Lauren Jantzie, neuroscientist and associate professor of neurosurgery/neurology, discusses her team’s collaborative research with the neonatal division. Her laboratory is a central component of the neurosciences intensive care nursery. The information gathered from this research is used to identify novel drug targets, and to help design age- and disease-appropriate therapeutic strategies unique to the developing brain, babies and children.
Hi I'm Lauren Jansson and I'm an associate professor of pediatrics neurology and neurosurgery at the johNS Hopkins Children's Center as a developmental neuroscientist and pediatric neuro pharmacologist. My primary appointment within pediatrics is in the division of neonatal and perinatal medicine. My laboratory is a central component of the Neurosciences intensive care nursery that cares for babies with brain injury. My laboratory studies the molecular and cellular mechanisms of neural injury and neural repair, including after prenatal opioid exposure and in preterm birth. We are experts in inflammatory signal transaction specifically. We study how immune cells in the brain, talk to immune cells in the body, how inflammation is transducer through the maternal placental fetal access as well. An essential component of my work is innovative. Mechanistic studies of immune activation and neural immune communication. We use this information to identify novel drug targets and design age and disease appropriate therapeutic strategies unique to the developing brain babies and Children. I also aim to understand brain recovery and repair through collaborative team science, where we develop new diagnostic and therapeutic fluid imaging and bio behavioral biomarkers. Indeed, I am exceptionally fortunate to be able to provide a rigorous interface between basic science and clinical practice with my research platform. We are generously funded by the NIH and the Department of Defense and is wonderful to be part of the entire team at the johNS Hopkins Children's Center. Thank you to everyone in the department of pediatrics division of neonatology department of neurology and neurosurgery and everyone at the Children's Center. Thank you