Principle Investigator

William Zacharias, MD, PhD

Will is a physician-scientist who cares for patients in the adult intensive care unit with severe critical illness and advanced lung diseases. During his clinical training, he became interested in a fundamental question common to the fields of pulmonary disease, critical care medicine, and basic lung biology: how does the lung regenerate after injury, either in the acute or chronic setting, and what factors drive the outcome of lung regeneration in individual patients? To build a toolkit to address these questions, his work in the laboratory has focused on investigating the molecular determinants of lung development and lung regeneration to understand the connections between developmental injury and adult disease. More distinctly, Will has focused on the integration of extracellular signaling interactions with intracellular transcriptional and epigenetic regulation to pattern complex tissues during development, homeostasis, and regeneration after injury. The driving goal of his research is to advance therapeutic approaches to help patients with currently untreatable respiratory illnesses.

With his independent research group, he has turned his attention to understanding the precise mechanisms driving the development, health, maintenance, and activation of the distal lung progenitor niche, a site of active signaling throughout life and a region crucial to recovery after respiratory injury, infection, or toxic exposure.

Using a combination of mouse genetic models, organoid culture systems, and evaluation of lung samples from nonhuman primates and human lung transplant patients, the lab is using multimodal approaches to develop an improved molecular understanding of lung regenerative biology. Ultimately, their goal is to develop therapies to promote human lung regeneration and improve patient mortality and quality of life. Recently, Will has focused on unraveling the molecular mechanisms defining AEP state, with an emphasis on epigenetic regulation of progenitor function.

In his free time, Will enjoys golfing, reading, and spending time with his wife, daughter, and two dogs.

Helen Warheit-Niemi, PhD

POSTDOCTORAL FELLOW
Helen (she/they) received her PhD from the University of Michigan, where they studied the effects of pulmonary fibrosis on the immune response to infection. Helen’s current research focuses on understanding the developmental origins of lung disease by employing novel sequencing and imaging techniques to evaluate lung regeneration after sequential injuries. In their free time, they like reading, trying new restaurants, and caring for their exotic house plants.

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Kathleen Cook, BS

RESEARCH ASSISTANT & LAB MANAGER
Kathleen (she/her) is a research assistant and the laboratory manager. She is interested in studying lung regeneration through modified gene expression of transgenic mice following acute injury. She is passionate about all types of immunostaining and bioimaging, especially high-resolution confocal imaging of alveolar tissue and organoids. When not in the lab, she enjoys hiking, making art, and learning about native Ohio wildlife.

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Sharlene Fernandes, MS

RESEARCH ASSISTANT
Sharlene (she/her) received her master’s degree in Molecular Biochemistry and Bioinformatics from George Washing University in 2016, and has been a research assistant at CCHMC since. Sharlene has extensive experience with murine embryonic molecular biology techniques, cell line maintenance, and histology. Outside the lab, she enjoys watching movies and spending time with her husband.

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Amber Sogge, BSE

GRADUATE STUDENT
Amber (she/her) is a 5th year MSTP student and 3rd year PhD candidate in the Molecular and Developmental Biology program at UC. She is interested in tissue engineering and regenerative medicine, utilizing injury models such as influenza to assess and elucidate alveolar organoid structure and regeneration in both murine and human models. Outside of science, she enjoys baking, going to the local farmer’s market, and taking care of her cats, Peanut and Cashew.

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Barbara Zhao, BS

GRADUATE STUDENT
Barbara (she/her) is a 4th year MSTP student and 2nd year PhD candidate in the Molecular and Developmental Biology program at UC. She is excited about unraveling the genetic details of lung regeneration following influenza injury, as well as the developmental origins of lung regeneration. In her free time, she enjoys traveling, going out with friends, and hitting the gym.

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Hyunwook Lee, BA

GRADUATE STUDENT
Hyunwook (he/him) is a 3rd year MSTP student and 1st year graduate student in the Molecular and Developmental Biology program at UC. He is excited about applying novel techniques to culture complex adult and embryonic murine alveolar organoids to assess post-injury lung regeneration. When not at his lab bench, he enjoys spending time outside, playing video games, and reading.

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