Julian Lui

Julian Lui is a staff scientist in SGD, NICHD. He received his PhD in biochemistry from the Chinese University of Hong Kong in 2006 and joined his current group after receiving his doctoral degree. In the past 15 years, Dr. Julian Lui has focused on translational research in the following areas: 1) genetics of childhood growth disorders; 2) epigenetics and molecular mechanisms of childhood overgrowth; 3) developing novel therapeutics by growth plate targeting or drug delivery; 4) nutritional regulation of growth and childhood stunting. He has published more than 50 peer-reviewed original research article, reviews and book chapters in the field. Check the full list of bibliography.

Wei Wang

Wei Wang is a Biologist and lab manager in the Section on Growth and Development. Her contributions to the research include maintaining the transgenic mouse colonies and managing the laboratory operations. She holds a MS degree from McGill university and has over 20 years of working experience in molecular and cell biology laboratories.

J. Lesley Brown is a Staff Scientist in SGAD, NICHD. She received her PhD in Glasgow, Scotland in the lab of David Sherratt. She moved to NIH as a postdoc in the lab of Carl Wu identifying transcription factors involved in the regulation of the Drosophila segmentation gene fushi tarazu. She then transitioned to a Staff Scientist with Judith Kassis at NICHD. There she studied various aspects of Polycomb group (PcG) regulation during Drosophila development with emphasis on identifying DNA binding proteins involved in the recruitment of Polycomb Group proteins (PcG) to polycomb response elements (PREs). Most recently she studied the composition of DNA binding and PcG proteins that bind to PREs in the active and repressed transcriptional states at the invected/engrailed locus and identified differences in chromatin looping in the two states. She moved to the current lab in spring of 2023 and is now applying her interests in transcriptional regulation and epigenetics to growth plate development.

Krishma Tailor

Krishma Tailor is a Scientist (Cavalry-NIH-CRADA) in the Section on Growth and Development, NICHD. Her current research work focuses on the development and optimization of growth plate-targeted therapy that can potentially improve treatment for skeletal growth disorders in children. She completed her postdoctoral fellowship at Howard University, where she demonstrated differential hypermethylation of RASAL2 in prostate tissues and tumor suppressor role for RASAL2 in human Prostate Cancer cells. Krishma joined Dr. Michael Cashel lab, NIH after finishing her PhD in Biochemistry at The Maharaja Sayajirao University of Baroda, INDIA. Her research interest was similar at both these places; she studied global regulation of gene expression by (p)ppGpp.

Kirtal Hansdah (Ph.D.)

Kirtal Hansdah is a postdoctoral fellow at the Section on Growth and Development (SGD) at NICHD. He received his Ph.D. in Human/Medical Genetics at the Institute of Life Sciences, Utkal University Bhubaneswar, India in 2021. During his doctoral thesis, his research interest had been focusing on the genetic and molecular mechanisms of bone homeostasis, specifically pathways involved and the associated/linked genes in Otosclerosis.  From 2021 to 2023, he worked as a research assistant in the Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine at AIIMS, Bhubaneswar, for the diagnosis of breast and lung cancer. Now, as a postdoctoral fellow, he joined SGD in 2023, where his prime focus is on genetic and molecular mechanisms of childhood growth disorders and the effects of caloric restriction on growth plate development. The long-term goal of Dr. Hansdah is to discover the therapeutic scopes of complex growth disorders resulting in short or tall stature.

Connor Sisk

Connor Sisk is a postbaccalaureate research fellow in the Baron Lab investigating novel therapeutics for childhood bone growth disorders using a translational model. He recently graduated from Auburn University with a B.S in Biomedical Sciences and minor in Spanish. Connor has previous professional experience in basic science, translational, and clinical research settings, studying immunology (Dr. Kate Buckley Lab – Auburn University), nephrology (Dr. John Parant Lab – UAB Medicine), and surgical outcomes (Clearview Dermatology). His research interests include surgery, organ transplantation, and pathology of the renal and connective tissues. Connor aspires to become an impactful physician and values the opportunity to grow as a medical professional at the NIH. Outside of work, he is passionate about entrepreneurship, physical fitness, and playing the piano.

Fatima Elzamzami

Fatima Elzamzami is a Post-Baccalaureate fellow at the NICHD investigating the molecular and cellular mechanisms behind childhood growth and development. She recently graduated from Johns Hopkins University with a B.S. in Molecular and Cellular Biology and a B.A. in Psychology. Her passion for research was established during her undergraduate career in the lab of Dr. Katherine Wilson, where she investigated the role of the nuclear lamina in human clinical frailty. Fatima plans to attend medical school and continue her journey towards becoming a physician scientist.