Maternal & Child Health Research Institute (MCHRI)
Showing 921-930 of 996 Results
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Keith Van Haren, MD
Associate Professor of Neurology and Neurological Sciences (Pediatric Neurology) and of Pediatrics
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsOur research team is working to develop new treatments for children at risk of neurodegenerative diseases. We are primarily focused on multiple sclerosis and X-linked adrenoleukodystrophy, two conditions that involve inflammatory and metabolic disruption of the myelin that insulates brain cells. A key area of interest for us is how nutrient deficiencies during childhood may contribute to the disease processes and whether nutritional interventions could play a role in prevention.
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Krisa Van Meurs
Rosemarie Hess Professor, Emerita
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsMy research interests include persistent pulmonary hypertension of the newborn, hypoxic respiratory failure, inhaled nitric oxide therapy, ECMO, congenital diaphragmatic hernia, neonatal clinical trials, and the use of aEEG and NIRS to detect brain injury.
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Capucine Van Rechem
Assistant Professor of Pathology (Pathology Research)
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsMy long-term interest lies in understanding the impact chromatin modifiers have on disease development and progression so that more optimal therapeutic opportunities can be achieved. My laboratory explores the direct molecular impact of chromatin-modifying enzymes during cell cycle progression, and characterizes the unappreciated and unconventional roles that these chromatin factors have on cytoplasmic function such as protein synthesis.
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Shreyas Vasanawala, MD/PhD
William R. Brody Professor of Pediatric Radiology and Child Health
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsOur group is focused on developing new fast and quantitative MRI techniques.
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Alexander Michael Vezeridis, MD, PhD
Assistant Professor of Radiology (Interventional Radiology)
BioAlexander Vezeridis MD, PhD is an Assistant Professor of Radiology at Stanford University School of Medicine, and a physician-scientist specializing in Interventional Radiology. His clinical expertise includes interventional oncology, biliary disease and endoscopy, venous disease, portal hypertension, urologic interventions, women’s and men’s health interventions, and general vascular/interventional radiology.
Dr. Vezeridis is an active researcher with expertise in translational techniques in engineering to make image-guided interventions safer and more effective for patients.
Dr. Vezeridis obtained his undergraduate, MD, and PhD degrees from Boston University. He completed a two year post-doctoral training at UC San Diego in ultrasound molecular imaging under the auspices of the Cancer Researchers in Nanotechnology (CRIN) R25T, followed by residency and fellowship at UC San Diego.
Dr. Vezeridis is highly committed to training the next generation, including students, residents, fellows, and engineering graduate students through co-directing Bio301B.
Dr. Vezeridis has a strong interest in medical device development and commercialization, and completed the Stanford Biodesign Faculty Fellowship. -
Anne Villeneuve
Berthold and Belle N. Guggenhime Professor and Professor of Developmental Biology and of Genetics
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsMechanisms underlying homologous chromosome pairing, DNA recombination and chromosome remodeling during meiosis, using the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans as an experimental system. High-resolution 3-D imaging of dynamic reorganization of chromosome architecture. Role of protease inhibitors in regulating sperm activation.
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David Vu
Clinical Associate Professor, Pediatrics - Infectious Diseases
BioDr. Vu is a pediatric infectious diseases specialist who is researching human responses to dengue virus and malaria infections. He performed his undergraduate studies at the University of California, San Diego, and obtained his medical doctorate at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine. He trained in general pediatrics at UCSF Benioff Children's Hospital Oakland, and in pediatric infectious diseases at Emory University School of Medicine. His present studies on pediatric dengue and malaria co-infection are supported by an NIAID Career Development Award (K23 AI127909) and a Instructor K Award Support Program Award from the Maternal & Child Health Research Institute and Department of Pediatrics.
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Soichi Wakatsuki
Professor of Photon Science and of Structural Biology
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsUbiquitin signaling: structure, function, and therapeutics
Ubiquitin is a small protein modifier that is ubiquitously produced in the cells and takes part in the regulation of a wide range of cellular activities such as gene transcription and protein turnover. The key to the diversity of the ubiquitin roles in cells is that it is capable of interacting with other cellular proteins either as a single molecule or as different types of chains. Ubiquitin chains are produced through polymerization of ubiquitin molecules via any of their seven internal lysine residues or the N-terminal methionine residue. Covalent interaction of ubiquitin with other proteins is known as ubiquitination which is carried out through an enzymatic cascade composed of the ubiquitin-activating (E1), ubiquitin-conjugating (E2), and ubiquitin ligase (E3) enzymes. The ubiquitin signals are decoded by the ubiquitin-binding domains (UBDs). These domains often specifically recognize and non-covalently bind to the different ubiquitin species, resulting in distinct signaling outcomes.
We apply a combination of the structural (including protein crystallography, small angle x-ray scattering, cryo-electron microscopy (Cryo-EM) etc.), biocomputational and biochemical techniques to study the ubiquitylation and deubiquitination processes, and recognition of the ubiquitin chains by the proteins harboring ubiquitin-binding domains. Current research interests including SARS-COV2 proteases and their interactions with polyubiquitin chains and ubiquitin pathways in host cell responses, with an ultimate goal of providing strategies for effective therapeutics with reduced levels of side effects.
Protein self-assembly processes and applications.
The Surface layers (S-layers) are crystalline protein coats surrounding microbial cells. S-layer proteins (SLPs) regulate their extracellular, self-assembly by crystallizing when exposed to an environmental trigger. We have demonstrated that the Caulobacter crescentus SLP readily crystallizes into sheets both in vivo and in vitro via a calcium-triggered multistep assembly pathway. Observing crystallization using a time course of Cryo-EM imaging has revealed a crystalline intermediate wherein N-terminal nucleation domains exhibit motional dynamics with respect to rigid lattice-forming crystallization domains. Rate enhancement of protein crystallization by a discrete nucleation domain may enable engineering of kinetically controllable self-assembling 2D macromolecular nanomaterials. In particular, this is inspiring designing robust novel platform for nano-scale protein scaffolds for structure-based drug design and nano-bioreactor design for the carbon-cycling enzyme pathway enzymes. Current research focuses on development of nano-scaffolds for high throughput in vitro assays and structure determination of small and flexible proteins and their interaction partners using Cryo-EM, and applying them to cancer and anti-viral therapeutics.
Multiscale imaging and technology developments.
Multimodal, multiscale imaging modalities will be developed and integrated to understand how molecular level events of key enzymes and protein network are connected to cellular and multi-cellular functions through intra-cellular organization and interactions of the key machineries in the cell. Larger scale organization of these proteins will be studied by solution X-ray scattering and Cryo-EM. Their spatio-temporal arrangements in the cell organelles, membranes, and cytosol will be further studied by X-ray fluorescence imaging and correlated with cryoEM and super-resolution optical microscopy. We apply these multiscale integrative imaging approaches to biomedical, and environmental and bioenergy research questions with Stanford, DOE national labs, and other domestic and international collaborators. -
Claire E Wakefield
Professor of Pediatrics (Quality of Life and Palliative Care)
BioI am a medical psychologist and researcher dedicated to improving quality of life for children affected by serious illness, as well as their families. My research spans pediatric palliative care, precision medicine, psycho-oncology, and global health, and is grounded in a deep commitment to compassionate, patient-centered care. I have published more than 340 journal articles and am named as Chief Investigator on competitive research grants totaling more than $55M.
I served as Continental President of SIOP Oceania and as a Director on the Board of the International Society of Pediatric Oncology (SIOP), advocating for children with cancer across 14 countries. I advise the World Health Organization on global childhood cancer initiatives and am a proud member of the Presidential Task Force on Advocacy for the Society of Pediatric Psychology. I am passionate about building national and global capacity in pediatric palliative care and ensuring that every child and family receives not only the best medical treatment, but also the emotional and psychological support they need.
