- Home
- About Us
- Divisions
- Adolescent and Young Adult Medicine
- Allergy and Immunology
- Cardiology
- Child Advocacy
- Emergency Medicine
- Endocrinology
- Gastroenterology, Hepatology and Nutrition
- General Academic Pediatrics
- Genetic and Genomic Medicine
- Health Informatics
- Pediatric Hematology, Oncology, and Stem Cell Transplantation
- Infectious Diseases
- Nephrology
- Neurology and Child Development
- Newborn Medicine
- Paul C. Gaffney Division of Pediatric Hospital Medicine
- Pulmonology
- Rheumatology
- Centers & Institutes
- Center for Pediatric Research in Obesity and Metabolism
- Center for Rare Disease Therapy
- Children's Center for Neurogenomics
- Children's Neuroscience Institute
- Cystic Fibrosis Research Center
- Institute for Infection, Inflammation, and Immunity in Children
- Pediatric Asthma Center
- Richard King Mellon Foundation Institute for Pediatric Research
- Pittsburgh Vaccine Trials Unit
- The Pittsburgh Study
- CHAMP: Career Help Advancement and Achievement Mentorship Program
- The Genetics, Genomics, and Growth Center
- Faculty Development
- Engagement
- Research
- Education
- Residencies
- Fellowships
- Continuing Medical Education
- Medical Student Education and Training
- Principal Investigator Labs
- Maintenance of Certification Portfolio Program
- Summer Research Internship
- Kidney Workshop (SRIP-Kid)
- Cardiology, Hematology, and Pulmonology (CHP) Summer Research Internship Program (CHP2SRIP)
- Hematoloy-Oncology (Hem/Onc)
- Endocrinology, Diabetes & Metabolism (Endo)
- Neurology, Child Development & Neuroscience (Neuro)
- Genetics & Genomic Medicine (GGM)
- Adolescent and Young Adult Medicine & General Academic Pediatrics (AMP)
- Infectious Diseases, Allergy & Immunology (IDAI)
- Directory
- Physician Scientist Training Programs
- News
- People
- Podcasts
Labs and Faculty Pages
Faculty Research Interests
Cassandra Formeck, MD
Understanding the effects of acute kidney injury on the immune system
Risk factors for and long-term impact of acute kidney injury
Divisional lead for Pediatric Nephrology Research Consortium
Jacqueline Ho, MD
MicroRNA-mediated regulation of nephron number and pattern in kidney development and disease
Genetic/structural causes of kidney disease in childhood
Juhi Kumar, MD, MPH
Validating injury to the renal transplant using urinary signatures in children (VIRTUUS Children's Study)
Site lead for advancing transplantation outcomes in children
Divisional lead for Improving Renal Outcomes Collaborative and North American Pediatric Renal TRials and Collaborative Studies
Katherine Kurzinski, MD, MS
Chronic and end stage kidney disease management
Acute and chronic kidney replacement therapy modalities
Simulation-based education for acute renal replacement therapy
Katie O'Brien, DO
General nephrology
Chronic and end-stage kidney disease management including transplant and dialysis
Kidney stones
Effect of cancer and chemotherapeutics on kidney function
Aidan Porter, MD
The role of endoplasmic reticulum (ER)-mediated protein homeostasis in the pathogenesis of acute kidney injury (AKI)
Studies how loss of a molecular chaperone, glucose regulated protein 170 (GRP-170), in the mouse kidney nephron causes ER stress and dysregulation of the unfolded protein response (UPR) leading to AKI and pharmaceuticals may ameliorate these deleterious affects
Yifeng Zhang, DO
General nephrology, hypertension, kidney stones, kidney transplant, and dialysis
Takuto Chiba, PhD
The role of the renal microvasculature in the transition from AKI to CKD
Investigating the role of vascular endothelial growth factor receptor 2 (VEGF-R2) signaling in vascular pericytes, a type of cell that surrounds microvascular endothelial cells
Using genetic mouse models and exploring pericyte-specific therapeutics to make an impact on patients with CKD
Airik Lab
The Airik laboratory focuses on identifying the genetic and molecular mechanisms of chronic kidney disease.
Forster Lab
Under the direction of principal investigator Catherine Forster, MD, MS, FAAP, this translational research lab is focused on studying urinary tract infections (UTIs) in people with complex genitourinary tracts.
Chiba Lab
The Chiba lab is focused on understanding the role of the renal microvasculature in the transition from AKI to CKD. Specifically, we are investigating the role of vascular endothelial growth factor receptor 2 (VEGF-R2) signaling in vascular pericytes, a type of cell that surrounds microvascular endothelial cells. While VEGF-R2 is a potent angiogenic factor for endothelial cells, it can act maladaptively as a negative regulator in pericytes for microvascular injury. The lab is using genetic mouse models and exploring pericyte-specific therapeutics to make an impact on patients with CKD.