Meet Our Faculty

Research Summary

Clinical research in catheter based therapies for adult and pediatric patients with congenital heart disease

Service Summary

Focus of Practice

• Congenital heart disease, Adult congenital heart disease
• Interventional cardiology
• Pediatric cardiology

Clinical Summary

• Cardiac Catheterization
• Medical Education
• Quality improvement practices
• Adult congenital heart disease
• Transcatheter minimally-invasive cardiac therapies

Fellowships, Residencies, and Visiting Engagements

Advance Fellowship in Interventional Cardiology,

Pediatric Cardiology, Seattle Children’s Hospital, University of Washington

Seattle, Washington, United States

Fellowship in Pediatric Cardiology,

Primary Children’s Hospital, University of Utah

Salt Lake City, Utah, United States

Residency in General Pediatrics,

University of Texas Health Science Center

San Antonio, Texas, United States

Postdoctoral Research Fellowship, Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery,

Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School

Boston, Massachusetts, United States

Research Fellow,

Advantagene Inc. / Candel Therapeutics

Massachusetts, United States

Bio

Dr. Kyriakie Sarafoglou is a Professor who holds appointments in the Department of Pediatrics -- Divisions of Endocrinology and Genetics & Metabolism, University of Minnesota Medical School; and the Department of Experimental & Clinical Pharmacology, University of Minnesota College of Pharmacy. She is active in clinical research, patient care, and the education of medical students, pediatric residents, medical scientists, and post-doctoral trainees. Dr. Sarafoglou specializes in rare endocrine and metabolic disorders holding multidisciplinary clinics that care for patients with congenital adrenal hyperplasia and disorders of sex development, hypophosphatasia, Turner syndrome, and inborn errors of metabolism (e.g. congenital disorders of glycosylation). Her research is funded by the National Institutes of Health, Food and Drug Administration, March of Dimes, and industry. Her critically acclaimed textbook published by McGraw Hill, Pediatric Endocrinology and Inborn Errors of Metabolism, is currently in its 2nd Edition and includes 140 contributors from 18 countries, covering approximately 700 endocrine and metabolic disorders.

Research Summary

Congenital Adrenal Hyperplasia

Clinical Summary

Adrenal and intersex disorders; Disorders of pubertal development; Inborn errors of metabolism

Bio

Katherine M. Satrom, MD is an Assistant Professor of Pediatrics in the Division of Neonatology. In addition to taking care of patients in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU), Dr. Satrom is involved in neurodevelopmental research in the field of neonatal jaundice. Her research aims to understand the effects of bilirubin on the developing preterm brain using molecular, metabolomic, and electrophysiologic outcomes. Dr. Satrom also has a passion for optimizing the care of neonates at risk for severe neonatal jaundice in low-resource settings from a global health perspective.

Research Summary

Dr. Sausen interested in trauma and injury prevention with a particular interest in social determinants of health. He is also interested in the implementation of trauma and injury prevention programs in low and middle income countries.

Bio

Dr. Okay Saydam is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Pediatrics, Division of Hematology and Oncology. He received his undergraduate degree in medical-biological science and his masters of science at the School of Medicine of Dokuz Eylul University, Izmir, Turkey. He earned his PhD in molecular biology from the Institute of Molecular Biology of the University of Zürich in Switzerland. Dr. Saydam went on to complete postdoctoral studies in gene therapy at the University of Zürich and a fellowship under Xandra Breakefield, PhD, at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston. He has had academic appointments at Harvard Medical School and the Medical University of Vienna in Austria.

Dr. Saydam's research has received funding from the United States, Austria, Switzerland, and the Turkish National Foundation. His most current project, on extracellular vesicles, is funded by the University of Minnesota, BRAINS program. The main goal of his research is to explore the molecular pathways/factors that control development and progression of brain tumors, with an ultimate objective of translating molecular mechanistic knowledge into clinical applications by developing novel therapeutic drugs and early biomarker screening tools for brain tumors.

Dr. Saydam serves as an ad-hoc reviewer of numerous scientific journals and has served on several grant review panels. He is the author of several dozen papers and book chapters and holds three patents related to his work on brain tumors.

Research Summary

The main goal of my research is to explore the molecular pathways/factors that control tumor development and progression in the central nervous system. My ultimate objective is to translate our molecular mechanistic knowledge into clinical applications by developing novel therapeutic drugs and early biomarker screening tools for brain tumors. My strategy involves comprehensive analyses of patient-derived specimens such as tumor tissue/cells and sera through use of cutting-edge technologies such as next-generation sequencing, RNA sequencing, miRNA and drug screening, gene arrays, and proteomics in order to identify tumor-specific molecular targets that can be used for novel drug development or employed as early tumor biomarker.

My research topics are as follows:

Clinical Biomarker Development Studies for brain tumors:
Glioblastomas: we are working on several clinical biomarker development studies for glioblastomas using serum, tissues and extracellular vesicles. We are employing comprehensive analyses of tumor tissues/cells through the high-throughput screening methodologies such as proteomics, gene arrays, next generation sequencing (NGS), tumor-associated autoantibody (TAA) array, and Proseek Multiplex Cancer Panel, directing for discovery of novel drug targets and biomarkers.

Meningiomas: we are performing similar screening studies (see above) for meningioma patients as well and develop a panel consisting of 5 circulating protein biomarkers which can be useful in the clinical practice to monitor transition of meningiomas from benign to malignant forms.

Medulloblastomas: we recently discovered an oncogene in the extracellular vesicles of medulloblastoma patients that can be used as a worldwide screening tool in newborns for early detection of medulloblastomas. Additionally, we also developed a nano-string based panel biomarkers that can be useful to genetically diagnose sub-types of medulloblastomas in the patient serums.

Genetically engineering extracellular vesicles (EVs) as a novel small-molecule delivery tool for brain tumors: we have recently developed genetically engineered EVs by expressing high levels of the mRNA and protein (Mizrak et al., 2013; Erkan et al.: 2016 and 2017). We are now using these molecules as a miRNA/RNA/protein and small molecule delivery tool to treat brain tumors

High-throughput drug discoveries for brain tumors: another topic of my research is to perform High-throughput Drug Discovery Studies (HTDDS) for brain tumors using the several libraries consisting of FDA approved drugs and bioactive compounds.

Bio

Peter Scal, MD, MPH, is an Associate Professor in the Division of Academic General Pediatrics. His work within the Division began in 1995 during medial school research rotation. He is currently undertaking a faculty development fellowship in Health Services Research and Policy at the University of Minnesota/School of Public Health focusing on the systems of care for youth with chronic conditions and transition to adulthood (9/2003-8/2005). He completed a two-year fellowship in Academic General Pediatrics with an emphasis on both the prevention of risk behaviors among adolescents as well as the care for children and adolescents with chronic illness and disability. Prior to his fellowship, he completed Pediatric residency at the University of Minnesota.
Current research projects include an analysis of the factors influencing the adequacy of services meant to foster the transition of adolescent with special health care needs from pediatrics to adult oriented care as well as an analysis of the racial/ethnic disparities in the parent-provider interactions among parents of adolescents with special needs. He recently completed an evaluation of a curriculum for preparing pediatric residents to provide tobacco use prevention and cessation counseling to children, adolescents, and parents as well as analysis of the risk and protective factors for youth tobacco use.
Dr. Scal's clinical and teaching activities are focused at the St. Joseph's Home for Children Community Clinic where he is the Medical Director. St. Joseph's is a community based service center for the children of Hennepin County who are either in, or at risk for, out of home placement. Additionally he attends on the Academic General Pediatrics in-patient service.

Bio

Mark R. Schleiss, MD, is a Professor of Pediatrics in the University of Minnesota Medical School. Dr. Schleiss received his MD degree from the Oregon Health and Sciences University, Portland, Oregon. He completed his residency at Doernbecher Children's Hospital, Oregon Health and Sciences University, Portland, Oregon, and his Pediatric Infectious Diseases fellowship at Seattle Children's Hospital/Medical Center, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington. He also completed a fellowship in Molecular Medicine studying cytomegalovirus (CMV) molecular genetics at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, Washington.

His work in basic, translational and clinical research related to CMV infection is described at cmv.umn.edu

Clinical Summary

Pediatric Infectious Diseases; Vaccines; Vaccine Advocacy; Antimicrobials and Antivirals; Clinical Virology; Maternal-Fetal Infections

Bio

Dr. Schneider grew up in Wisconsin. She majored in Medical Microbiology & Immunology at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and went on to study medicine at Washington University in St. Louis School of Medicine. Following Pediatrics residency at St. Louis Children’s Hospital, she completed Pediatric Emergency Medicine fellowship training at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital. She joined the team at the University of Minnesota in 2014 and has pursued her research interest of adolescent reproductive health care in the emergency department setting. She is also an advocate for breastfeeding parents in medicine.

Dr. Schneider enjoys jogging, hiking, reading, bird-watching, gardening/yard-work, and most of all: spending time with her husband and 3 children. 

Bio

Nathan Schuldt, PhD, is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Pediatrics in the Division of Pediatric Rheumatology. Dr. Schuldt runs a laboratory at the University of Minnesota's Center for Immunology. His laboratory investigates the origins of autoimmune diseases like type 1 diabetes (T1D) and multiple sclerosis (MS). Dr. Schuldt has particular interest in T cell development, tolerance, and fate decisions.

Dr. Schuldt earned his PhD in Genetics in 2012 at Michigan State University training in the laboratory of Andrea Amalfitano, DO, PhD. His graduate studies focused on the interactions between adenovirus and the immune system with the goal of improving adenovirus-based vectors for gene therapy and vaccination. He joined the University of Minnesota Center for Immunology in 2012 as a Postdoctoral Fellow.

Research Summary

Multiple immune tolerance mechanisms prevent self-reactive T cells from becoming pathogenic. Autoimmunity occurs when these mechanisms break down. Thymic selection, also referred to as central tolerance, is the first prevention a self-reactive T cell encounters. During this process antigen recognizing T cell receptors (TCRs) are tested against various self-peptides, those that react too strongly are either deleted or shuttled into the regulatory T cell lineage. My research aims to understand how self-reactive T cells escape this process and initiate autoimmune disease.

One hypothesized method is through the expression of two different TCRs on a single T cells. An estimated 10-20% of all T cells express two functionally recombined TCRs. We hypothesize that this dual TCR expression can limit deletion and regulatory T cell commitment of strongly self-reactive T cells in the thymus. This could explain how self-reactive T cells escape the thymus and enter the periphery as pathogenic T cells. Dual TCR expression is hypothesized to play important roles in several other immune contexts including allo-responses in graft rejection, allergy, and protective immunity. We have developed new tools in our lab that allow us to detect and study dual TCR T cells in several immune contexts.

A second area of interest for the lab is neonatal immune development. At birth, the adaptive immune system is underdeveloped and may function differently than that of adults. As a result, infections are common in neonates and infants. The Schuldt Lab has begun a collaboration to investigate how early microbial exposure influences the development of adaptive immunity. Improved understanding of neonatal adaptive immunity could lead to improved vaccine platforms.

Bio

While cystic fibrosis is considered a pulmonary disease, attention to excellent nutrition and good growth is essential to optimal pulmonary function and extended survival. I consider my role in the management of children with cystic fibrosis to reduce pain and disability associated with gastrointestinal and liver disease in CF, and to offer aggressive interventions to improve nutrition in children unable to achieve normal growth. I am proud to be a member of a team of caregivers dedicated to both superior clinical care of children with CF, and to clinical research to improve survival in this disease.

Clinical Summary

Pancreatic disease; Chronic pancreatitis; Pancreatectomy/auto islet cell transplantation; Pediatric liver disease, particularly Hepatitis B; Gastrointestinal, nutritional and liver disease in cystic fibrosis

Bio

Margaret Semrud-Clikeman, PhD received her doctorate from the University of Georgia in 1990. She completed an internship and postdoctoral fellowship at the Massachusetts General Hospital/Harvard Medical school (MGH) and received a post-doctoral neuroscience fellowship at MGH from NIH to study neuropsychological and brain morphology in children with ADHD. Her dissertation was awarded the Outstanding Dissertation of the Year Award from the Orton Dyslexia Society. She continues her research interests in the areas of ADHD and educational neuroscience. She is currently working on research in ADHD, 18q- syndrome, and autistic spectrum disorders with Dr. Plizska at UTHSCSA,
Dr. Semrud-Clikeman was awarded a NIH grant to study the effects of stimulant medication on neuropsychological functioning. Dr. Semrud-Clikeman and her students have developed a social competence intervention that has been successfully piloted. In 1999 she was awarded the Early Career Contributions award from the National Academy of Neuropsychology. She has also been awarded support for her work studying NVLD and Asperger Syndrome from a private foundation. Dr. Semrud-Clikeman was recently awarded intramural funding for her study of executive function and attention problems in children who survive cerebral malaria in Malawi.
Dr. Semrud-Clikeman has published more than 60 articles, 75 chapters, 6 textbooks, and given over 200 presentations at national and international conferences. Dr. Semrud-Clikeman holds the rank of Professor Emeritus of Pediatrics at the University of Minnesota.

Clinical Summary

ADHD; Autism; Learning Disabilities; Developmental Disabilities

Research Summary

Non-invasive cardiac imaging, fetal cardiology, and fetal counseling

Bio

Dr. Miriam Shapiro is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Pediatrics and Affiliate Faculty at the University of Minnesota Center for Bioethics. She earned her medical degree from the Medical School for International Health at Ben-Gurion University of the Negev in Beer Sheva, Israel. Dr. Shapiro completed her Pediatric Residency at the University of Minnesota Medical School and Pediatric Critical Care Fellowship at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. Additionally, she was a Hecht-Levi Fellow at the Johns Hopkins Berman Institute of Bioethics.
Dr. Shapiro cares for patients in the Pediatric Intensive Care Units at the University of Minnesota Masonic Children's Hospital and Hennepin County Medical Center.
Dr. Shapiro's research interests are in decision-making in pediatric critical illness, pediatric chronic critical illness, and physician responsibility and teamwork.

Bio

Rebecca Shlafer, PhD, MPH, is an Associate Professor in the Division of General Pediatrics and Adolescent Health. Dr. Shlafer joined the faculty in September 2012 after completing a two-year, post-doctoral fellowship in the Division (2010-2012). Dr. Shlafer completed her Masters in Human Development and Family Studies at the University of Wisconsin - Madison, and her PhD in Child Psychology at the Institute of Child Development at the University of Minnesota.
Dr. Shlafer's research focuses on promoting the health and well-being of children and families exposed to the criminal legal system. Much of her work focuses on the health of children with parents in prison and jail, as well as the programs and policies that impact families affected by incarceration.
Dr. Shlafer has taught the writing seminar for the interdisciplinary training program in Adolescent Health, as well as undergraduate courses in Child Psychology and through the University Honors program. 
In addition to her research and teaching activities, Dr. Shlafer served as a volunteer guardian ad litem in Hennepin County for nearly 10 years where she served as an advocate for abused and neglected children involved in juvenile court.

Bio

Dr. Sinaiko is an established investigator of blood pressure/hypertension and insulin resistance in children and adolescents. These studies are focused on obesity and insulin resistance during childhood and adolescence on the development of young adult cardiovascular risk and the insuln resistance syndrome. He is a faculty member in the department of Pediatrics and Division of Epidemiology, School of Public Health. Dr. Sinaiko has had continuous research funding from the National Institutes of Health for the past 20+ years.

Bio

Nimi Singh, MD, MPH, is an Assistant Professor of Pediatrics and Director of the Adolescent Medicine Fellowship in the Division of Adolescent Health and Medicine at the University of Minnesota. She received her undergraduate degree at Bryn Mawr College in Pennsylvania and her medical degree at Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York City. In conjunction with her residency in Pediatrics and International Child Health at Rainbow Babies and Children's Hospital in Cleveland Ohio, she pursued a Masters in Medical Anthropology at Case Western Reserve University, and a Robert Wood Johnson Clinical Scholars Fellowship at the University of Washington in Seattle, where she also received a Masters in Public Health. She then completed her training with a fellowship in Adolescent Medicine at the University of Washington. During her career she has also pursued further training in lifestyle and integrative medicine, honing her expertise in counseling teens on optimizing their health and wellbeing. Dr. Singh is currently pursuing the Clinical Scholars academic track. Her clinical and research interests have focused on disenfranchised youth including homeless and incarcerated youth, and on the mental health needs of youth in varying socioeconomic and cultural contexts. Currently she is focused on exploring, teaching, and evaluating means by which to promote mental health and resilience in youth, as well as in medical students, residents, and medical faculty. In June 2003 and 2007, she was the recipient of the Outstanding Faculty Educator Award by the Dept. of Pediatrics at the University of Minnesota School of Medicine.

Clinical Summary

Adolescent medicine; Adolescent anxiety; Adolescent depression; Adolescent eating disorders

Bio

Dr. Slusher divides her time between the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit at Hennepin Healthcare and research, teaching, and clinical care at non-profit and academic hospitals Nigeria, Uganda, Kenya, and several other countries throughout sub Saharan Africa. Her research in collaboration with both low and middle income partners and her Minnesota partners includes both critical care topics including bubble CPAP beyond the neonate and the diagnosis and treatment of severe neonatal jaundice in addition to helping other trainees and young faculty develop their research. Dr. Slusher regularly lectures for medical trainees (nurses, med students, residents and fellows) and consultants in the U.S., Nigeria, Africa and Thailand. She enjoys developing creative low-cost innovations for doing procedures in low resource settings and team teaching these procedures in multiple venues locally, nationally, and internationally.

Research Summary

Dr. Slusher is currently the principal investigator in two studies "Treatment of Neonatal Jaundice with Filtered Sunlight Phototherapy: Safety and Efficacy in African Neonates in Rural Communities" and "Neonatal Bilirubin Induced Neurologic Dysfunction in Developing Countries". She is collaborating with physicians at Stanford University, University of Louisville, University of California San Diago, University of Missouri-Kansas City School of Medicine (USA), Lagos State University, Bowen University and Obafemi Awolowo University (Nigeria). Previously she has been co- or principal investigator in several studies investigating methods and attitudes regarding breast feeding in Ugandan and Kenyan mothers.

Research Summary

Endothelial cell biology and application in gene therapy; Bioethics and it's clinical application.

Clinical Summary

Pediatric Critical Care Medicine

Bio

Logan G. Spector's research focuses on the causes of childhood cancer with a focus on childhood leukemia, bone sarcomas, and hepatoblastoma. His work includes both traditional and genetic epidemiologic approaches. He works in collaboration with colleagues and trainees locally, nationally and internationally through the University of Minnesota, Children's Oncology Group and the Childhood Cancer and Leukemia International Consortium (CLIC). In addition, Dr. Spector collaborates with departmental colleagues in cardiology, rheumatology, and infectious diseases to study other pediatric outcomes. Dr. Spector is immediate past Chair of the Children's Oncology Group Epidemiology Committee; a former standing member of the NIH Cancer, Cardiovascular, and Sleep Epidemiology panel B study section; and an ad hoc reviewer for many journals. Currently Dr. Spector is Chair of CLIC, which pools epidemiologic studies of pediatric cancers from across the world to better ascertain their causes.
Training and experience: Dr. Spector received his PhD in Epidemiology in 2002 from Emory University, where he conducted his dissertation research on childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia in conjunction with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. After a year as a National Cancer Institute-funded postdoctoral fellow at the University of Minnesota, he joined the faculty as Assistant Professor of Pediatrics in the Division of Epidemiology/Clinical Research at the University of Minnesota.

Research Summary

Childhood Cancer & Leukemia International Consortium: clic.ngo

Bio

Dr. Srikanthan is an Assistant Professor in the Division of Blood and Marrow Transplantation & Cellular Therapy at the University of Minnesota. Dr Srikanthan received her MD from the University of Florida College of Medicine in Gainesville where she also completed her residency in Pediatrics. She completed a fellowship in Pediatric Hematology Oncology at the Seattle Children’s Hospital and was a Research Associate at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center. Her research focuses on antibody based conditioning in non-malignant diseases, such as Fanconi Anemia, in order to decrease the side effects of cellular therapy.
Dr. Srikanthan specializes in bone marrow transplantation for children with bone marrow failure disorders such as Fanconi Anemia and other non-malignant diseases. Her expertise also includes caring for patients undergoing a transplant for various cancers, such as leukemia.

Research Summary

Fanconi Anemia

Bio

Dr. Steinberger is a Professor and Division Director in Pediatric Cardiology. She is the Director of the Pediatric Lipid Clinic at the University of Minnesota, Medical Director of the Pediatric Echocardiography Laboratory at the University of Minnesota Medical Center and Director of Research at the University of Minnesota National Center of Excellence in Women's Health.
Dr. Steinberger earned her MD degree at Sackler School of Medicine, Tel-Aviv University in Israel and completed her residency in Pediatrics at the Golda Medical Center, Hasharon Hospital, Sackler School of Medicine, Tel-Aviv University in Israel. She completed a fellowship in Pediatric Cardiology at the University of Minnesota and obtained a Master's degree in Clinical Research, School of Public Health at the University of Minnesota.
Dr. Steinberger's research interests are focused on clinical and epidemiologic studies of metabolic syndrome, insulin resistance, and cardiovascular risk factors in children and young adults. She has been and continues to be funded by the NIH in these studies. She currently serves on several committees of the American Heart Association and on expert panels in areas of preventive cardiology.

Clinical Summary

Echocardiography; Hyperlipidemia; Preventive Cardiology

Bio

Dr. Steiner is a Professor of Pediatrics in the Division of Hematology/Oncology as well as the Division of Critical Care. She attends on the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit and conducts Pediatric Hematology and Hemostasis clinics at the M Health Fairview Masonic Children's Hospital Journey Clinic.

Dr. Steiner received her MS degree in Genetics at the University of Minnesota in 1978 before earning her MD there in 1982. She remained at the University of Minnesota, completing her internship and residency in Pediatrics in 1985 and then both Hematology-Oncology and Critical Care post-doctoral fellowships in 1989. She moved to West Virginia University in 1990. At WVU, she started a pediatric bone marrow transplant program. She also served as pediatric critical chair division chair and PICU director, and started a PICU fellowship. She returned to the University of Minnesota in 1997, and has been the PICU Fellowship Director here since 2007.

Dr. Steiner's academic appointment is in the Clinical Scholar Academic track. She is an advisor to multiple medical students, residents, and fellows and has mentored several in their clinical research projects.

She serves on several additional hospital committees, including the University of Minnesota Infection Control, Pediatric Infection Control, and Transfusion (co-chair).

Dr. Steiner's clinical research is focused on hemostasis and transfusion practice in critically ill children. Dr. Steiner has participated in the publication of over 50 articles, teaching manuals, and book chapters. She is a member of several professional societies, including American Society of Hematology, International Society of Thrombosis and Hemostasis, and Society of Critical Care Medicine. She also holds leadership positions in the Pediatric Acute Lung Injury and Sepsis Investigators.

Research Summary

Coagulopathology of Critical Illness; Use of rFVIIa in Non-Hemophiliac Populations; Hemostasis in Congenital Cardiac Surgery Patients; Hemostasis Management of Extracorporeal Circuits; Transfusion Practice in Critically Ill Children

Clinical Summary

Bleeding and clotting disorders; Critical care for oncology and blood and marrow transplant; Hemostasis management of extracorporeal circuits; Transfusion practice

Clinical Summary

Late preterm infant; Prevention of NEC in the ELBW; Prevention of IVH in the ELBW infanct

Bio

Dr. Kyle Sterrett is a licensed clinical psychologist with a specialization in the assessment and treatment of individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). He received his doctoral training at the University of California Los Angeles and received a postdoctoral fellowship at the Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior at the University of California Los Angeles. The focus of this postdoctoral fellowship was on conducting comprehensive autism diagnostic evaluations across the lifespan.

He has extensive experience working with children and families with neurodevelopmental disorders both clinically and in various research programs. He has provided direct intervention and parent training in evidence based naturalistic developmental, behavioral interventions to teach communication and language to infants, toddlers and school-aged children.

His program of research lies in understanding the mechanisms of treatment response for children with ASD enrolled in early interventions. He is also focused on developing novel measures to monitor social communication changes over time and improving the quality of methods we use in early intervention research.

Bio

Dr. Katie Stone is a clinical child psychologist and Assistant Professor in the Department of Pediatrics, Division of Clinical Behavioral Neuroscience at the University of Minnesota Medical School. She received her PhD in clinical child psychology from the University of Kansas. Her predoctoral internship was completed at the Medical University of South Carolina and her postdoctoral fellowship was at the University of Minnesota Medical School. In line with a systems-based framework, her research and clinical work focus on the influence of interpersonal trauma and caregiver disruptions on neurodevelopment and self-regulation during early childhood.

Bio

I enjoy caring for families of all ages. My specialty and true joy is caring for children. I teach doctors, nurses, EMS, and APPs about pediatric emergencies with particular focus on pediatric emergency airway management, neonatal resuscitation, and ultrasound in pediatric resuscitation.

Bio

Dr. Muna Sunni joined the Department of Pediatrics in September 2013 in the Division of Pediatric Endocrinology and Diabetes and became Associate Director of the Pediatric Endocrinology Fellowship Program in 2020.
Dr. Sunni graduated with her medical degree from the Al-Fateh University (currently, Tripoli University), Tripoli, Libya in 2004. After completing an internship in Libya, she went on to complete additional internship and residency training in Pediatrics at Memorial Health University Medical Center (Mercer University School of Medicine) in Georgia in 2010. Following residency, she completed a fellowship in Pediatric Endocrinology and Diabetes at the University of Minnesota in June 2013. She also completed a Masters Degree in Clinical Research through the School of Public Health at the University of Minnesota. Dr. Sunni currently sees patients in the outpatient Endocrinology and Diabetes Clinics and consults on the inpatient Pediatric wards at the University of Minnesota Masonic Children's Hospital. Her clinical interests involve pediatric diabetes (all types), thyroid disorders, weight management, and growth and puberty concerns. Her research interests include diabetes in the pediatric population with a particular interest in immigrants.

Research Summary

Cultural Barriers to Care in Somali Children with T1DM and other disorders

Clinical Summary

Diabetes in Children, Thyroid Nodules/Cancer, T1DM, T2DM, Obesity, General Endocrine

Bio

Dr. Billy Sveen is an Assistant Professor in the Division of Pediatric Critical Care Medicine in the Department of Pediatrics at the University of Minnesota. Dr. Sveen attended Loyola University Chicago where he received his MD and completed an MA in Bioethics and Health Policy. He completed his Pediatric Residency at the University of Minnesota. He completed Pediatric Critical Care fellowship at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center in Cincinnati, Ohio.
Dr. Sveen’s academic interests are medical ethics and decision-making regarding life-sustaining medical treatment.

Clinical Summary

Critical care, medical ethics, end-of-life decision-making

Bio

Meghan Swanson, PhD, is an Associate Professor of Pediatrics and a developmental and cognitive neuroscientist. She received her PhD in Behavioral Neuroscience from the Graduate Center at the City University of New York. While completing postdoctoral training in neuroimaging and neurodevelopmental disorders at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, she was awarded a NIH Pathway to Independence Award (K99/R00).

In her research she investigates the neurobiology of early communication. She is also interested in how infants and their parents communicate and how this early communication supports brain development and later language and cognitive skills. Her current research is supported by an NIH R01, which aims to identify infant-based language and communication risk markers, caregiver-based intervention targets, and brain-based monitoring biomarkers to guide presymptomatic intervention for autism.

Bio

Marie Hickey, MD, is an Assistant Professor of Pediatrics in the Division of Neonatology. She earned her MD and completed her residency and Neonatal-Perinatal Medicine Fellowship at the University of Minnesota. In addition to attending on the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, Dr. Hickey enjoys seeing patients in the NICU follow-up clinic.

Bio

Dr. Viviane Leuche is an Adjunct Assistant Professor in the Division of Pediatric Emergency Medicine, and joined the division in 2020. She is a graduate of the University of Minnesota Medical School Twin Cities. Dr. Leuche completed her Pediatric residency training at the University of Washington/Seattle Children's Hospital in 2017, and fellowship training in Pediatric Emergency Medicine at Children's of Minnesota in 2020. She has a special interest in pediatric global health.

Bio

Amanda Termuhlen, MD, is the senior associate dean for faculty affairs at the University of Minnesota Medical School and a professor of pediatrics. An internationally recognized expert in rare pediatric non-Hodgkin lymphoma, Dr. Termuhlen came to the Medical School in 2018 from Children’s Hospital Los Angeles and the University of Southern California Keck Medical School. She served as the medical director of clinical services and director of medical education and faculty development for pediatric hematology/oncology/blood and marrow transplant.

Throughout her career, Dr. Termuhlen has been involved in faculty development. She is a member of the American Association for Medical Colleges Group on Faculty Affairs (GFA) Steering Committee and serves as chair of the GFA Professional Development Conference for 2020 and 2021. A graduate of the Executive Leadership in Academic Medicine fellowship, Dr. Termuhlen is devoted to helping faculty members navigate the complexities of academic healthcare systems and meet their career goals. She often conducts local and national workshops on professional development for faculty members.

Dr. Termuhlen received a BS in biochemistry and MD from The Ohio State University. She completed a pediatric residency at Wright State University and a pediatric hematology/ oncology fellowship at University of Cincinnati and Cincinnati Children’s Medical Center. Termuhlen served as associate chief for clinical research, academics and education for hematology/oncology/blood and marrow transplantation at The Ohio State University. A board-certified pediatric hematologist/oncologist, Dr. Termuhlen has clinical expertise in rare pediatric non-Hodgkin lymphoma and cancer survivorship. Her research focuses on the late effects of cancer treatment in children and adolescents.

Bio

Dr. Thielen is a physician-scientist trained in adult and pediatric infectious diseases. She joined the faculty in pediatrics in 2020 and is developing a translational research program focused on the molecular epidemiology and viral pathogenesis of human respiratory viral infections including influenza and respiratory syncytial virus. She also has interests in clinical immunology, the role that host genetic variation plays in the response to infectious diseases, and the global burden of respiratory infections.

Research Summary

Dr. Thielen's lab seeks to promote the respiratory health of all children globally through the development and equitable deployment of novel prevention and treatment tools for respiratory viral pathogens. To do this, the lab studies factors that influence the severity of respiratory viral infections, including viral sequence variants, respiratory microbiota composition and host genetics in the following active studies:

• We are currently conducting a longitudinal cohort study (MINNE-LOVE) (z.umn.edu/MINNELOVE) in which are studying how the respiratory microbiome influences the frequency and severity of respiratory viral infections among Minnesota children under 5.
• We are preparing to launch a new longitudinal household-based study (MINNE-LOVE-2) (z.umn.edu/MINNELOVE2) of respiratory viral molecular epidemiology across the state as part of the new Pathogen Genomics Center of Excellence based at the Minnesota Department of Health. This study will focus on engagement of traditionally underrepresented populations across the state.
• We are conducting a study of viral causes of fever in children undergoing chemotherapy for cancer treatment at the Uganda Cancer Institute in Kampala, Uganda.