Wells Center News and Events

The Herman B Wells Center for Pediatric Research is home to a vibrant community of experts who proudly share their latest advances in pediatric research through scholarly publications, news, stories and engaging seminars.

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Find more events and stories offered by the IU School of Medicine Department of Pediatrics.

Wells Center Seminar Series

The Wells Center Seminar Series seeks to foster the rich dynamic and collaborative culture of the center while promoting regular interaction between investigators at all levels.

The program is overseen by Jason M. Spaeth, PhD, assistant director of faculty enrichment and development at the Wells Center, and organized by Shari Parker, program manager of special events.

The series features educational presentations from external experts, discussions with professionals within the institution’s vast internal network, interactive breakout sessions and more.

Upcoming Seminars and Events

03 Sep

Sep 03 12:00pm - 1:00pm

Wells Center Seminar Series: Zhi Yu, MB, PhD

1044 W. Walnut Street, Indianapolis, IN 46202

10 Sep

Sep 10 12:00pm - 1:00pm

Wells Center Seminar Series: Arun Srivastava, PhD

1044 W. Walnut Street, Indianapolis, IN 46202

17 Sep

Sep 17 12:00pm - 1:00pm

Wells Center Seminar Series: Randi Johnson, PhD

1044 W. Walnut Street, Indianapolis, IN 46202

Featured News and Stories

A nurse examines a child.

Acute kidney injury triples long-term death risk in children with severe malaria

Rishabh Rajesh working with samples at a bench in a research lab.
Pediatrics

Summer highlights from undergraduate biomedical research interns

Two researchers pose for headshots

IU study finds obesity 'fuels' leukemia, but a combo using popular weight-loss drugs may stop it

Dr. Jignesh Tailor with Cecilia Crockett in the clinic
Indiana Health

A legacy of hope: Pediatric Neuro-Oncology Research Fund drives discovery for rare childhood brain tumors

Ji Zhang pipetting in the lab.
Pediatrics

IU study finds strategy to beat treatment resistance in the most common childhood cancer

Two men review results in a lab

IU researchers identify proteins fueling rare childhood leukemia, revealing new treatment strategy

Two researchers work in a lab

Scientists develop nanoparticle delivery system to target blood cancer cells

NOHARM study team leaders on a stage celebrating the study with a crowd of young bystanders
Global Health

Decade-long study proves African children survive and thrive on hydroxyurea for sickle cell anemia

A doctor and a respiratory therapist administer CPAP breathing treatment to a small child in a pediatric intensive care bed in a Liberian hospital.
Global Health

IU collaboration in Liberia is saving children's lives

Reuben Kapur poses with an award next to IU Indianapolis Chancellor Latha Ramchand, against an IU Indianapolis-branded back drop.
Pediatrics

Wells Center director named IU Indianapolis Chancellor's Professor

A woman in a lab coat looks into a microscope

Beta cells may play active role in triggering Type 1 diabetes

Headshot of Dan Peltier
Research Updates

Basic science research spotlight: Dan Peltier, MD, PhD

More news and stories from the Wells Center and Department of Pediatrics

Recent publications featuring Wells Center authors

  • “A New Type 1 Diabetes Diagnosis Paradigm.” Published in JAMA. Contributing IU authors: Jamie L. Felton, Emily K. Sims
  • “A novel antiviral strategy targeting human metapneumovirus through pH modulation in human airway epithelial cells.” Published in Journal of General Virology. Contributing IU authors: Ivana Alisandrea Daniels, Benjamin Gaston, Jessica Saunders, Laura Smith, Taiya Whitlow, Nastaha L. Tilston, Ryan F. Relich, Andrew Lunel, Michael D. Davis
  • “A Novel PCD Phenotype: Inherent Mucus Hypersecretion by Patient-Derived Airway Epithelial Cells.” Published in Pediatric Pulmonology. Contributing IU authors: Joseph Castlen, Misael Leon, Sarah Wright, Benjamin Gaston, Laura Smith, Michael D. Davis, Allison Norlander, Andrew Tilston-Lunel
  • “Alpha-Gal syndrome unveiled: decoding the glycan-driven red meat allergy.” Published in Glycoconjugate Journal. Contributing IU author: Radoslaw Kaczmarek
  • “An early protective effect of IL-9 in murine systemic lupus erythematosus.” Published in ImmunoHorizons. Contributing IU authors: Maya S. Krishnan, Baohua Zhou, Dongming Yang, Joao I. Goncalves, Kaitlyn G. Jackson, Gloria R. Xue, Matthew J. Turner, Mark H. Kaplan
  • “APE1/Ref-1: multifunctional biology, selective inhibition, and the path to clinical translation.” Published in Expert Opinion on Therapeutic Targets. Contributing IU authors: Jessica A. Occhiuto, Silpa Gampala, Melissa L. Fishel, Mark R. Kelley
  • “Chemical inhibition of a CBASS anti-bacteriophage defense.” Published in iScience. Contributing IU authors: Chengqian Zhang, Shelley A. H. Dixon, Steven P. Angus, Joseph P. Gerdt
  • “Combined Inhibition of HRAS and MEK Induces Tumor Regression and Restores Myogenic Differentiation in HRAS-Mutant Rhabdomyosarcoma.” Published in Cancer Research. Contributing IU authors: Christopher Davis, Steven P.  Angus
  • “Direct pharmacological targeting of asparagine synthetase to overcome resistance to L-asparaginase in ALL therapy.” Published in JCI Insight. Contributing IU authors: Rodney Claude, Sankalp Srivastava, Kirk A. Staschke, Shaoxiong Chen, Lei Liu, Minghua Zhong, Utpal P Davé, Sandeep Batra, Yue Fang, Chi Zhang, Reuben Kapur, Ronald C. Wek, Ji Zhang
  • “Engineering immune tolerance for AAV gene therapy: The Norse way.” Published in Molecular Therapy. Contributing IU authors: Moanaro Biswas, Roland W. Herzog
  • “Focused ultrasound-mediated drug delivery of bevacizumab in treating NF2-related schwannomatosis in an animal model.” Published in Scientific Reports. Contributing IU authors: D. Wade Clapp, Simon J. Conway
  • “G Protein-Coupled Receptor 17 (Gpr17) Enhances Leptin and Insulin Sensitivity in Lean and Obese Mouse Models.” Published in Obesity. Contributing IU authors: Xun Sun, Natalie D. Stull, Baohua Zhou, Jonathan N. Flak, Hongxia Ren
  • “Hyperglycemia During Acute Pancreatitis and Progression to Early-Onset Diabetes After Recovery: Preliminary Findings From the Diabetes Related to Acute Pancreatitis and Its Mechanisms (DREAM) Study.” Published in Diabetes Care. Contributing IU authors: Carmella Evans-Molina, Evan L. Fogel
  • “In vivo base editing of Asgr1 reduces blood lipids in mice.” Published in Molecular Therapy. Contributing IU authors: Gaurav Agrahari, Nuong Thi Kieu Nguyen, Mengzhen Li, Chen Zhang, Renzhi Han
  • “Malignant peripheral nerve sheath tumor development during MEK inhibitor treatment: A pre-clinical study and a clinical case series.” Published in Neuro-Oncology Advances. Contributing IU authors: Steven D. Rhodes, D. Wade Clapp, Brian D. Weiss
  • “NFX1-123 is required for keratinocyte differentiation and HPV 16 DNA maintenance in early and persistent infection models.” Published in Journal of Virology. Contributing IU authors: Maura A. Dankoski, DeShawn Thompson, Kevin M. Quist, Rachel A. Katzenellenbogen
  • “Post-Conjugation Process for Antibody-Conjugated Lipid Nanoparticles Enabling Tunable Antibody Surface Density for Targeted RNA Delivery.” Published in ACS Nano. Contributing IU authors: Kwadwo Fosu, Ngoc Tung Tran
  • “Proteomic approaches for interrogating kinase signaling networks.” Published in Journal of Investigative Dermatology. Contributing IU authors: Christine A. Berryhill, Jocelyne N. Hanquier, Steven P. Angus
  • “PTP4A2 promotes leukemogenesis through inhibiting the p53 tumor suppressor signaling pathway in leukemia-initiating cells.” Published in Blood Advances. Contributing IU authors: Michihiro Kobayashi, Sasidhar Vemula, Chonghua Yao, Yuxia Yang, Christopher Borchers, Lindsey D. Mayo
  • “Rapid Genome Sequencing Shows Diagnostic Utility in Infants With Congenital Heart Defects.” Published in Circulation: Genomic and Precision Medicine. Contributing IU authors: Matthew D. Durbin, Lindsey R. Helvaty, Alyx Posorske, Samuel X. Zhang, Manyan Huang, Ming Li, Daniel Abreu, Gabrielle C. Geddes, Benjamin M. Helm, Benjamin J. Landis, Alexis McEntire, Dana K. Mitchell, Stephanie M. Ware
  • “SARS-CoV-2 and diabetes: a post-pandemic reappraisal.” Published in Diabetologia. Contributing IU authors: Noora Said, Ian Jones, Emily K. Anderson-Baucum, Carmella Evans-Molina
  • “Six-year FIX-padua gene therapy in hemophilia B.” Published in Blood Advances. Contributing IU author: Roland Herzog
  • “Targeting GLP1R and IL17A suppresses obesity-induced leukemia in an oncogenic PTPN11 mutation-driven model.” Published in Journal of Clinical Investigation. Contributing IU authors: Reuben Kapur, Rahul Kanumuri, Kanaka Sai Ram Padam, Baskar Ramdas, Lakshmi Reddy Palam, Ramesh Kumar, Laura Haneline, Santhosh Pasupuleti
  • “Therapeutic Targeting of IL-17A-Driven PTGS2/NLRP3 Inflammasome Activation in Juvenile Myelomonocytic Leukemia.” Published in Blood. Contributing IU authors: Santhosh Kumar Pasupuleti, Baskar Ramdas, Kanaka Sai Ram Padam, Rahul Kanumuri, Lakshmi Reddy Palam, Ramesh Kumar, Tzu-Chieh Ho, Wade Clapp, Kai Yang, Reuben Kapur
  • “Time to adjuvant treatment for newly diagnosed pediatric brain tumors in the molecular era: a single center retrospective study.” Published in Child's Nervous System. Contributing IU authors: Kenneth L. Virgin, Michael Fletcher, Jinan Ayub, Hannah Harmsen, Laurie L. Ackerman, Jignesh K. Tailor
  • “Transient prophylactic immunosuppression with abatacept or dasatinib prevents immune responses in AAV gene transfer.” Published in Molecular Therapy. Contributing IU authors: Kentaro Yamada, Miguel Gonzalez-Visiedos, Calista M. Greenwood, Moanaro Biswas, Maite Muñoz-Melero, Sandeep R. P. Kumar, Roland W. Herzog
  • “Urothelial Carcinoma in Children and Young Adults is Characterized by Higher Frequency of HRAS Mutations and Lower Prevalence of TERT Promoter and FGFR3 Mutations.” Published in American Journal of Surgical Pathology. Contributing IU author: Shaobo Zhang