Assistant Investigator Lurie Center for Autism, Mass General Research Institute

Assistant Professor of Pediatrics Harvard Medical School

Investigator Mucosal Immunology and Biology Research Center, Massachusetts General Hospital

Postdoctoral Fellowship University of California at San Diego 2003

Postdoctoral Fellowship The Scripps Research Institute; Institute of Childhood and Neglected Diseases 2007

autism; brain development; gastrointestinal development; inflammation; maternal immune activation; microbiome-gut-brain axis; microglia; mitochondria; mucosal immunology; neurodevelopmental disorders; neuroimmune interactions; oxytocin; social behavior

A main focus of our laboratory is how perinatal immune challenges and stressors impact neuroimmune function and gut-brain-immune interactions. We are particularly interested in whether changes in immune cell function within the developing brain and gut, as well as alterations of the microbiome-gut-brain axis early in development, give rise to cognitive and social behavior deficits and contribute to neurodevelopmental disorders such as autism.

Three active areas of research are 1) determining the role of oxytocin at birth for the developing fetal brain and gut, 2) examining whether male-specific vulnerabilities in mitochondrial function contribute to the male-biased prevalence of Autism Spectrum Disorder and 3) assessing how maternal immune activation during pregnancy may alter the developing gastrointestinal system to impact neurodevelopmental trajectories and emergent social behaviors.