Maternal & Child Health Research Institute (MCHRI)
Showing 101-200 of 211 Results
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Lili Liu
Postdoctoral Scholar, Epidemiology
BioLili (Larry) Liu, PhD, is a postdoctoral fellow in the Department of Epidemiology & Population Health at Stanford University. As an integrative epidemiologist, Dr. Liu unifies molecular biomarkers, large-scale population cohorts, and real-world health data into coherent, hypothesis-driven research with a sustained focus on how early-life exposures, genetic variation, lifestyle, and pharmacological factors shape inflammation, biological aging, and chronic disease risk across the life course. Trained in cancer genetic and nutrition epidemiology with complementary expertise in pharmacoepidemiology, his doctoral research at Vanderbilt University included a multi-ancestry GWAS of urinary prostaglandin E2 metabolite (PGE-M), development of PGE-M–derived dietary and lifestyle scores via elastic net with extensive bootstrapping, and Mendelian randomization analyses linking PGE-M to colorectal cancer across ancestries. At Stanford, Dr. Liu extends his research to maternal–fetal and placental epidemiology, building nationwide claims-based pregnancy cohorts (e.g., MarketScan) to examine gestational diabetes and downstream liver disease risk, and creating mother–infant pair cohort to investigate systemic antibiotic exposure in relation to subsequent inflammatory bowel disease and celiac disease. Parallel collaborations focus on extracellular vesicles and angiogenic signaling in placental health. Methodologically, Dr. Liu works at the interface of causal inference, pharmacoepidemiology, and machine learning with reproducible data engineering (R/Python, SQL, HPC), with the overarching goal of translating mechanistic insights into actionable biomarkers and risk tools for chronic disease prevention in diverse populations.
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Lin Liu
Postdoctoral Scholar, Chemistry
BioI finished my undergraduate study in general chemistry at Shandong Normal University in 2014. Later, I continued to my master’s studies in organic chemistry at Lanzhou University. In 2018, I moved to Baylor University conducting research under the mentorship of Professor John L. Wood. During my graduate studies, I mainly focused on the total syntheses of natural products. In 2024, I joined the Khosla lab and Cui lab as a joint postdoc. Outside the lab, I like cooking, playing basketball, and watching movies
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Qianheng Ma
Postdoctoral Scholar, Psychiatry
BioQianheng (Jessica) Ma obtained her PhD degree of biostatistics at University of Chicago under the supervision of Prof. Donald Hedeker and is the 2021 recipient of the dissertation grant from Society of Multivariate Experimental Psychology (SMEP). Her current research focus are modern statistical methods and deep learning techniques for mining (multivariate) intensive longitudinal data especially psychological/behavioral measures collected by mobile/wearable devices. Besides research, she loves playing the piano and is good at Jazz improvisation and she can speak fluent Cantonese.
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Brittany Elizabeth Matheson, PhD
Clinical Assistant Professor, Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences
BioBrittany Matheson, PhD, is a clinical assistant professor and licensed clinical psychologist in the Eating Disorders Clinic. She completed her undergraduate degree at Duke University, doctorate from the Joint Doctoral Program in Clinical Psychology at San Diego State University and the University of California, San Diego, and APA clinical internship at Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital Stanford (LPCH)/Children’s Health Council. Dr. Matheson is a certified family-based treatment (FBT) therapist and consultant. She is also the director of the Stanford Eating Disorder Research Program Data Coordination Center and collaborates with colleagues on NIH-funded randomized clinical trials. Dr. Matheson's research interests include examining the psychosocial, neurocognitive, and familial factors related to disordered eating and excess weight gain in youth. She is interested in the development and implementation of evidence-based treatments for youth with disordered eating as well as better understanding factors that influence pediatric bariatric surgery outcomes. Dr. Matheson has specialized research and clinical expertise in the interplay among obesity, disordered eating, and autism spectrum disorder and is the director of psychological services for the LPCH adolescent metabolic and bariatric surgery program. She conducts comprehensive evaluations and provides evidence-based treatments for individuals across the age-spectrum with eating disorders, including anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa, binge eating disorder, avoidant/restrictive food intake disorder, and other specified feeding and eating disorders. Her recent research focuses on reducing access to care barriers by digitizing evidence-based treatments and utilizing technology to enhance treatment outcomes.
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Esmeralda Melgoza
Postdoctoral Scholar, Emergency Medicine
BioEsmeralda Melgoza, PhD, MPH, CHES is a postdoctoral researcher in the Department of Emergency Medicine at Stanford University's School of Medicine. Her research examines health inequities in the U.S. healthcare system, with a focus on emergency medical services provided in the prehospital setting and the emergency department. She centers her research on the experiences of underserved populations, including Latine/Hispanics, older adults, and people with limited English proficiency. She is trained in both quantitative and qualitative methods. Her research has been published in peer-reviewed journals, including JAMA Network Open, Medical Care, the Journal of the American Heart Association, Health Affairs Scholar, Prehospital Emergency Care, and SSM-Qualitative Research in Health, among others. She is a current recipient of a grant from the CARESTAR Foundation.
Dr. Melgoza received her PhD in Community Health Sciences from the UCLA Fielding School of Public Health and a minor in Gerontology from the USC Leonard Davis School of Gerontology. Her dissertation research was funded by an R36 grant from the National Institute on Aging. Dr. Melgoza is a former Senior Research Analyst at the UCLA Latino Policy and Politics Institute and an alumna of the Yale Ciencia Academy at Yale University. She is bilingual in English and Spanish. In her spare time, she enjoys spending time with her family, traveling, mentoring, and hiking. -
Vaishali Mittal
Member, Maternal & Child Health Research Institute (MCHRI)
BioVaishali Mittal, MD is a Postdoctoral Clinical Fellow in the Department of Dermatology at Stanford University under the guidance of Dr. Jean Y. Tang.
Her current research is focused on epidermolysis bullosa (EB), a group of rare diseases that cause the skin and mucous membranes to blister easily. She is involved in conducting long-term clinical trials examining the application of an autologous, gene-corrected keratinocyte sheet for the treatment of recessive dystrophic EB (RDEB). In addition, she is currently leading several research projects, including investigation of genotype-phenotype associations in multiple subtypes of EB, creation of an online platform for EB patients/families and investigators to collaborate together on research, and development of an online genetic registry for EB patients using a novel, home-based genetic testing kit.
Vaishali received her medical degree from Stanford University School of Medicine and completed her internship at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center/Brockton Hospital. -
Masashi Miyauchi
Basic Life Research Scientist, Medicine - Med/Hematology
BioMasashi Miyauchi, MD, PhD, is a physician-scientist specializing in hematology, oncology, immunology, and stem cell biology, with over a decade of experience in clinical hematology and oncology. Dr. Miyauchi's academic career commenced at Kyoto University, where he obtained his MD in Medicine. He furthered his expertise with a PhD in Internal Medicine from The University of Tokyo, Graduate School of Medicine. Following his comprehensive clinical training and professional appointments at The University of Tokyo Hospital, Dr. Miyauchi embarked on a postdoctoral journey at Stanford University in the Nakauchi lab, starting in July 2019.
Dr. Miyauchi's clinical training is extensive, including a Senior Residency in Internal Medicine and a Clinical Fellowship in Hematology and Oncology at The University of Tokyo Hospital. This period was complemented by his participation in a Cancer Professional Training Plan. After completing his clinical fellowship, Dr. Miyauchi has served in various pivotal roles at The University of Tokyo Hospital and The University of Tokyo. His positions as a clinically-focused Project Assistant Professor and Assistant Professor in the Department of Hematology and Oncology have enabled him to contribute significantly to pioneering research and education for the next wave of medical professionals.
In his PhD research, Dr. Miyauchi specialized in the disease modeling of cancers and cancer stem cells, employing cancer patient-specific induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs). His work with iPSCs notably includes scalable ex vivo manufacturing of human neutrophils. In his postdoctoral research under the guidance of Dr. Hiromitsu Nakauchi in Genetics at Stanford, Dr. Miyauchi has been concentrating on developing a stable hematopoietic stem cell (HSC) expansion system in both mouse and human models. His research is focused on exploring the potential applications of this expansion system, underlining his commitment to advancing the fields of stem cell biology, regenerative medicine and oncology. -
Kouta Niizuma
Basic Life Research Scientist, Stem Cell Bio Regenerative Med Institute
BioI am a Research Scientist in Prof. Hiromitsu Nakauchi's laboratory at Stanford University. I obtained my PhD in Immunology from the University of Tsukuba, Japan. During my doctoral studies in Prof. Akira Shibuya's laboratory, I focused on the characterization of cell surface receptors expressed on immune cells. I successfully cloned a novel human immunoglobulin-like receptor, CD300H, and established a specific monoclonal antibody. My research demonstrated that CD300H is expressed on a subset of human monocytes and dendritic cells and plays a crucial role in enhancing inflammation by promoting the production of inflammatory cytokines and chemokines.
During my PhD, I also studied as a visiting scholar in Prof. Lewis L. Lanier's laboratory at UCSF, where I investigated the role of the activating receptor NKG2D on NK cells in viral immunity.
Since May 2018, I have been a member of the Nakauchi lab. My current research focuses on the development of new immunotherapies using myeloid cells derived from iPS cells, the generation of monoclonal antibodies, and hematopoietic stem cell biology. -
Preethy Parthiban
Postdoctoral Scholar, Neonatal and Developmental Medicine
BioMy research centers on how the innate immune system shapes tissue remodeling in health and disease. During my PhD, I uncovered a key role for resident macrophages in driving cardiac fibrosis, identifying a macrophage-derived chemokine that directly activates cardiac fibroblasts. Building on this foundation, my postdoctoral work at Stanford focuses on neutrophil–macrophage crosstalk in disrupted alveolarization in neonatal mice and patients. By integrating cellular, molecular, and translational approaches, I aim to define how innate immune pathways orchestrate extracellular matrix remodeling. Ultimately, my goal is to identify critical therapeutic targets that improve outcomes in ECM-related diseases.
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Andrea Pedroza Tobias
Instructor, Pediatrics - General Pediatrics
BioDr. Andrea Pedroza is an instructor in the Department of Pediatrics in the Partnerships for Research in Child Health Lab. She earned a Ph.D. in Global Health from the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) and a Master of Science in Nutrition from the National Institute of Public Health in Mexico (INSP). Her research focuses on generating evidence for interventions and policy recommendations aimed at improving the dietary quality of children to impact their health and development. Currently, she is employing a community-engaged approach to design nutrition interventions and policy recommendations that aim to reduce the consumption of ultra-processed foods among low-income children to narrow the gap in health disparities.
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Deanna Pepin
Postdoctoral Scholar, Pathology
BioHey there! I was born in the small town of Selkirk, Manitoba, but lived most of my life in Edmonton, Alberta. I completed my Bachelor of Science at Kings University, focusing on biology and did undergrad research on Pink Pigmented Facultative Methylotrophs - bacteria that degrade petrochemicals. Following graduation, I became a Research Technician with Exciton Technologies Inc., a research and development company producing silver-based wound care products for treating infections. In 2016, I joined Dr. Benjamin Willing’s lab in Agriculture, Food, and Nutritional Sciences at the University of Alberta and completed a Master of Science focusing on how certain husbandry changes impact the development of the gastrointestinal microbiota, Salmonella infection resistance, and immune response in broiler production. In 2024, I completed my PhD in the department of Microbiology & Immunology at UBC, working with Dr. Carolina Tropini to understand the impact of osmotic stress on the gut microbiome.
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Julia Rachel Plank
Postdoctoral Scholar, Psychiatry
BioI am a postdoctoral researcher in the BRain Imaging, Development, and GEnetics (BRIDGE) Laboratory in the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences. Currently my work focuses on the use of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) for improving understanding of the neuropathophysiology underlying neuropsychiatric disorders with a genetic basis.
My PhD investigated the use of neuroimaging techniques (diffusion MRI, quantitative magnetization transfer, magnetic resonance spectroscopic imaging, electroencephalography) for detection of neuroinflammation in human participants.
My research interests are centered on the clinical applications of MRI for elucidation of pathology and improving diagnosis and treatment. -
Ali Rahimpour Jounghani
Research Scientist, Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences - Interdisciplinary Brain Sciences
BioMy long-term research interests lie in advancing our understanding of neuroimaging techniques and their application in mapping developmental pathways of brain networks, with a focus on how alterations in these networks contribute to mental health disorders. My academic training and multidisciplinary research background have provided me with expertise in a range of neuroimaging modalities, including functional MRI (fMRI), structural MRI, electroencephalography (EEG), and functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS).
During my doctoral studies, I investigated the effects of contextually specific, action-based timing behavior on brain responses, as well as the functional impacts of timing behavior in cochlear implant users. These studies provided valuable insights into the temporal dynamics of brain function. My research has also extended to clinical and cognitive applications, such as studying brain functionality in infants in neonatal intensive care units and in adults with brain disorders.
Currently, as a research scientist at Stanford University, my work bridges psychiatry, cognitive science, and biomedical engineering. I focus on refining neuroimaging data analysis techniques and advancing the use of fNIRS and MRI to explore developmental cognition, particularly for ADHD. A significant part of my current research involves the development of a wearable, cost-effective fNIRS platform for precision mental health. Through my work, I aim to contribute to a deeper understanding of brain disorders and to create practical, cutting-edge tools that advance precision mental health care. -
Vasiliki Rahimzadeh
Member, Maternal & Child Health Research Institute (MCHRI)
BioVasiliki (Vaso) Rahimzadeh, PhD is an applied bioethics scholar with research interests at the intersection of precision medicine, data governance and public policy.
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Mahalakshmi Ramamurthy
Basic Life Research Scientist, Peds/Developmental-Behavioral Pediatrics
BioI am a postdoctoral scholar working with Dr. Jason Yeatman. With a background in vision science, psychophysics and developmental cognitive neuroscience my long-term goal is to study the intersection of basic visual mechanisms and various neurodevelopmental disorders and to extend this understanding in creating effective early screening tools, and in advancing evidence-based therapeutic and remediation programs. Inherent to this interest is the need for developmental data in large and demographically diverse populations. I strongly believe that such inclusive research not only contributes to scientific advancements but can go beyond to bridge health and education disparities.
https://sites.google.com/view/maha-ramamurthy/bio -
Emily Scarpulla Raymond
Member, Maternal & Child Health Research Institute (MCHRI)
BioDr. Emily Scarpulla Raymond, PhD is a pediatric psychology fellow at Stanford University. She received her PhD at the University of Maine, Orono in clinical psychology in 2024 and received her bachelor’s degree in psychology at the University of Rochester in 2018. Emily has conducted research focusing on adolescent psychosocial behavior and outcomes with a particular emphasis on the role of social media in adolescent friendships. As a clinician, Emily works with children and adolescents with comorbid medical and psychological conditions in several medical clinics through Lucile Packard Children's Hospital Stanford.
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Eduardo Pontes Reis
Affiliate, Rad/Integrative Biomedical Imaging Informatics at Stanford
BioI'm a visiting scholar at Stanford AIMI Center, working in the intersection of Artificial Intelligence and Medicine. My purpose is to contribute to our understanding of intelligence. And our best chance to achieve this is through AI.
Research highlights:
- Published BRAX, the Brazilian Chest X-ray Dataset - https://www.nature.com/articles/s41597-022-01608-8
- Open-sourced the PyTorch implementation of ConVIRT (Y Zhang et al), a contrastive learning method for radiologic images and text (before CLIP) - https://github.com/edreisMD/ConVIRT-pytorch
- Released Brain Hemorrhage Annotations - Brain Hemorrhage Extended - BHX (https://physionet.org/content/bhx-brain-bounding-box)
At Hospital Israelita Albert Einstein:
- Started the Health Story project, a medical history timeline to support research and a more personalized clinical practice
- Ran the development of AI algorithms for diseases of national importance: Tuberculosis, COVID, Melanoma and Head CT -
Neetu Saini
Postdoctoral Scholar, Stem Cell Transplantation
BioMy research interests focus on translational human T-cell immunology, with an emphasis on regulatory T cells (Tregs) and their therapeutic potential in restoring immune tolerance and tissue homeostasis. I am particularly interested in engineering FOXP3-programmed CD4⁺ T cells as a stable and functional alternative to conventional Tregs, especially in inflammatory settings where endogenous Tregs may be unstable or dysfunctional. My work integrates gene-editing approaches, immunophenotyping, and human organoid systems to study how these engineered cells interact with epithelial and stem cell compartments, with a focus on mechanisms of tissue repair and immune–epithelial crosstalk in barrier tissues such as the intestine. Moving forward, I aim to advance next-generation cell therapies by combining insights from T-cell biology, tissue biology, and disease modeling to develop durable and clinically relevant strategies for treating immune-mediated and epithelial barrier disorders.
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Rachel Schuck
Postdoctoral Scholar, Psychiatry
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsMy research interests center on improving support services for autistic individuals—particularly by incorporating feedback from the autistic/autism community—and increasing access to high quality supports. I am also interested in assessing attitudes toward neurodiversity and promoting understanding of neurodiversity amongst the general population in the hopes of improving quality of life for neurodivergent people and their families.
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Shailja
Postdoctoral Scholar, Radiological Sciences Laboratory
BioShailja is an engineer and computational scientist interested in the modeling of the human brain to study neurological diseases and guide neurosurgeries. As a Wu Tsai Neuroscience Institute’s postdoctoral fellow with Prof. Jennifer A. McNab and Prof. Josef Parvizi, she investigates tractography-based neurosurgical targeting. She is interested in mapping the whole brain structural connectivity network from diffusion MRI to functional connectivity in the human brain. Shailja received her PhD in Electrical and Computer Engineering from the University of California, Santa Barbara and BS from Electrical Engineering Department, Indian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur. Her doctoral research is on Reeb graphs for modeling white matter fibers in the human brain, which was awarded the Winifred and Louis Lancaster Best PhD Dissertation at UC Santa Barbara.
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Xiwei She
Postdoctoral Scholar, Neurology and Neurological Sciences
BioDr. Xiwei She is a postdoctoral scholar in the Department of Neurology. He received his B.S. degree in Computer Science from Shanghai Jiao Tong University in 2013, and his M.S. degree in Biomedical Engineering from Zhejiang University in 2016. Worked as a research assistant at the USC Neural Modeling and Interface Laboratory, he received his Ph.D. degree in Biomedical Engineering from the University of Southern California in 2022. After graduation, he joined Stanford University as a postdoctoral scholar at the Pediatric Neurostimulation Laboratory (Baumer Lab) and Wu Tsai Neuroscience Institute.
His research interests are largely directed toward identifying the causal relationship of neurons/brain regions and understanding how information is encoded in neural signals by employing machine learning models. Specifically, his postdoc research focuses on applying machine learning modeling techniques on EEG and TMS-EEG data to better understand the impact of interictal epileptiform discharges (IEDs) on brain activity in children with childhood epilepsy with centrotemporal spikes (CECTS). -
Benjamin Singer
Member, Maternal & Child Health Research Institute (MCHRI)
BioBen Singer is a postdoctoral scholar with interests in mathematical epidemiology and global public health. Ben's research career began with an internship at the Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology, where he applied quantitative skills he had learnt studying physics at the University of Oxford to the study of nematode locomotion. Ben further pursued quantitative methods in life sciences in the Interdisciplinary Bioscience Doctoral Training Partnership at the University of Oxford, earning a DPhil (PhD equivalent) in mathematical methods for evaluating pandemic risk and control. During these studies he maintained an interest in global public health policy, interning with the UK government's Department for International Development, where he developed models of international COVID-19 vaccine distribution. Ben is now working in Nathan Lo's research group at Stanford, creating infectious disease models informing public health policy for schistosomiasis, hepatitis E, and other infections.
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Chelse Spinner, PhD, MPH
Postdoctoral Scholar, Neonatal and Developmental Medicine
BioAn Ohio native, Dr. Chelse Spinner obtained a Bachelor of Science in Biological Sciences (Biomedical Studies) with a minor in Health Education from the University of Cincinnati. She earned a Master of Public Health in Epidemiology and Maternal & Child Health (MCH) from the University of South Florida. She received a Doctor of Philosophy in Public Health Sciences with a concentration in Behavioral Sciences from the University of North Carolina at Charlotte. Dr. Spinner is certified in public health and has experience working across health systems. Her research interests include health disparities, women’s health, social determinants of health, domains of structural racism, and oral-systemic health within the MCH population. She employs quantitative and qualitative methods in the hopes of providing innovative and evidence-informed research to improve health outcomes for marginalized and underserved communities. Her research agenda intends to focus on the exploration of social and structural factors that impact health and well-being.
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Ashley Styczynski
Adjunct Clinical Assistant Professor, Medicine - Infectious Diseases
BioAshley Styczynski, MD, MPH, is an Adjunct Clinical Assistant Professor in the Division of Infectious Diseases & Geographic Medicine and Global Health Faculty Fellow, and a Medical Officer in the International Infection and Control Branch at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Dr. Styczynski's research interests are in infectious disease epidemiology, global health, emerging infections, and antimicrobial resistance. She holds an MPH from Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and an MD from University of Illinois at Chicago. Prior to coming to Stanford for her infectious disease fellowship, she spent two years as an Epidemic Intelligence Service (EIS) Officer at the CDC. During her time as an EIS officer, Dr. Styczynski conducted outbreak investigations on Zika virus, vaccinia virus, and rabies. She is currently conducting research on antimicrobial resistance and interventions to reduce nosocomial infections within low-resource healthcare facilities globally.
List of publications: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/myncbi/ashley.styczynski.1/bibliography/public/ -
Ayesha Sujan
Postdoctoral Scholar, Anesthesiology, Perioperative and Pain Medicine
BioAyesha C. Sujan, PhD, is a licensed clinical psychologist with specialized clinical training in pediatric pain psychology and extensive research experience in pharmacoepidemiology, particularly in using large administrative datasets to study central nervous system medication and substance use during pregnancy. She is currently a postdoctoral fellow under the primary mentorship of Dr. Jennifer Rabbitts, Chief of Pediatric Pain, in the Department of Anesthesiology, Perioperative and Pain Medicine at Stanford University School of Medicine, and is supported by an NIH T32 training grant (T32GM089626) focused on developing leaders in academic anesthesiology and pain medicine research. In addition to contributing to Dr. Rabbitts’ NIH-funded research on mechanisms and treatment of pain in youth undergoing surgery, she leads independent studies on pediatric chronic abdominal pain and disorders of gut–brain interaction, with a growing focus on central nervous system medication treatment for these conditions. Clinically, she conducts psychosocial assessments and provides evidence-based pain psychology treatment one day per week (20% FTE) in the outpatient pediatric pain management clinic at Stanford University School of Medicine, ensuring strong clinical grounding and translational relevance of her research program.
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Wenfei Sun
Assistant Professor of Medicine (Endocrinology)
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsWe explore neural circuits regulating memory and systemic metabolism, integrating neuroscience and metabolic biology to tackle cognitive decline and metabolic disorders.
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Diana Tordoff
Instructor, Obstetrics & Gynecology - General
BioDiana M. Tordoff, PhD, MPH is an epidemiologist with expertise in LGBTQ+ health equity and gynecological health research. Dr. Tordoff completed her PhD and MPH in Epidemiology at the University of Washington and received a BA with honors in Mathematics from Vassar College. She is also an affiliated researcher with The PRIDE Study (pridestudy.org), where she recently completed a postdoctoral fellowship. Her current research focuses on the impact of exogenous hormones (gender affirming hormones and menopause hormone therapy) on sexual and gynecological health. Her research interests include sexual and reproductive health, menopause, the vaginal microbiome, molecular epidemiology, intersectionality, and community-engaged research methods.
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Allison Vreeland
Clinical Assistant Professor, Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences - Child & Adolescent Psychiatry and Child Development
BioDr. Allison Vreeland (she/her) is a licensed clinical psychologist specializing in working with children, teens, and families. Dr. Vreeland received her PhD in Clinical Psychological Science with a minor in Quantitative Studies at Vanderbilt University. She completed her predoctoral clinical internship in Child Psychology at UCSF with specialty training through the Child Trauma Research Program. She completed a research and clinical fellowship in the Immune Behavioral Health Clinic at Stanford University, where she focused her research efforts on examining neurological markers of patients diagnosed with pediatric acute neuropsychiatric syndrome (PANS). Clinically, Dr. Vreeland’s program of clinical care is focused on the delivery of evidence-based clinical interventions for individuals with anxiety, OCD, PANS/PANDAS, mood disorders, and behavioral challenges.
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Bing Wang
Postdoctoral Scholar, Stem Cell Transplantation
BioMy academic training and research experience have equipped me with multidisciplinary skills and knowledge of molecular biology and immunology.
I led two projects when I was an undergraduate, in which I got primary academic learning. My team member and I investigated the bacteria content in drinking water from two types of machines that are commonly used in colleges under the guidance of our experimental microbiology teacher Zhihong Zhong. Secondly, we produced a hybridoma cell line secreting monoclonal antibody against the core antigen of the hepatitis C virus (HCV) to develop an ELISA kit for the detection of HCV under the guidance of Dr. Rushi Liu and Minjing Liao.
Thereafter, as a Ph. D. candidate at Xiaoming Feng’s lab, my research primarily focused on understanding the biology of regulatory T cells (Treg) and CD11c+ myeloid cells using cutting-edge single-cell sequencing and conditional knockout mice under healthy and disease conditions. We first revealed the heterogeneity and bifurcated differentiation pathway of human Tregs from normal donors and transplanted patients at the single-cell transcriptome level. A subsequent first and corresponding author publication identified a key innate responsive protein in CD11c+ alveolar macrophages, NRP2, that protects mice from lung injury via promoting the phagocytosis of neutrophils. I also participated in two projects regarding the role of a serine/threonine kinase, LKB1, in mice CD11c+ dendritic cells from lymphoid tissues and adipose tissue with diet-induced obesity. These academic experiences guided me into a strong passion and independent capacities for biomedical studies.
For my postdoctoral training, I will focus on developing Treg therapies and genetic stem cell therapy to cure patients with IPEX syndrome (a severe autoimmune disease) at preclinical and clinical stages, and other immune disorders. My sponsor Dr. Rosa Bacchetta is a well-known leader in treating IPEX patients and developing Treg therapies. My co-mentor Dr. Maria Grazia Roncarolo is a well-recognized pediatric immunologist and also one of the pioneers in the stem cell and gene therapy field, who discovered the type 1 regulatory T cells or Tr1 cells and translate the scientific discoveries into novel Treg therapies. Both of them have an excellent record of training postdoctoral fellows. The proposed projects will provide me with great opportunities in cutting-edge technology and translational research and outline a set of career development including grant writing, public presentation, and lab management, which will enhance my ability to become an independent investigator and help me to reach my goal of developing efficient and safe Treg therapies for a wide range of immune disorders and associated human diseases. -
Wenjun Wang
Postdoctoral Scholar, Stem Cell Transplantation
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsMy postdoctoral research focuses on investigating novel therapy for childhood leukemias.
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Annika M. Weber
Postdoctoral Scholar, Gastroenterology
BioAnnika is a postdoctoral scholar in the Spencer Lab studying how gut microbes metabolize prebiotic fibers to produce bioactive metabolites linked to lowering disease risk. She holds an MS in Human Nutrition from the University of Sheffield and a PhD in Food Science and Human Nutrition from Colorado State University. Her work integrates multi-omic approaches to map diet-microbe-metabolite relationships. Annika aims to translate these mechanistic insights into microbiome-informed dietary strategies for reducing chronic diseases.
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Alexis Thomas Weiner
Postdoctoral Scholar, Pathology
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsThe planar cell polarity (PCP) signaling pathway polarizes animal cells along an axis parallel to the tissue plane, and in so doing generates long-range organization that can span entire tissues. Although its core proteins and much about their interactions are known, how PCP signaling occurs at a mechanistic level remains fundamentally mysterious. In my current project I will employ novel genetic methods to dissect the logic underlying how cellular asymmetry arises at a molecular level.
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Yuyin Xiao
Postdoctoral Scholar, Economics
BioYuyin Xiao is the postdoctoral researcher of the Freeman Spogli Institute for International Studies at Stanford University. She received her MS and PhD from Shanghai Jiaotong University. Her research focuses almost exclusively on low- and middle-income countries and is concerned with: health policy, including health equity, supply, demand and utilization of health service programs, and research on health service systems; health technology and innovation, including digital health, development of digital health tools, and evaluation of the effectiveness of digital interventions. Yuyin’s papers have been published in leading academic journals, including British Medical Journal, Journal of Medical Internet Research, Journal of Biomedical Informatics, BMC Public Health and others.
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熊剑 (Jian Xiong)
Postdoctoral Scholar, Chemical Engineering
BioI thrive to understand the roles of lysosomes in physiological and pathological conditions. Lysosomes are both degradation compartment and metabolic controlling hub, and dysregulation of lysosomal functions are frequently implicated in a vast number of diseases including neurodegenerative diseases, however, the systematic knowledge of the molecular mechanism by which lysosomal contributes to these diseases is lacking. Ion channels are the primary mediators of neuronal activity, defects in neuronal ion channel activity are linked with many kinds of neurodegenerative diseases. Interestingly, besides typical ion channels that are involved in the neuronal activity, defects in lysosomal ion channels, such as TRPML1, CLN7 and CLC-7 are also implicated in neuropathy. My previous work as Ph.D student in University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center focused on regulation of lysosomal function by ion channels and metabolites. I discovered a mechanism of lysosomal Na+ channel regulate mTORC1 activation by regulating lysosomal amino acid accumulation. I also discovered role of glutamine in controlling lysosomal degradation capacity. In the meantime, I developed novel methods to isolate organelles. My ultimate research goal is to understand the key developmental pathways and how alterations in gene sequences and expression contribute to human disease, therefore, I am pursuing independent academic researcher as my career goal. Starting Feb 2022, I work with Dr. Monther Abu-Remaileh at Stanford University on role of lysosomes in neurodegenerative diseases. I use genetics, chemical biology and omics approaches to study lysosome function under various physiological and pathological conditions, especially age-associated neurodegenerative disorders, and monogenic neurodegenerative lysosome storage diseases. In Stanford, I aim to integrate ionic regulation, metabolomic regulation and functional proteomic regulation to systematically understand the biology of lysosome in physiological conditions and pathological conditions.
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Liu Yang
Postdoctoral Scholar, Anesthesiology, Perioperative and Pain Medicine
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsMy current focus lies in analyzing bedside monitoring waveforms and electronic health record data to understand their correlations with adverse conditions in premature infants, and to explore effective solutions that can enhance the outcomes for these vulnerable patients.
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Pourya Yarahmadi, MD
Postdoctoral Scholar, Cardiovascular Institute
BioI earned my MD from Tehran University of Medical Sciences. Currently, I am a postdoctoral researcher in Dr. Nguyen’s lab, and my main focus is on how the immune system contributes to the development of cardiovascular diseases, particularly atherosclerosis. I use cutting-edge technologies such as single-cell RNA sequencing to explore the complex interactions between immune cells and the vascular system. Outside of work, I enjoy playing soccer, working out, hiking, and spending time with friends.
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Marwa Zafarullah
Postdoctoral Scholar, Neurology and Neurological Sciences
BioDr. Marwa Zafarullah is a dedicated neuroscientist with extensive interdisciplinary experience spanning over 8 years in clinical and pre-clinical research. She holds a Ph.D. in Integrative Genetics and Genomics (IGG) from the University of California Davis, focusing on neuroscience, human genetics, and functional genomics. Before joining Stanford, Dr. Zafarullah harnessed the power of molecular biology with advanced technologies to delve into biomarkers related to the prediction, development, progression, and severity of Fragile X Syndrome and associated disorders.
Dr. Zafarullah's career journey reflects her commitment to advancing scientific knowledge, improving patient care, and positively impacting society through her research and contributions. She thrives in multi-disciplinary teams, aiming to enhance the quality of life for all individuals affected by various neurological conditions. Beyond her professional endeavors, she enjoys communicating complex scientific concepts to diverse audiences. Her continuous pursuit of excellence and her drive to bridge clinical practice and scientific innovation make her a true trailblazer in the field. -
Astrid Nicole Zamora
Postdoctoral Scholar, Epidemiology
BioDr. Zamora's work examines how social and environmental contexts shape the three pillars of health, diet, sleep, and physical activity, and influence chronic disease risk. Her research integrates epidemiologic methods with community-based participatory approaches to translate findings into evidence-based public health strategies. Her goal is to advance chronic disease prevention and promote heart-healthy aging among Latino/a communities and underserved populations.
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Chongyang Zhang
Postdoctoral Scholar, Cardiology
BioDr. Zhang is a Postdoctoral Scholar at RabLab in the cardiopulmonary division. She has a PhD in Pharmacology from University of Rochester, NY. She has research in cardiovascular research and chronobiology published in high impact peer-reviewed journals. She is recipient of honors including predoctoral fellowship from AHA, Travel Grant for Early Career Investigators from Council on Arteriosclerosis, Thrombosis, and Vascular Biology. She has served as ad hoc reviewer for more than 40 manuscripts for reputed journals.
