Vice Provost and Dean of Research
Showing 1,801-1,850 of 2,473 Results
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Jonathan Pritchard
Bing Professor of Population Studies, Professor of Genetics and Biology
On Leave from 01/01/2026 To 06/15/2026Current Research and Scholarly InterestsWe are interested in a broad range of problems at the interface of genomics and evolutionary biology. One current focus of the lab is in understanding how genetic variation impacts gene regulation and complex traits. We also have long-term interests in using genetic data to learn about population structure, history and adaptation, especially in humans.
FOR UP-TO-DATE DETAILS ON MY LAB AND RESEARCH, PLEASE SEE: http://pritchardlab.stanford.edu -
Carla Pugh, MD, PhD
Thomas Krummel Professor
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsThe Technology Enabled Clinical Improvement (T.E.C.I.) Center is a multidisciplinary team of researchers dedicated to the design and implementation of advanced engineering technologies that facilitate data acquisition relating to clinical performance.
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Elisabetta Viani Puglisi
Associate Professor (Research) of Structural Biology
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsViral infections and subsequent host response depend on multiple RNA-protein interaction. My research focuses on the structural and functional characterization of RNA-protein complexes involved in viral infection. Current research aims to understand how the Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) initiates its replication upon host infection. We use NMR spectroscopy and x-ray crystallography to study the structure of the initiation complex, formed by a host tRNA and HIV genomic RNA, coupled with biochemical and biophysical methods to understand functional properties. The goal of this research is to gain a molecular view of HIV replication initiation, and use this information to develop new therapeutic approaches to combat HIV.
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Joseph (Jody) Puglisi
Jauch Professor and Professor of Structural Biology
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsThe Puglisi group investigates the role of RNA in cellular processes and disease. We investigate dynamics using single-molecule approaches. Our goal is a unified picture of structure, dynamics and function. We are currently focused on the mechanism and regulation of translation, and the role of RNA in viral infections. A long-term goal is to target processes involving RNA with novel therapeutic strategies.
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Patrick Lee Purdon
Professor of Anesthesiology, Perioperative and Pain Medicine (Department Research) and, by courtesy, of Bioengineering
BioMy research integrates neuroimaging, biomedical signal processing, and the systems neuroscience of general anesthesia and sedation.
My group conducts human studies of anesthesia-induced unconsciousness, using a variety of techniques including multimodal neuroimaging, high-density EEG, and invasive neurophysiological recordings used to diagnose medically refractory epilepsy. We also develop novel methods in neuroimaging and biomedical signal processing to support these studies, as well as methods for monitoring level of consciousness under general anesthesia using EEG. -
Stanley Qi
Associate Professor of Bioengineering
BioStanley Qi (publishing as Lei S. Qi) is a pioneer in the field of genome engineering and the architect of the foundational technologies that transitioned CRISPR from a "cutting" tool into a universal platform for Programmable Biology. As the inventor of CRISPR interference (CRISPRi) and CRISPR activation (CRISPRa), Qi established the first methods for the precise, reversible, and targeted regulation of the human genome without altering the DNA sequence.
The Qi Lab integrates scalable genomic perturbation with live-cell and super-resolution imaging and computation-guided design to redefine the boundaries of cellular control. Under Dr. Qi’s leadership, the group has fundamentally expanded the genome engineering toolbox, evolving CRISPR from a single editing tool into a multidimensional platform for the precise control of dynamic and spatial cell states. This work includes establishing foundational technologies and architectures for precise epigenetic editing, multiplexed regulation of the transcriptome, programmable 3D genome organization, and spatial control of RNA logistics. By pioneering real-time visualization of chromatin dynamics and RNA in living cells, the lab provides an unprecedented window into the fundamental "control principles of life."
This principle-driven technology lineage has moved into the clinic, with the lab's compact epigenetic editor currently in first-in-human clinical testing for FSHD muscular dystrophy (NCT06907875). This milestone represents a core mission of the lab: translating foundational engineering into next-generation therapeutics that act predictably as dynamic, complex systems.
Beyond single-cell control, the Qi Lab is building a framework for synthetic cell–cell communication, with a particular emphasis on the bidirectional interplay between immune cells and neurons. The lab’s goal is to move beyond describing molecular parts to discovering fundamental control principles in living systems: how regulatory landscapes create stable states and memory, how spatial genome–RNA organization shapes dynamic responses, and how engineered cell–cell interactions can generate emergent multicellular behaviors.
By integrating computational design with experimental biology, Dr. Qi aims to identify the generalizable rules linking molecular programs to systems-level physiology. He is a Chan Zuckerberg Biohub Investigator and an Institute Scholar at the Sarafan ChEM-H, and is dedicated to shaping the technical and ethical frameworks that will define the future of human genome engineering. -
Xiang Qian
Stanford Medicine Endowed Director
Clinical Professor, Anesthesiology, Perioperative and Pain Medicine
Clinical Professor (By courtesy), NeurosurgeryCurrent Research and Scholarly InterestsClinical Interests
-Pain Medicine:
Facial pain
Migraine and headache
Trigeminal Neuralgia and Glossopharyngeal neuralgia
Cancer Pain
Spine Disease
Neuropathic pain
Interventional Surgery
CT guided Procedure
Opioid Management
-Facial Nerve neuralgia and neuropathy
Hemifacial Spasm
CT guided awake RFA of facial nerve
Research Interests:
-Medical device development
-AI based headache diagnosis and management
-CT guided intervention
-Intra-nasal endoscopy guided procedure
-Optogenetics
-Mechanisms of neuropathic pain
-Ion channel and diseases
-Neurotoxicity of anesthetics -
Jian Qin
Associate Professor of Chemical Engineering
BioJian Qin is an Associate Professor in the Department of Chemical Engineering at the Stanford University. His research focuses on development of microscopic understanding of structural and physical properties of soft matters by using a combination of analytical theory, scaling argument, numerical computation, and molecular simulation. He worked as a postdoctoral scholar with Juan de Pablo in the Institute for Molecular Engineering at the University of Chicago and with Scott Milner in the Department of Chemical Engineering at the Pennsylvania State University. He received his Ph.D. in the Department of Chemical Engineering and Materials Science at the University of Minnesota under the supervision of David Morse and Frank Bates. His research covers self-assembly of multi-component polymeric systems, molecular origin of entanglement and polymer melt rheology, coacervation of polyelectrolytes, Coulomb interactions in dielectrically heterogeneous electrolytes, and surface charge polarizations in particulate aggregates in the absence or presence of flow.
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Xiaojie Qiu
Assistant Professor of Genetics and, by courtesy, of Computer Science
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsAt the Qiu Lab, our mission is to unravel and predict the intricacies of gene regulatory networks and cell-cell interactions pivotal in mammalian cell fate transitions over time and space, with a special emphasis on heart evolution, development, and disease. We are a dynamic and interdisciplinary team, harnessing the latest advancements in machine learning as well as single-cell and spatial genomics by integrating the predictive power of systems biology with the scalability of machine learning,
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Stephen Quake
Lee Otterson Professor in the School of Engineering and Professor of Bioengineering, of Applied Physics and, by courtesy, of Physics
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsSingle molecule biophysics, precision force measurement, micro and nano fabrication with soft materials, integrated microfluidics and large scale biological automation.
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Thomas Quertermous, MD
William G. Irwin Professor of Cardiovascular Medicine
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsUnderstanding genetic basis of cardiovascular function and disease.
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Sean Quirin
Assistant Professor (Research) of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences (Major Laboratories and Clinical & Translational Neurosciences Incubator)
BioDr. Quirin's laboratory develops minimally invasive methods to explore the causal role individual neurons play in the emergence of behavior. To this end, the lab's strength is the development of techniques which manipulate light to both detect and restoratively modulate brain activity down to the single-neuron scale. His lab continues to innovate with new tools which map these functional relationships onto the molecular and anatomical architecture of the brain. Utilizing these techniques, the lab aims to characterize how ensembles of neurons coordinate to encode and communicate information throughout the brain for sensing and behavior.
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Jennifer Anne Rabbitts
Professor of Anesthesiology, Perioperative & Pain Medicine (Pediatric) and, by courtesy, of Pediatrics
BioJennifer Rabbitts, MD is Professor and Chief of Pediatric Pain Management at Stanford University School of Medicine. Dr. Rabbitts directs an NIH-funded research laboratory focused on improving long-term pain and health outcomes in children and adolescents undergoing surgery. Her research is devoted to understanding and preventing chronic postsurgical pain, a disabling condition affecting 20% youth undergoing major surgery. Her current research studies investigate the role of biopsychosocial mechanisms including child psychosocial factors, parental/family factors, and psychophysical processes underlying acute to chronic pain transition. Current clinical trials focus on testing feasibility and efficacy of psychosocial and complementary and integrative interventions to improve acute postsurgical pain and prevent transition to chronic pain.
Dr Rabbitts is passionate about mentoring, and is a PI for the NIH HEAL PAIN Training grant in Maternal and Child Pain and Health at Stanford. She serves as section editor for Psychology, Psychiatry and Brain Neuroscience Section for Pain Medicine, and serves on the editorial boards for Pediatric Anesthesia and Journal of Pain.
Read more about the Rabbitts Lab and opportunities here: https://rabbittslab.stanford.edu/ -
Marlene Rabinovitch
Dwight and Vera Dunlevie Professor of Pediatric Cardiology
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsOur research program seeks to identify the cellular and molecular programs regulating vascular and lung development, through the use of cultured cells and tissues and mouse and rat models. We then determine how these programs are perturbed by genetic abnormalities or injurious processes associated with disease, focusing on pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH), a fatal complication in children with heart defects, and a condition of unknown etiology primarily in young women.
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Krishna Raghavan
Ph.D. Student in Chemistry, admitted Autumn 2024
BioKrishna is originally from the Detroit area of Michigan, and completed his undergraduate studies in biological chemistry and chemistry at the University of Chicago. He is currently a second-year PhD student concentrating in biophysical chemistry, in the lab of Prof. Bianxiao Cui.
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Srinivas Raghu
Professor of Physics
BioI am interested in the emergent behavior of quantum condensed matter systems. Some recent research topics include non-Fermi liquids, quantum criticality, statistical mechanics of strongly interacting and disordered quantum systems, physics of the half-filled Landau level, quantum Hall to insulator transitions, superconductor-metal-insulator transitions, and the phenomenology of quantum materials.
Past contributions that I'm particularly proud of include the co-founding of the subject of topological photonics (with Duncan Haldane), scaling theories of non-Fermi liquid metals (with Shamit Kachru and Gonzalo Torroba), Euclidean lattice descriptions of Chern-Simons matter theories and their dualities in 2+1 dimensions (with Jing-Yuan Chen and Jun Ho Son), and 'dual' perspectives of quantum Hall transitions (with Prashant Kumar and Michael Mulligan). -
Sunita Rajdev
Senior Director for Licensing and Strategic Alliances, Office of Technology Licensing (OTL)
BioSunita Rajdev is the senior director of licensing and strategic alliances, life sciences, at the Stanford Office of Technology Licensing (OTL). She has over twenty years of experience in university technology transfer with expertise in intellectual property management, leading the negotiation of licensing and research collaboration agreements, business development, and startup formation. Sunita also extensively collaborates with other Stanford translation-focused groups to help create and manage strategic alliances with non-profit and for-profit entities to translate innovations from Stanford labs into products and services for public benefit.
Before joining the OTL in December 2019, Sunita held various technology transfer positions at UCSF, including time as its interim executive director, with multiple responsibilities in addition to licensing that included supporting the creation and management of large research collaborations.
Sunita received her Ph.D. in Pharmacology from the University of Pittsburgh and completed her postdoctoral training at UCSF. -
Nilam Ram
Professor of Communication and of Psychology
BioNilam Ram studies the dynamic interplay of psychological and media processes and how they change from moment-to-moment and across the life span.
Nilam’s research grows out of a history of studying change. After completing his undergraduate study of economics, he worked as a currency trader, frantically tracking and trying to predict the movement of world markets as they jerked up, down and sideways. Later, he moved on to the study of human movement, kinesiology, and eventually psychological processes - with a specialization in longitudinal research methodology. Generally, Nilam studies how short-term changes (e.g., processes such as learning, information processing, emotion regulation, etc.) develop across the life span, and how longitudinal study designs contribute to generation of new knowledge. Current projects include examinations of age-related change in children’s self- and emotion-regulation; patterns in minute-to-minute and day-to-day progression of adolescents’ and adults’ emotions; and change in contextual influences on well-being during old age. He is developing a variety of study paradigms that use recent developments in data science and the intensive data streams arriving from social media, mobile sensors, and smartphones to study change at multiple time scales. -
Ashwin Ramayya, MD, PhD
Assistant Professor of Neurosurgery
BioDr. Ramayya is an assistant professor in the Department of Neurosurgery. He specializes in the treatment of patients with chronic pain, movement disorders, epilepsy, and traumatic brain injury. His research program will focus on understanding brain mechanisms underlying pain experience and how to alleviate pain using brain stimulation.
Dr. Ramayya specializes in neuromodulation, including deep brain stimulation (DBS), spinal cord stimulation, MRI-guided laser therapy, and focused ultrasound. Dr. Ramayya obtained his MD and PhD from the University of Pennsylvania, where he also completed his neurosurgery residency and a fellowship in stereotactic and functional neurosurgery.
His research efforts have identified neural substrates underlying learning, memory, and decision-making using computational behavioral modeling, neurophysiology, and neuroimaging.
Dr. Ramayya has published in numerous peer-reviewed journals, including the Journal of Neuroscience, NeuroImage, and Cerebral Cortex. He has also presented his work at national and international meetings, including those for the American Association of Neurological Surgeons and the Pan Philadelphia Neurosurgery Conference. -
Thomas Rando, MD, PhD
Professor of Neurology and Neurological Sciences, Emeritus
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsOur laboratory studies the molecular mechanisms regulating stem cell function, the effects of aging on skeletal muscle and skeletal muscle stem cells, and the pathogenesis and experimental therapeutics for hereditary muscle diseases, specifically the muscular dystrophies.
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Jianghong Rao
Professor of Radiology (Molecular Imaging Program at Stanford) and, by courtesy, of Chemistry
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsProbe chemistry and nanotechnology for molecular imaging and diagnostics
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Serena Rao
Senior Associate Dean for Finance and Administration, Vice Provost and Dean of Research
BioSerena is the Senior Associate Dean in the Office of the Vice Provost and Dean of Research (VPDoR) at Stanford University. Reporting directly to the Dean, Serena supports Stanford's interdisciplinary labs, centers, institutes, and research-support offices. She guides their strategic activities, advises on operational challenges, and oversees all administrative activities. She also plays a key role in facilitating strategy development and leading the implementation of the university's research initiatives.
Serena’s extensive experience at Stanford includes over six years in the University Budget Office, where she was a vital member of the Provost’s Budget Group. In this capacity, she led complex analytical projects that informed strategic decisions for senior leadership and contributed significantly to the development of Stanford's annual consolidated budget. Prior to higher education, Serena managed city-wide infrastructure planning initiatives, annual capital budgets, and long-term debt forecasts for the Mayor's Office of Management and Budget in New York City.
Serena earned her Doctor of Education (Ed.D. ) degree at the University of Pennsylvania. Passionate about higher education and working in service to learning, Serena takes pride in getting things done effectively and creatively and excels in operating at both strategic and tactical levels. -
Natalie L. Rasgon
Professor of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences (General Psychiatry and Psychology-Adult) at the Stanford University Medical Center, Emerita
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsDr. Rasgon has been involved in longitudinal placebo-controlled neuroendocrine studies for nearly two decades, and she has been involved in neuroendocrine and brain imaging studies of estrogen effects on depressed menopausal women for the last eight years. It should be noted that in addition to her duties as a Professor of Psychiatry and Obstetrics & Gynecology, Dr. Rasgon is also the Director of the Behavioral Neuroendocrinology Program and of the Women's Wellness Program.
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Christine Raval
Research Program Manager, Institute for Human-Centered Artificial Intelligence (HAI)
BioChristine is a member of the research team at the Stanford Institute for Human-Centered AI (HAI). She manages the HAI grant programs, student affinity initiative, and the operations of AI100, a 100-year effort to study and anticipate how the effects of AI will ripple through every aspect of how people work, live and play. Prior to joining Stanford, Christine worked on the digital learning team at the University of Nebraska at Omaha and as a case manager for newly arrived refugees in Omaha.
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Ravonjiarison Solofo Nasandratra Avisoa
Fellow, CASBS
Affiliate, CASBS Fellows' ProgramBioMy current research advances an innovative approach that integrates scientific and Indigenous knowledge to co-construct solutions for enhanced productivity and sustainability. Using participatory methods, I aim to develop a shared knowledge base through surveys, co-design workshops, and collaborative engagement, bridging scientific understanding with farmers’ experiential insights to promote practices that are both productive and environmentally sustainable.
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Jennifer L. Raymond
Berthold and Belle N. Guggenhime Professor
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsWe study the neural mechanisms of learning, using a combination of behavioral, neurophysiological, and computational approaches. The model system we use is a form of cerebellum-dependent learning that regulates eye movements.
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Babak Razavi, MD, PhD
Clinical Associate Professor, Adult Neurology
BioDr. Razavi's clinical interests are in medically refractory epilepsies and using high density EEG (electroencephalogram) for better localization of seizure foci. His research areas include using advanced digital signal processing and engineering techniques for analyzing EEG and using seizures as a model for understanding consciousness.
Dr. Razavi is the Founder and Director of DEL - Distributed EEG Lab. DEL's vision is to make EEG easy as 1, 2, 3. We turn complexity into simplicity. We are distributed in time and space. DEL was founded in the spirit of cloud computing, networking, and the notion that research in collaboration is more exciting and fruitful than in isolation. Everyone contributes - no matter how small; everyone wins - no matter how big. It was inspired by the mentorship of Dr. Kimford Meador and Dr. Robert Fisher. All you need is access to a computer and the internet.
DEL is the ideal collaborative environment for students (undergraduate and graduate) and faculty who would like to: (1) apply ready-to-use advanced analytical techniques to test specific hypotheses in cognition, neuroscience and epilepsy, and (2) develop and test new algorithms for analyzing EEG and other biological signals. -
Christopher Re
Professor of Computer Science
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsAlgorithms, systems, and theory for the next generation of data processing and data analytics systems.
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sean reardon
Professor of Poverty and Inequality in Education, Senior Fellow at the Stanford Institute for Economic Policy Research and Professor, by courtesy, of Sociology
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsThe causes and patterns of racial/ethnic and socioeconomic achievement disparities;
The effects of school integration policies on segregation patterns and educational outcomes;
Income inequality and its educational and social consequences.
http://cepa.stanford.edu/sean-reardon -
Lawrence Recht, MD
Professor of Neurology and Neurological Sciences (Adult Neurology) and, by courtesy, of Neurosurgery
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsOur laboratory focuses on two interrelated projects: (1) assessment of glioma development within the framework of the multistage model of carcinogenesis through utilization of the rodent model of ENU neurocarcinogenesis; and (2) assessment of stem cell specification and pluripotency using an embryonic stem cell model system in which neural differentiation is induced.
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Kristy Red-Horse
Professor of Biology
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsCardiovascular developmental biology
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Stephen James Redding
Kleinheinz Family Professor of International Studies and Senior Fellow at the Stanford Institute for Economic Policy Research
BioStephen Redding's research interests include international trade, economic geography, urban economics, transportation economics and productivity growth. Recent work has been concerned with firm heterogeneity and international trade, multi-product firms, the distributional consequences of globalization, agglomeration forces, and transport infrastructure improvements.
He is the Kleinheinz Family Professor of International Studies and Professor of Economics in the Economics Department at Stanford University. He is a Senior Fellow at the Stanford Institute of Economic Policy Research (SIEPR) and a Senior Fellow (Courtesy) at the Hoover Institution. He is Director of the International Trade and Investment (ITI) Program of the National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER). He is a fellow of the Econometric Society, an associate editor of Econometrica and the Quarterly Journal of Economics, an International Research Associate of the Centre for Economic Performance at the London School of Economics, and a Research Fellow of the Centre for Economic Policy Research.
Prior to joining Stanford University, he was a Professor of Economics at Princeton University, the London School of Economics and the Yale School of Management. He was awarded the Frisch Medal in 2018, the Bhagwati Prize in 2017, a Global Economic Affairs Prize from the Kiel Institute for the World Economy in 2008, and a Philip Leverhulme Prize Fellowship during 2001-4.
External webpage: https://stephenredding.github.io/ -
Byron Reeves
Paul C. Edwards Professor of Communication and Professor, by courtesy, of Education
BioByron Reeves, PhD, is the Paul C. Edwards Professor of Communication at Stanford and
Professor (by courtesy) in the Stanford School of Education. Byron has a long history of
experimental research on the psychological processing of media, and resulting responses and
effects. He has studied how media influence attention, memory and emotional responses and has
applied the research in the areas of speech dialogue systems, interactive games, advanced
displays, social robots, and autonomous cars. Byron has recently launched (with Stanford
colleagues Nilam Ram and Thomas Robinson) the Human Screenome Project (Nature, 2020),
designed to collect moment-by-moment changes in technology use across applications, platforms
and screens.
At Stanford, Byron has been Director of the Center for the Study of Language and Information,
and Co-Director of the H-STAR Institute (Human Sciences and Technologies Advanced
Research), and he was the founding Director of mediaX at Stanford, a university-industry
program launched in 2001 to facilitate discussion and research at the intersection of academic
and applied interests. Byron has worked at Microsoft Research and with several technology
startups, and has been involved with media policy at the FTC, FCC, US Congress and White
House. He is an elected Fellow of the International Communication Association, and recipient of ICA Fellows book award for The Media Equation (with Prof. Clifford Nass), and the Novim Foundation Epiphany Science and Society Award. Byron’s PhD in Communication is from Michigan State University. -
David Rehkopf
Professor of Epidemiology and Population Health, of Sociology, of Medicine (Primary Care and Population Health) and, by courtesy, of Pediatrics, and of Health Policy
BioI am a social epidemiologist and serve as a Professor in the Department of Epidemiology and Population Health and in the Department of Medicine in the Division of Primary Care and Population Health. I joined the faculty at Stanford School of Medicine in 2011.
I am Director of the Stanford Center for Population Health Sciences. In this position, I am committed to making high-value data resources available to researchers across disciplines in order to better enable them to answer their most pressing clinical and population health questions.
My own research is focused on understanding the health implications of the myriad decisions that are made by corporations and governments every day - decisions that profoundly shape the social and economic worlds in which we live and work. While these changes are often invisible to us on a daily basis, these seemingly minor actions and decisions form structural nudges that can create better or worse health at a population level. My work demonstrates the health implications of corporate and governmental decisions that can give the public and policy makers evidence to support new strategies for promoting health and well-being. In all of his work, I have a focus on the implications of these exposures for health inequalities.
Since often policy and programmatic changes can take decades to influence health, my work also includes more basic research in understanding biological signals that may act as early warning signs of systemic disease, in particular accelerated aging. I examine how social and economic policy changes influence a range of early markers of disease and aging, with a particular recent focus on DNA methylation. I am supported by several grants from the National Institute on Aging and the National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities to develop new more sensitive ways to understand the health implications of social and economic policy changes. -
Rob Reich
McGregor-Girand Professor of Social Ethics of Science and Technology, Sr Fellow at the Stanford Institute for HAI, Professor, by courtesy, of Education, of Philosophy, of Law and Senior Fellow, by courtesy, at the Freeman Spogli Institute
BioRob Reich is the McGregor-Girand Professor of Social Ethics of Science and Technology at Stanford University. In 2024-25, Rob was on public service leave as Senior Advisor to the United States Artificial Intelligence Safety Institute.
His scholarship in political theory engages with the work of social scientists and engineers. His newest work is on governance of frontier science and technology. His most recent books are System Error: Where Big Tech Went Wrong and How We Can Reboot (with Mehran Sahami and Jeremy M. Weinstein, HarperCollins 2021) and Digital Technology and Democratic Theory (edited with Lucy Bernholz and Hélène Landemore, University of Chicago Press 2021). He has also written widely about philanthropy, including Just Giving: Why Philanthropy is Failing Democracy and How It Can Do Better (Princeton University Press, 2018) and Philanthropy in Democratic Societies: History, Institutions, Values (edited with Chiara Cordelli and Lucy Bernholz, University of Chicago Press, 2016). His early work is focused on democracy and education, including Bridging Liberalism and Multiculturalism in American Education (University of Chicago Press, 2002) and Education, Justice, and Democracy (edited with Danielle Allen, University of Chicago Press, 2013). He has testified before Congress and written widely for the public, including for the New York Times, Washington Post, Wired, Time Magazine, The Atlantic, The Guardian, and the Stanford Social Innovation Review.
Rob is the recipient of multiple teaching awards, including the Walter J. Gores award, Stanford’s highest honor for teaching. He was a sixth grade teacher at Rusk Elementary School in Houston, Texas before attending graduate school. He is a board member of the magazine Boston Review and at the Spencer Foundation. He helped to create the global movement #GivingTuesday and served as its inaugural board chair. -
Richard J. Reimer, MD
Professor of Neurology and Neurological Sciences (Adult Neurology)
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsReimer Lab interests
A primary interest of our lab is to understand how nerve cells make and recycle neurotransmitters, the small molecules that they use to communicate with each other. In better defining these processes we hope to achieve our long-term goal of identifying novel sites for treatment of diseases such as epilepsy and Parkinson Disease. In our studies on neurotransmitter metabolism we have focused our efforts on transporters, a functional class of proteins that move neurotransmitters and other small molecules across membranes in cells. Transporters have many characteristics that make them excellent pharmacological targets, and not surprisingly some of the most effective treatments for neuropsychiatric disorders are directed at transporters. We are specifically focusing on two groups of transporters vesicular neurotransmitter transporters that package neurotransmitters into vesicles for release, and glutamine transporters that shuttle glutamine, a precursor for two major neurotransmitters glutamate and GABA, to neurons from glia, the supporting cells that surround them. We are pursuing these goals through molecular and biochemical studies, and, in collaboration with the Huguenard and Prince labs, through physiological and biosensor based imaging studies to better understand how pharmacological targeting of these molecules will influence neurological disorders.
A second interest of our lab is to define mechanism underlying the pathology of lysosomal storage disorders. Lysosomes are membrane bound acidic intracellular organelles filled with hydrolytic enzymes that normally function as recycling centers within cells by breaking down damaged cellular macromolecules. Several degenerative diseases designated as lysosomal storage disorders (LSDs) are associated with the accumulation of material within lysosomes. Tay-Sachs disease, Neimann-Pick disease and Gaucher disease are some of the more common LSDs. For reasons that remain incompletely understood, these diseases often affect the nervous system out of proportion to other organs. As a model for LSDs we are studying the lysosomal free sialic acid storage disorders. These diseases are the result of a defect in transport of sialic acid across lysosomal membranes and are associated with mutations in the gene encoding the sialic acid transporter sialin. We are using molecular, genetic and biochemical approaches to better define the normal function of sialin and to determine how loss of sialin function leads to neurodevelopmental defects and neurodegeneration associated with the lysosomal free sialic acid storage disorders.
