School of Medicine


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  • Tulio Valdez, MD, MSc

    Tulio Valdez, MD, MSc

    Professor of Otolaryngology - Head & Neck Surgery (OHNS) and, by courtesy, of Pediatrics

    BioDr. Tulio A Valdez is a surgeon scientist born and raised in Colombia with a subspecialty interest in Pediatric Otolaryngology. He attended medical school at Universidad Javeriana in Bogota Colombia before undertaking his residency in Otolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery in Boston. He completed his Pediatric Otolaryngology Fellowship at Texas Children’s Hospital (2007), Houston and obtained his Master’s in Clinical and Translational Research at the University of Connecticut.

    Clinically, Dr. Valdez has an interest in pediatric sleep apnea. He has a special interest in the management of sinus disease in cystic fibrosis. Dr. Valdez has co-authored one textbook and numerous book chapters and scientific manuscripts. Dr. Valdez continues his clinical research in these areas, particularly with a focus on aerodigestive disorders.

    Scientifically, Dr. Valdez has developed various imaging methods to diagnose otitis media and cholesteatoma a middle ear condition that can lead to hearing loss. He was part of the Laser Biomedical Research Center at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. His research includes novel imaging modalities to better diagnose ear infections one of the most common pediatric problems. His research has now expanded to include better intraoperative imaging modalities in pediatric patients to improve surgical outcomes without the need for radiation exposure. 

    Dr. Valdez believes in multi-disciplinary collaborations to tackle medical problems and has co-invented various medical devices and surgical simulation models.

  • Praveesh Valissery

    Praveesh Valissery

    Postdoctoral Scholar, Infectious Diseases

    BioPraveesh was raised in Chennai, India and studied Biotechnology at the Loyola College while minoring in English Literature. He received his Ph.D. from the Jawaharlal Nehru University (New Delhi, India). He has experience in organic chemical synthesis and molecular biology. With Prof. Suman Kumar Dhar, he studied the cell cycle of the malaria parasite (Plasmodium falciparum) and worked on the optimization of water-soluble Artemisinin nanopreparations in the mouse model of malaria (Plasmodium berghei). His PhD thesis concerned “The design, discovery and improvement of novel and existing antimalarial compounds”. He helped in the synthesis and characterization of a novel class of hybrid antimalarial drug, CQ-CFX.

    In the Egan lab, Praveesh is interested in exploring essential protein-protein interactions taking place at the interface between the malaria parasite and the red blood cell at key moments during invasion. His research involves the use of genome editing tools, including lentiviral and adenoviral vectors to modify hematopoietic stem cells and generate genetically modified red blood cells by ex vivo erythropoiesis.

    In the long term, he hopes to

    1. acquire enough skill to study and develop antimalarial vaccine antigens and improve existing vaccine formulations.

    2. employ a reverse genetics approach to understand mechanisms that facilitate parasite invasion using genetically modified red blood cells.

  • Keith Van Haren, MD

    Keith Van Haren, MD

    Assistant Professor of Neurology and of Pediatrics

    Current Research and Scholarly InterestsOur research group is dedicated to innovating care for children with degenerative brain disorders. We are particularly focused on genetic and autoimmune disorders that cause damage to the myelin (the fatty insulation around the nerves) of the brain and spinal cord. X-linked adrenoleukodystrophy (genetic) and multiple sclerosis (autoimmune) are the prototypical examples of degenerative disorders of myelin and are the two disorders we study most intensively.

  • Krisa Van Meurs

    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.