Wake Forest Institute for Regenerative Medicine
Dr. Walker is currently a Tenured Professor at the Wake Forest Institute for Regenerative Medicine (cross-appointed in the Department of Urology) and is a member of the Graduate faculty, the Neuroscience Program, Center for Biomedical Informatics and the Center for Precision Medicine.
SYNOPSIS OF AREA OF INTEREST
Dr. Walker is broadly interested in developing and using molecular tools, especially array-based and sequencing technologies, to better understand transcriptional control that underlies development and complex disease processes.
DETAILED AREA OF INTEREST
Dr. Walker’s current studies are focused broadly on understanding the molecular and functional genomic features that underlie complex disease, specifically: (1) autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and an associated inflammatory bowel condition (ASD associated ileocolitis) in children and, (2) interstitial cystitis/bladder pain syndrome (IC/BPS), a complex urologic disorder in men and women aged 18-80 years old. By working directly with clinicians who treat these patients, he has been able to amass truly unique tissue banks from which to draw biomaterials (e.g. biopsy tissue, whole blood, serum) for molecular profiling. The primary goals for these studies are: (a) to understand the biology of the disease, (b) to identify clinically relevant subgroups with these complex disorders and, (c) using actual patient specimens, to identify biomarkers that will aid in diagnosis and treatment of patients presenting with these very heterogeneous conditions.
His NIH and private foundation funded research has resulted in: (1) the first ever molecular description of gastrointestinal inflammation in GI-symptomatic children with autism, (2) a putative blood-based biomarker for GI inflammation in children with ASD, and (3) clinical sub-phenotyping in interstitial cystitis/bladder pain syndrome that distinguishes a bladder-centric disease phenotype from a systemic pain syndrome phenotype.
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Friday, April 28, 2023
10:27 AM – 10:42 AM CST
Friday, April 28, 2023
11:12 AM – 11:25 AM CST