People

As a Professor in the Family Health Care Nursing department at UCSF, my career has been dedicated to conducting impactful research and addressing important issues in the field of family health care. I have authored several research publications covering a wide range of topics, including early care and education programs/child care, environmental exposure, autonomic nervous system, and healthy habits including physical activity and nutrition.

Our group works in three areas. In the first, we are studying the mechanisms used by the trophoblast cells of the human placenta to invade the uterus during normal pregnancy. Human fetal development depends on the embryo's ability to rapidly gain access to the maternal circulation. The cytotrophoblasts that form the fetal portion of the human placenta have solved this problem by transiently exhibiting certain invasive, tumor-like properties.

We seek to understand what shapes the development and aging of our gametes, the egg and sperm. In the context of reproduction, we study cell heterogeneity, selection, and interactions between gametes and their supporting cells. We use imaging together with genomic approaches in laboratory mice, naked mole rats, and human tissues. Our work is motivated by solving infertility, optimizing healthy aging, and understanding how environmental exposures affect reproductive health.