Meet the KL2 Clinical Scholars
Srinivas Chivukula, M.D., Ph.D., is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Neurological Surgery at UT Southwestern Medical Center. He earned his M.D. at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine and completed a residency in neurological surgery at the University of California, Los Angeles, where he also gained advanced training through a fellowship in functional and epilepsy neurosurgery. He obtained a Ph.D. in biology and cognitive neuroscience at the California Institute of Technology, where his graduate advisor was Professor Richard Andersen.
His current research interests lie in the brain basis of human cognition, especially as it relates to the planning and production of human behavior (movement and speech), and in leveraging its natural neural mechanisms in strategies to restore function, such as brain-machine interfaces (BMIs). He is interested in how our brains represent our prior knowledge and experience in a manner that it can generalize across seemingly endless behavioral contexts, how it can dynamically combine with available sensory information from an ever-changing environment, and shape our motor output by identifying behavioral goals, formulating action plans, and ensuring their successful production. This work involves intraoperative neural recordings in awake and behaving human patient volunteers undergoing neurosurgical procedures combined with advanced computational analysis and modeling techniques. His KL2 mentor is Dr. Nader Pouratian, Chair of the Department of Neurosurgery.
Kimberly Goodspeed, M.D., MSCS, is an Assistant Professor in the Departments of Pediatrics, Neurology, and Psychiatry, and a Dedman Family Scholar in Clinical Care at UT Southwestern Medical Center. She is a child neurologist and neurodevelopmental specialist who cares for children and young adults with autism spectrum disorder and intellectual disability. She has particular expertise in rare genetic developmental disorders in children, including Angelman syndrome, Pitt-Hopkins syndrome, SLC6A1-related disorders, Phelan-McDermid Syndrome, and Rett syndrome.
Dr. Goodspeed earned her medical degree at the UT Health Science Center at Houston and completed residencies in pediatrics and neurodevelopmental disabilities at UT Southwestern. Board certified in pediatrics, neurology, and neurodevelopmental disabilities, she joined the UT Southwestern faculty in 2018. Her research seeks to better understand rare genetic developmental disorders in children and the genetic causes of developmental delays in children with autism spectrum disorder and intellectual disability. She partners with basic scientists to help develop novel treatments, such as gene therapy, for these conditions.
Bethany Roehm, M.D. is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Internal Medicine, Division of Nephrology at UT Southwestern. She earned her medical degree at Texas A&M University. She completed a residency in internal medicine and fellowship training in nephrology at Tufts Medical Center. As a T32 fellow, she also earned a master’s degree in Clinical and Translational Research at Tufts University.
Dr. Roehm’s research is focused on the intersection of chronic kidney disease (CKD) and heart failure. She aims to identify blood and imaging biomarkers in heart failure patients who are at risk for progressive kidney disease in hopes of eventually improving kidney outcomes in these patients. Her KL2 research mentor is Justin Grodin, M.D. an advanced heart failure specialist in the Department of Internal Medicine, Division of Cardiology.
Erica Jones, M.D. MPH is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Neurology at UT Southwestern Medical Center. She earned both her medical degree and master’s of public health in epidemiology at Tulane University. She completed a residency in neurology at Emory University and received advanced training in vascular neurology through a fellowship at the UT Health Science Center at Houston.
Dr. Jones’ research is focused on determining racial/ethnic differences in stroke risk and outcomes and focusing on developing interventions to improve patient outcomes. Atrial fibrillation is a known risk factor for poor outcome after stroke and anticoagulation therapy is the primary treatment. Her work will examine the racial/ethnic differences in anticoagulation for patients presenting with ischemic stoke admissions with atrial fibrillation. She is also researching improving cognitive outcomes in post-stroke care and improving health equity in acute stroke access to the novel thrombolytic agent, Tenecteplase. Her KL2 research mentor is Ying Xian, M.D., Ph.D.
Matthew Campbell, M.D. is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Pediatrics, Division of Hematology and Oncology at UT Southwestern. He earned his medical degree from UT Southwestern Medical School. He completed his Pediatric residency training at Vanderbilt University Medical Center, where he spent an additional year serving as chief resident. He then completed a Pediatric Hematology/Oncology fellowship at Baylor College of Medicine/Texas Children's Hospital, where he also served as chief fellow in his final year.
Dr. Campbell’s research is focused on novel therapeutic approaches to increase efficacy of immune checkpoint therapy in children with cancer. Children with relapsed or refractory solid tumors have poor outcomes and limited treatment options. His studies will combine immune checkpoint therapy (nati-PDL-1, atezolizumab) with cytotoxic chemotherapy (vincristine, irinotecan and temozolomide) in these patients to determine tolerability and efficacy of this treatment regime. His KL2 research mentor is Andrew Koh, M.D.
Sanjay Chandrasekaran, M.D. is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Internal Medicine, Division of Hematology and Oncology at UT Southwestern. Dr. Chandrasekaran earned his medical degree at the University of Washington School of Medicine. He completed joint residency and advanced fellowship training in internal medicine, hematology, and medical oncology through the physician-scientist pathway at Emory University and the Winship Cancer Institute.
Dr. Chandrasekaran’s research is focused on malignant peripheral nerve sheath tumors which has a high recurrence rate, high mortality, and no effective therapies. Using both patient derived xenografts and human clinical studies, Dr. Chandrasekaran working to identify novel therapies for treating MPNST, including combination therapy of MEK inhibitor, T cell checkpoint inhibitors of PD-1, and STING agonists to activate T cells, alter tumor inflammation, and generate anti-tumor responses. His UTSW KL2 research mentor is Hans Hammers M.D., Ph.D., and he is further supported by Lu Le M.D., Ph.D. at the University of Virginia.