabetic nephropathy. The laboratory also focuses on molecular mechanisms of insulin and aldosterone-induced sodium transport in the distal nephron.

Neonatology; newborn jaundice, bilirubin biology and kernicterus prevention; pulmonary physiology, pulmonary functions and neonatal ventilation.

The major goal of our research is to gain insight into the prevention and control of HIV and other viral pathogens by studying the interplay between the virus and the host immune response. We investigate the role of various arms of the immune response, but with a particular focus on NK cells. We hope to gain additional insights into control of infectious diseases by studying how pregnancy modulates immune responses.

My research interests have focused on the neural bases of eating disorders and obesity. I am particularly interested in the way emotion and reward is processed in the brain and how that may contribute to eating behavior and food restriction. I hope to eventually translate biological research findings into treatments.

Our research is focused on the role of extracellular matrix (ECM) in inflammation and infection. In particular, we study how the ECM in injured and healing tissues provides contextual cues that drive the behavior of regulatory T-cells and other leukocytes. Our goals are 1. to understand how the matrix contributes both to normal wound healing and to immune dysregulation, such as that seen in asthma and autoimmunity, and 2. to devise novel strategies and tools to promote immune tolerance.

Tolerance induction in liver transplantation. Hepatocyte transplantation.

We are intereseted in the interaction between the protozoan parasite Toxoplasma gondii and its mammalian host. We use a combination of molecular and genetic tools to understand how this obligate intracellular parasite can invade almost any cell it encounters, how it co-opts a host cell once inside and how it evades the immune response to produce a life-long, persistent infection.

The lymphocytes of the human immune system share some biological properties with human cancers: in each case, there are subpopulations of cells whose genomes are rearranged and mutated compared to other cells in the body. Our goal is to understand the genotype-phenotype relationships in lymphoid cells that determine the behavior of human diseases. We apply new analytical methods, particularly high-throughput DNA sequencing, in parallel with functional assays, to tackle this challenge.

Our laboratory's goal is to address fundamental and therapeutic questions in immunology using innovative nanotechnological and biophysical approaches to visualize and manipulate cells. Our primary focus is on understanding the molecular controls that balance T cell activation versus tolerance. The ultimate aim of our work is to manipulate T cell signaling pathways to control immunologically-mediated diseases.

The Butte Lab at Stanford builds and applies tools that convert more than 300 billion points of molecular, clinical, and epidemiological data -- measured by researchers and clinicians over the past decade -- into diagnostics, therapeutics, and new insights into disease.

Our research focuses on epidemiologic studies related to maternal and child health. Current projects address congenital anomalies of craniofacial, urogenital, musculoskeletal and central nervous system structures and exposures related to nutrition, stress, environmental contaminants, and genes. Physiologic pathways encompassed by these studies include one-carbon metabolism, oxidative stress, HPA axis activation, and sex steroid metabolism. In particular, we are interested in discovering how ..

My main research interest is in clinical research related to cesarean delivery anesthesia and labor analgesia.

The ultimate goal of my laboratory is to define the molecular mechanisms underlying cardiovascular development and disease and translate the bench findings to clinical applications. One objective is to understand how the major types of cardiac cells (endocardial, myocardial, epicardial and neural crest cells) interact with each other to generate heart tissues. We are interested in chromatin regulation, transcriptional and signaling events that coordinate their interactions and assembly into hea..

Our current studies focus on aging and skin cancers in human beings and are translational in nature: 1) genetics and epigenetics to promote healthy aging of the skin 2) genetics and epigenetics of skin cancers and drug resistance 3) novel therapies to promote healthy aging of the skin 4) novel therapies for non-melanoma skin cancers 5) induced pluripotent stem cells for regenerative and therapeutic purposes

Our laboratory combines synthetic chemistry and developmental biology to investigate the molecular events that regulate embryonic patterning, tissue regeneration, and tumorigenesis. We are currently using genetic and small-molecule approaches to study the molecular mechanisms of Hedgehog signaling, and we are developing chemical technologies to perturb and observe the genetic programs that underlie vertebrate development.

Active Wnt signaling maintains somatic stem cells in many organ systems. Using Wnt target genes as markers, we have characterized distinct cell populations with stem cell behavior in the inner ear, an organ thought to be terminally differentiated. Ongoing work focuses on delineating the developing significance of these putative stem/progenitor cells and their behavior after damage.

My laboratory studies childhood brain tumors with a particular focus on medulloblastoma, the most common malignant brain tumor in children. We utilize both top-down and bottom-up strategies to understand the biology of these tumors and identify new therapeutic avenues to more effectively treat these diseases.

The role of oncoproteins in cancer and development; molecular and cellular biology of hematologic malignancies; targeted molecular therapies of cancer.

Molecular Bioengineering, Protein Biochemistry and Biotechnology, Cell and Tissue Engineering, Molecular Imaging

I am interested in studying the effects of inflammation in the lung, in particular, how N-acetylcysteine may affect and decrease that in CF patients. I am the PI of a multi-center study researching this question. Additionally, in a separate study involving children who have received lung transplants, I am a participating site in an NIH-sponsored observational and mechanistic multi-center study that will examine the role of viral infections in causing chronic graft rejection.

We develop and use the tools of molecular imaging to understand oncogenesis, reveal patterns of cell migration in immunosurveillance, monitor gene expression, visualize stem cell biology, and assess the distribution of pathogens in living animal models of human biology and disease. Biology doesn't occur in "a vacuum" or on coated plates--it occurs in the living body and that's were we look for biological patterns and responses to insult.

Our translational research program in vascular regeneration is focused on generating and characterizing vascular cells from human induced pluripotential stem cells. We are also studying the therapeutic application of these cells in murine models of peripheral arterial disease. In these studies we leverage our longstanding interest in endothelial signaling, eg by nitric oxide synthase (NOS) as well as by nicotinic cholinergic receptors (nAChR).

Gastroenterology, biliary motility, hormonal regulation, embryology, gastrointestinal tract, clinical management of pediatric liver transplant recipients.

Hematology/Oncology, Phase I drug studies for childhood cancer, overcoming multidrug resistance in leukemia and solid tumors, biology and treatment of acute nonlymphocytic leukemia, early detection of central nervous system leukemia by measuring growth, factor binding proteins.

Our Research Group develops non-invasive cellular imaging techniques that can generate detailed information about specific cell populations in the body. The ultimate goal of this research is to determine tumor characteristics which are linked to poor prognosis, to develop, direct and monitor related targeted therapies and to monitor stem cell therapies that regenerate physiologic cell populations. We have a strong focus on translational, bench-to-bedside research.

Our Neuromuscular Division coordinates a comprehensive effort to conquer peripheral nerve and muscle disorders, including the muscular dystrophies, motor neuron disorders, neuromuscular junction abnormalities, and peripheral neuropathies. With patients and families foremost in mind, we have had success defining and combating these diseases, with research focused on identifying genetic causes, developing novel treatment, and maximizing patient function by optimizing current management.

The Stanford-LPCH Program provides an infrastructure for conducting clinical studies of vaccines in children and adults. We conduct immunology studies of seasonal influenza vaccines in twins, in a longitudinal cohort of young and elderly adults and in MELAS patients. Additionally, we are a CDC Clinical Immunization Safety Assessment site for which we are enrolling volunteers with GBS into a genetics study and patients with mitochondrial diseases into a vaccine safety chart review study

Arrhythmia management in pediatric heart failure, especially resynchronization therapy in congenital heart disease,Radio frequency catheter ablation of pediatric arrhythmias,

My lab focuses on better understanding virus-host protein-protein interactions. We combine novel proteomic approaches, including high-fidelity microfluidics platforms, with molecular virology, biochemical, and functional genomic approaches for identification of host partners conservatively required by various viruses and development of broad-spectrum antiviral strategies with a high genetic barrier for resistance. We focus on Flaviviridae (currently, hepatitis C (HCV) and dengue) as well as HIV

My clinical research interests focus on the field of pediatric stroke, and include causes of arteriopathies, novel neuroimaging techniques for the diagnosis of arteriopathies, and maximizing functional outcome after stroke in children. As a member of the International Pediatric Stroke Study, we contribute to an international database of children following stroke, thereby facilitating multi-centered research in this area.

mitochondrial genomics, lysosomal disorders, tandem-mass spectrometry newborn screening, and inborn errors of metabolism presentations and natural history

Autism and Asperger's Disorder. Genetically-based neurodevelopmental disorder, including Velocardiofacial Syndrome, Smith-Magenis Syndrome, Williams Syndrome, and Fragile X Syndrome. Intellectual Disability (mental retardation) and psychiatric disorders. Developmental Language Disorder and Learning Disabilities. Sensory impairment in children, including visual and hearing impairment. Psychiatric aspects of medical illness and disability in children.

Research interests include (1) computer simulation and modeling of cardiovascular physiology with specific attention paid to congenital heart disease and its treatment, (2) development and testing of transcatheter therapies for the treatment of congenital heart disease, and (3) the evaluation and treatment of pulmonary hypertension/pulmonary vascular disease.

Language allows people to participate fully in the human social experience. My research centers on language development in children with disorders that put language learning at risk, including children with chronic ear infections, early focal neural injuries, intellectual disability, autism, and prematurity. In addition to describing behavioral outcomes, my research uses diffusion tensor imaging to describe brain structure and functional magnetic resonance to evaluate brain function.