A photo of William Nichols.

William C. Nichols, PhD

  • Associate Director of Research, Division of Human Genetics
  • Director, National Biological Sample and data Repository for PAH
  • Professor, UC Department of Pediatrics

About

Biography

My primary research focuses on genetic susceptibility to pulmonary hypertension involving both rare and common genetic variation. My colleagues and I utilize both patient and animal model samples to identify variation in the human genome that leads to susceptibility for this rare, destructive and often fatal condition. In addition, I am studying the genetic susceptibility to Parkinson’s disease as a secondary concentration.

The objectives of my lab team and I involve using genetic methods among diseases to bring about patient-specific customized therapies based on genetic variations that different patients may be harboring. We also hope our genetic approaches to studying disease may lead to innovative treatments based on new pathways we find in our research.

Throughout my career, I’ve had the chance to discover multiple novel disease genes, such as familial amyloidotic polyneuropathy, two different genes for combined factors V and VIII deficiency, thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura, spheroid body myopathy and numerous novel susceptibility genes for pulmonary arterial hypertension.

I have participated in multiple seminal discoveries for genetic susceptibility to Parkinson’s disease. I developed the world’s largest biorepository of clinical information, biological samples and genetic data for patients with pulmonary arterial hypertension. This biorepository is known as the National Biological Sample and Data Repository for Pulmonary Arterial Hypertension (PAH Biobank).

The National Institutes of Health (NIH) and the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI) funded this resource for the PAH research community. The biorepository has led to pioneering research focused on biomarkers, genetics and metabolomics in patients with PAH.

I have more than 30 years of experience in genetics and first joined the Cincinnati Children’s team in 1998. My research has been published in numerous respected journals, such as American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, The Lancet Respiratory Medicine, Circulation, Cell, Nature Genetics, and Nature Communications.

PhD: Department of Medical Genetics, Indiana University, Indianapolis, IN, 1983-89; Associate, Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Ann Arbor, MI, 1989-91.

Research Fellow: Department of Internal Medicine, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, 1991-92.

Research Investigator: Department of Internal Medicine, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, 1992-1998.

Interests

Dr. Nichols investigates the genetic susceptibility of pulmonary arterial hypertension. His lab was instrumental in identifying the first gene associated with the disorder. He is director of the NHLBI funded National Biological Sample and Data Repository for PAH, an effort to bank biological samples, clinical and genetic data for 3,000 PAH patients. Genetic analysis of murine pulmonary hypertension and Parkinson disease are also ongoing research interests.

Research Areas

Human Genetics

Publications

Mining the Plasma Proteome for Insights into the Molecular Pathology of Pulmonary Arterial Hypertension. Harbaum, L; Rhodes, CJ; Wharton, J; Lawrie, A; Karnes, JH; Desai, AA; Nichols, WC; Humbert, M; Montani, D; Girerd, B; et al. American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine. 2022; 205:1449-1460.

COL18A1 genotypic associations with endostatin levels and clinical features in pulmonary arterial hypertension: a quantitative trait association study. Simpson, CE; Griffiths, M; Yang, J; Nies, MK; Vaidya, D; Brandal, S; Martin, LJ; Pauciulo, MW; Lutz, KA; Coleman, AW; et al. ERJ Open Research. 2022; 8.

Mendelian randomisation and experimental medicine approaches to interleukin-6 as a drug target in pulmonary arterial hypertension. Toshner, M; Church, C; Harbaum, L; Rhodes, C; Villar Moreschi, SS; Liley, J; Jones, R; Arora, A; Batai, K; Desai, AA; et al. European Respiratory Journal. 2022; 59.

Parkinson Disease and Subthalamic Nucleus Deep Brain Stimulation: Cognitive Effects in GBA Mutation Carriers. Pal, G; Mangone, G; Hill, EJ; Ouyang, B; Liu, Y; Lythe, V; Ehrlich, D; Saunders-Pullman, R; Shanker, V; Bressman, S; et al. Annals of Neurology. 2022; 91:424-435.

Biomarkers of Pulmonary Hypertension Are Altered in Children with Down Syndrome and Pulmonary Hypertension. Griffiths, M; Yang, J; Vaidya, D; Nies, M; Brandal, S; Ivy, DD; Hickey, F; Wolter-Warmerdam, K; Austin, ED; Mullen, M; et al. Journal of Pediatrics. 2022; 241:68-76.e3.

Hepatoma-derived growth factor is associated with pulmonary vascular remodeling and PAH disease severity and survival. Yang, J; Ambade, AS; Nies, M; Griffiths, M; Damico, R; Vaidya, D; Brandal, S; Pauciulo, MW; Lutz, KA; Coleman, AW; et al. Pulmonary Circulation. 2022; 12.

Rare variant analysis of 4241 pulmonary arterial hypertension cases from an international consortium implicates FBLN2, PDGFD, and rare de novo variants in PAH. Zhu, N; Swietlik, EM; Welch, CL; Pauciulo, MW; Hagen, JJ; Zhou, X; Guo, Y; Karten, J; Pandya, D; Tilly, T; et al. Genome Medicine. 2021; 13.

Angiostatic Peptide, Endostatin, Predicts Severity in Pediatric Congenital Heart Disease-Associated Pulmonary Hypertension. Daly, CM; Griffiths, M; Simpson, CE; Yang, J; Damico, RL; Vaidya, RD; Williams, M; Brandal, S; Jone, PN; Polsen, C; et al. Journal of the American Heart Association. 2021; 10.

The angiostatic peptide endostatin enhances mortality risk prediction in pulmonary arterial hypertension. Simpson, CE; Griffiths, M; Yang, J; Nies, MK; Vaidya, RD; Brandal, S; Martin, LJ; Pauciulo, MW; Lutz, KA; Coleman, AW; et al. ERJ Open Research. 2021; 7.

Subthalamic Peak Beta Ratio Is Asymmetric in Glucocerebrosidase Mutation Carriers With Parkinson's Disease: A Pilot Study. David, FJ; Munoz, MJ; Shils, JL; Pauciulo, MW; Hale, PT; Nichols, WC; Afshari, M; Sani, S; Verhagen Metman, L; Corcos, DM; et al. Frontiers in Neurology. 2021; 12.

From the Blog


Common Genetic Variant Found for Pulmonary Arterial Hypertension
Heart and Lung

Common Genetic Variant Found for Pulmonary Arterial Hypertension

William C. Nichols, PhD6/30/2019