Meet the Principal Investigator
Lina Chalak, M.D., M.S.C.S.
Lab Director
Professor, William Buchanan Chair in Pediatrics
Division Chief, Neonatal-Perinatal Medicine
Director Fetal and Neonatal Neurological Intensive Care Unit (NeuroNICU)& Fellowship Program
University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center
Dallas, TX, USA
Meet the Team
Faculty
Rachel Leon, M.D., Ph.D., M.S.C.S.
Assistant Professor, Division of Neonatal-Perinatal Medicine, Department of Pediatrics
Research Interests: Connections between neonatal cerebral blood flow, autoregulation, placental pathology, and brain development. Investigating neuroprotection and outcomes in neonates with congenital heart disease, stroke, HIE, and prematurity.
Academic Profile
Clinical Profile
Imran Mir, M.D.
Associate Professor, Division of Neonatal-Perinatal Medicine, Department of Pediatrics
Program Director, Neonatal-Perinatal Fellowship
Research Interests: Birth asphyxia and neonatal encephalopathy; Placental biology and neonatal morbidities, particularly neonatal brain injury
Academic Profile
Clinical Profile
Eric B. Ortigoza, M.D., M.S.C.R.
Associate Professor, Division of Neonatal-Perinatal Medicine, Department of Pediatrics
Research Interests: Feeding Intolerance, Metabolomics, Microbiota, Necrotizing Enterocolitis (NEC), Neonatal Gastroesophageal Reflux, Neonatal Nutrition, Non-Invasive Monitoring of Gastrointestinal Development
Academic Profile
Clinical Profile
Srinivas Kota, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor, Division of Neonatal-Perinatal Medicine, Department of Pediatrics
Research Interest: physiological signal processing, machine learning
Academic Profile
Email
Christine Pazandak, M.D.
Assistant Professor, Division of Neonatal-Perinatal Medicine, Department of Pediatrics
Research Interests: Quality improvement
Academic Profile
Clinical profile
Michelle Machie, M.D.
Assistant Professor, Department of Neurology, Department of Pediatrics
Research Interests: Neuroimaging biomarkers of neurodevelopmental prognosis in infants with brain injury, Optimization of neuroimaging protocols in the NICU, Implementation of standardized neonatal neurological exams to improve neurodevelopmental prognostication
Academic Profile
Clinical Profile
Margaret “Katie” Hoge, M.D.
Assistant Professor, Division of Neonatal-Perinatal Medicine, Department of Pediatrics
Research Interests: vulnerable child syndrome in neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) populations; wellness and care for NICU patients, families, and care providers; parental stressors and parental mental health impacts on long-term outcomes in NICU patients; and understanding and improving long-term neurodevelopmental and behavioral outcomes for NICU graduates
Academic Profile
Clinical Profile
Dimitrios Angelis, M.D.
Associate Professor, Division of Neonatal-Perinatal Medicine, Department of Pediatrics
Research Interests: Neonatal brain injury, Zinc and neonatal brain
Academic Profile
Clinical Profile
Kikelomo Babata, M.D.
Assistant Professor, Division of Neonatal-Perinatal Medicine, Department of Pediatrics
Research Interests: Long term outcomes of extremely preterm infants, Perception of outcomes at the border of viability
Academic Profile
Clinical Profile
Jawahar Jagarapu, M.D.
Associate Professor, Division of Neonatal-Perinatal Medicine, Department of Pediatrics
Research Interests: Telemedicine
Academic Profile
Clinical Profile
Postdoctoral Researchers
Lynn Bitar, M.D., M.Sc.
Postdoctoral Research Fellow, Division of Neonatal-Perinatal Medicine, Department of Pediatrics
Research Interests: Multi-organ dysfunction in hypoxic ischemic encephalopathy
Email
Neonatal Neurocritical Care Fellows
Tuhina Govil-Dalela
Clinical Fellow, Department of Neurology
Neonatal-Perinatal Medicine Fellows
James Rohwer, M.D.
Clinical Fellow, Division of Neonatal-Perinatal Medicine, Department of Pediatrics
Ahreen Allana, M.D.
Clinical Fellow, Division of Neonatal-Perinatal Medicine, Department of Pediatrics
Neonatal Neurocritical Care (NeuroNICU) Nurses
Emma Ramon, BSN, RNC-NIC, RN
Registered Nurse III – Resuscitation Nurse Parkland Health & Hospital System
Maricel Maxey, MSN, APRN, NNP-BC
Advanced Practice Provider Team Lead – Neonatal ICU, Parkland Health & Hospital System
Research Staff/Nurses
Katelynn Hoffer
Research Nurse, Division of Neonatal-Perinatal Medicine, Department of Pediatrics
Marjorie T. Navalta, B.S.N., RN
Research Nurse, Division of Neonatal-Perinatal Medicine, Department of Pediatrics
Isabel Rodriguez, B.S.N., RN, CCRP
Research Nurse, Division of Neonatal-Perinatal Medicine, Department of Pediatrics
Pollieanna Sepulveda, M.S.N., RN
Supervisor, Research Nurse, Division of Neonatal-Perinatal Medicine, Department of Pediatrics
Medical/Doctoral Students
Brooke Boisvert, B.A.
MD Class of 2027 at UT Southwestern
Soheila Norasteh, M.S.
PhD student at UT Arlington
Emily Oh, B.S.
MD/PhD Class of 2031 at UT Southwestern
Ritu Trivedi, B.A.
MD Class of 2027 at UT Southwestern
Mallory Wong, B.A.
MD Class of 2027 at UT Southwestern
UTSW Collaborators
Rong Zhang, Ph.D.
Professor, Department of Neurology, Department of Internal Medicine
Christoph Lehmann, M.D.
Professor Emeritus, Departments of Pediatrics, Population and Data Sciences, and Bioinformatics
Yaser Elnakieb, Ph.D.
Data Scientist III, Clinical Informatics Center
David Busch, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor, Department of Anesthesiology & Pain Management
Hanli Liu, Ph.D.
Professor, Department of Bioengineering, University of Texas at Arlington, TX
National Collaborators
Amit M. Mathur, M.D., MRCP
Neonatal-Perinatal Medicine, Saint Louis University, St. Louis, MO
Elizabeth Sewell, M.D.
Assistant Professor of Pediatrics, Emory University Hospital, Atlanta, GA
John Flibotte, M.D.
Associate Professor of Clinical Pediatrics Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, Philadelphia, PA
Jonathan L. Slaughter, M.D., M.P.H.
Associate Professor of Pediatrics, Nationwide Children’s Hospital, Columbus, OH
Kaashif Ahmad, M.D.
Pediatrics, Neonatal-Perinatal Medicine, Pediatrix Neonatology of San Antonio, San Antonio, TX
Krisa Van Meurs, M.D.
Emeritus Faculty, Division of Neonataology, Stanford University, Palo Alto, CA
Natalie Chan, M.D., M.P.H.
Assistant Professor of Pediatrics, University of California San Francisco, San Fransisco, CA
Nathalie Maitre, M.D., Ph.D.
Professor of Pediatrics, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA
Stephanie Merhar, M.D., M.S.
Professor of Pediatrics, Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, OH
Tai-Wei Wu, M.D.
Assistant Professor of Pediatrics; Director of Neonatal Neuroprotection, Children’s Hospital Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA
Tammy Tsuchida, M.D.
Neurophysiologist and neonatal neurologist, Children’s National Hospital, Washington, DC
Tara DuPont, M.D.
Association Professor of Pediatrics, University of Utah Hospital, Salt Lake City, UT
Toby Debra Yanowitz, M.D., M.S.
Associate Professor of Pediatrics, University of Pittsburgh / Data Coordinating Center
Rakesh Rao, M.D.
Hospital: Associate Professor of Pediatrics, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO
Dengrong Jiang, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor of Radiology and Radiological Science, Johns Hopkins Medicine
International Collaborators
Geraldine Boylan, Ph.D.
Professor of Neonatal Physiology, Director of the Infant Research Center, University College, Cork, Ireland
Brian Walsh, M.D.
Principal Investigator, Infant Research Center, University College Cork, Ireland
Sampsa Vanhatalo, M.D., Ph.D.
Professor, Department of Physiology, Department of Neuroscience, University of Helsinki, Finland