Developmental Biology
Faculty Labs

Aronow Lab

We currently focus on finding or supporting efforts to solve problems relevant to genomic medicine by developing, both independently and collaboratively, new algorithms, tools and methodologies in translational bioinformatics. To this effect, we deal with several aspects of bioinformatics, ranging from gene regulatory networks to systems biology of normal and perturbed states.

Barske Lab

We study the formation of the skeleton, focusing on three embryonic milestones: the establishment of skeletal progenitors, their later maturation into cartilage and bone at specific spatial coordinates, and the first wave of mineralization. Using zebrafish and mouse models to investigate these critical transitions, we aim to better understand the disturbed processes underlying skeletal disorders in our pediatric patients, ultimately improving intervention strategies and outcomes.

Brugmann Lab

We aim to understand the molecular, cellular, and genetic factors that contribute to craniofacial development and disease. Towards this goal, we utilize avian and murine models, as well as neural crest stem cells to generate skeletal tissues amenable for surgical repair of craniofacial malformations.

Campbell Lab

The Campbell lab investigates the molecular genetic mechanisms that control the normal formation of basal ganglia circuits. This knowledge will help us generate mouse models of certain behaviors that characterize childhood neuropsychiatric disorders, paving the way for the development of improved therapeutics.

Cebrian Lab

We focus on the molecular mechanisms underlying kidney development and disease. Using animal models and human stem cells we investigate the developmental basis of polycystic kidney disease and how nephron progenitors are controlled.

Chen Lab

Our lab focuses on epigenetic mechanisms underlying mammalian oogenesis and preimplantation development using stem cells and animal models. Our work will reveal key molecular events at the beginning of life and provide insights on treating infertility caused by early embryonic arrest and fragmentation.

Cornwall Lab

We investigate the interplay between postnatal nerve and muscle development to elucidate the pathogenesis of disabling and incurable muscle contractures that limit limb movement in childhood neuromuscular disorders. Using animal models, along with in vitro and bioinformatic approaches, we are dissecting the molecular regulation of longitudinal muscle growth, which is central to contracture pathogenesis, leading to novel targets for medical contracture therapies.

Crone Lab

The goal of the Crone Lab is to develop novel treatment strategies targeting neural circuits to restore breathing following injury or disease. The lab uses a variety of techniques to identify neurons important for the control of respiratory muscles and identify molecules in those neurons that have the potential to serve as drug targets to improve breathing.

DeFalco Lab

Our lab aims to understand the critical mechanisms that underlie male and female reproductive development, with a focus on the role of vascular and immune cells during gonad differentiation and gametogenesis. This work will help uncover the fetal origins of reproductive birth defects and, ultimately, will help inform diagnostic and therapeutic approaches for sexual development disorders and adult infertility.

Devarajan Lab

The Devarajan lab employs state-of-the-art genomics, proteomics, and molecular and cellular biology techniques to elucidate developmental pathways and mechanisms that lead to novel diagnostics and therapies for acute and chronic kidney diseases, in animal and human models.

Dey / Sun Lab

Our goal is to decipher the molecular and cellular roadmaps to embryo-uterine interactions during implantation. We use a host of transgenic mouse models to achieve our objectives relevant to pregnancy events in women, such as defective implantation leads to recurrent pregnancy failures, and adverse ripple effects throughout pregnancy, leading to poor pregnancy outcomes and preterm births.

Fernandez Lab

Our research focuses on a crucial and emerging topic in neuroscience: the optimization of brain development and cognitive maturation in individuals exposed to unnatural environments, particularly those caused by excessive artificial lighting. We use animal models to delve into the interplay between nature, nurture, and the temporal landscape, with the goal of developing strategies to promote healthy brain development.

Gebelein Lab

Our research is focused on determining how transcription factors regulate target genes during normal development and how variants associated with embryonic birth defects mis-regulate gene expression to cause pathogenesis. The lab models these disease variants using genetic, bioinformatic, genomic, and molecular approaches in several experimental systems that include Drosophila, mouse, and human stem cells.

Gu Lab

Our team is committed to studying the impact of vascular deficiency in various cardiopulmonary diseases, and developing innovative strategies for promoting vascular regeneration and repair following injuries. Moreover, we specialize in generating vascularized organoids for the heart, lung, intestine, and brain, enabling us to delve into the influence of the microenvironment on the establishment of organ-specific vasculature.

Guo Lab

As a developmental neurobiology and stem cell biology lab, we focus on neurodevelopmental and neurodegenerative disorders like autism spectrum disorders, schizophrenia, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, and Alzheimer's disease. Through innovative stem cell technologies and engineering tools, we aim to create a next-generation "human nervous system in a petri dish" to investigate the genetic basis and underlying causes of these disorders.

Huppert Lab

Our goal is to identify the molecular mechanisms directing cell decisions and patterning of the liver architecture during development and regeneration. We use mouse models, human tissue samples and single cell genomics to uncover the potential of cell plasticity and reprogramming for cell replacement.

Iwafuchi Lab

We aim to reveal epigenetic and transcriptional regulatory principles underlying cell fate control in cell differentiation, reprogramming, and diseases, and ultimately utilize this knowledge to precisely engineer cell fates. Specifically, we focus on pioneer transcription factors and address these questions by integrating CRISPR systems, genomics, and super-resolution imaging.

Jiang Lab

We focus on understanding the causes and pathogenic mechanisms underlying craniofacial birth defects through systematic genetic studies of signaling pathways and tissue-specific transcription factor regulatory networks controlling craniofacial development. In addition, we generate genome-edited mouse and human pluripotent stem cell models to verify causality of, and uncover pathogenic mechanisms involving, disease-associated genomic structural variations in order to improve diagnosis and treatment.

Kofron Lab - Confocal Imaging Core (CIC)

Our research interests include embryonic development and cell-cell signaling. The Confocal Imaging Core (CIC), under my direction, has developed tools and methodologies for advanced imaging and analysis.

Lan Lab

The Lan Lab investigates the genetic basis and developmental mechanisms of congenital craniofacial disorders using genome-edited mouse models. We combine in vivo functional studies with cutting-edge multi-omics approaches, including single-cell RNA-seq and genome-wide regulatory element identification, to delineate the gene regulatory networks controlling craniofacial morphogenesis to improve strategies for the diagnosis, treatment, and/or prevention of craniofacial anomalies.

Lang Lab

The research conducted in the Lang Laboratory at Cincinnati Children's Research Foundation centers around eye development. The eye is a favorite organ system for developmental biologists because of its accessibility and well-defined structure.

Lu Lab

A major focus of the Lu lab is to elucidate the transcriptional, posttranscriptional, epigenetic, and signaling networks that govern development, remyelination, and tumor formation in the CNS and PNS.

Mayhew Lab - Pluripotent Stem Cell Facility (PSCF)

The Pluripotent Stem Cell Facility (PSCF) is a shared resource supporting basic and translational research using human pluripotent stem cells (hPSC). We provide state-of-the-art technologies including generation of patient-specific iPSC, custom genome editing, and 3D organoids to facilitate studies of human development and disease, drug discovery and regenerative medicine

McCracken Lab

Our research investigates mechanisms governing human kidney development and the application of embryologic principles to differentiating kidney tissues from human stem cells. We aim to develop novel organoid models to uncover molecular processes underlying congenital and acquired renal disease and to advance kidney tissue engineering strategies toward future regenerative medicine applications.

Millay Lab

The group tries to identify the factors that regulate cell-cell fusion, delineate their biochemical functions and biophysical properties associated with membrane coalescence, and ultimately translate that information to augment pathological conditions.

Mikedis Lab

We study how spermatogonial stem cells differentiate to form sperm. We are particularly interested in how the post-transcriptional control of mRNA facilitates how 1) spermatogonial stem cell differentiate into mitotically dividing progenitors and 2) how progenitors’ initiative meiosis to produce gametes.

Nakamura Lab

At the heart of our endeavor lies the exploration of RNA-associated pathways and mechanisms, delving deep into their implications for metabolic disorders such as type 2 diabetes, non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, and hepatocellular carcinoma. Our ultimate goal is to ignite a paradigm shift, fostering the conception of cutting-edge therapeutic alternatives for these highly prevalent diseases.

Perl Lab

Our research revolves around bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD), bronchiolitis obliterans and rare lung diseases. Specifically, we look at epithelial mesenchymal interactions in lung development, fibrosis and injury repair to uncover new targets for potential therapies.

Sanchez Gurmaches Lab

The long-term objective of our research program is to elucidate the developmental and metabolic mechanisms that control adipocyte functions. We combine the strengths of mouse and human genetics, genome engineering tools, innovative lineage tracing techniques that allow single-cell resolution, genomics, metabolomics and metabolite tracing, cell biology, and biochemical techniques.

Takebe Lab

We use human pluripotent stem cells and organoids to model complex human development with the goal of therapy and regenerative medicine. Current projects include: 1) deductive development of a complex human organoid model, 2) multidisciplinary dissection of self-driven mechanisms of organogenesis and 3) technology prototyping towards drug discovery/transplant applications.

Tchieu Lab

We unravel the genetic and non-genetic causes of neurodevelopmental disorders using the extraordinary power of human pluripotent stem cells to meticulously generate various nervous system cell types. Using cutting-edge techniques including calcium imaging, epigenomics, and transcriptomics, we embark on understanding the developmental origin of human brain disorders, paving the way for transformative breakthroughs in understanding and treating these conditions.

VanDussen Lab

The VanDussen lab studies intestinal epithelial cells during health, injury repair, and inflammatory disease using human tissue, mouse models, and “organoid” cell cultures derived from mouse and patient intestinal tissue. Our goal is to discover pathways mediating disease biology and therapeutic strategies to promote healing in the intestine.

Waclaw Lab

The goal of our research is to understand the genetic mechanisms regulating cellular diversity and neural circuitry during forebrain development. Precision genetic approaches are used to develop preclinical mouse models for human syndromes with neurodevelopmental abnormalities, such as RASopathies, to identify novel genetic pathways for potential therapeutic targets.

Waxman Lab

Congenital heart defects are among the most common birth defects. Thus, understanding the underlying molecular nature of these defects is a major priority in cardiac research. Our lab investigates the selection of progenitor cells, a developmental process that establishes the heart’s size.

Weirauch Lab

We use computational and experimental methods to study how, when, and where genes are “turned on and off”. To this end, we develop methods for predicting and understanding transcription factor binding, and understanding the regulatory mechanisms underlying human diseases.

Wells Lab

The Wells lab aims to uncover the molecular and cellular mechanisms by which gastrointestinal and endocrine organs form in the embryo. We use developmental paradigms and tissue engineering we direct the differentiation human pluripotent stem cells into organoids to study human development and disease and ultimately for regenerative medicine.

Whitsett Lab

The Whitsett laboratory investigated the molecular and genetic mechanisms governing lung epithelial cell proliferation and differentiation related to the pathogenesis of acute and chronic lung disorders, including respiratory distress syndrome, bronchopulmonary dysplasia, pulmonary fibrosis, disorders of surfactant homeostasis, chronic obstructive lung disease (COPD) and cystic fibrosis (CF).

Xue Lab

We create miniature human organs using stem cells to unravel disease mechanism, improve drug development, and advance personalized regenerative medicine. We develop various bioengineering techniques to control the environment of stem cells, including microfluidics, 3D bioprinting, optogenetics, and cell mechanics tools. We ultimately aim to build the next generation human organoids with high reproducibility, complexity, and fidelity.

Yin Lab

The long-term goal in the Yin Lab is to understand the molecular and cellular mechanisms underlying liver development, regeneration, and disease pathogenesis. We use a combination of genetic, molecular, embryology, biochemical, and cell biological approaches in the zebrafish model to address questions related to liver biology.

A. Zacharias Lab

We are investigating how cellular metabolic states and vitamins impact developing embryos, particularly in the processes of cell migration and tissue fusion, which are disrupted in diverse types of birth defects. We use the nematode worm, C. elegans, because we can live-image fluorescent embryos from fertilized oocyte through hatching and deep evolutionary conservation makes our findings relevant to human health.

W. Zacharias Lab

We study how the lung is built during development and how it regenerates after injuries like flu and pneumonia. We use a mix of techniques in the lab to study lung regeneration, lung development, epigenetics, and stem cell biology.

Zorn Lab

We aim to elucidate the molecular mechanisms controlling the embryonic development of digestive and respiratory system using animal models, human stem cells and single cell genomics. This research will reveal the principles of organogenesis, the cause of congenital anomalies and inform strategies to differentiate human organoids for regenerative medicine.