Category: Research

Stefan G. Tullius MD PhD, FACS, chief of the Division of Transplant Surgery, Reza Abdi, MD, director of the Transplantation Research Center and staff physician in the Division of Renal Medicine and Peter Sage, PhD, associate immunologist, received an $11 million research project grant from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to study the aging immune response after transplantation.

With a rapidly increasing number of older individuals receiving organ transplants, it is critical to optimize the treatment of this patient population. In a collaborative effort between the Division of Renal Medicine and the Division of Transplant Surgery, Abdi, Tullius and Sage have received the project program grant from the NIH to elucidate the unique immunological mechanisms leading to transplant rejection in the elderly. These studies will form the foundation for new therapeutics that specifically treat this unique and fragile patient population.

The research project grant program is the original and historically oldest grant mechanism used by NIH and supports health-related research and development based on the mission of the NIH.

Stefan G. Tullius, MD, PhD
Joseph E. Murray Distinguished Chair in Transplant Surgery
Chief, Division of Transplant Surgery, Brigham and Women’s Hospital
Director, Transplant Surgery Research Laboratory
Professor of Surgery, Harvard Medical School

Dr. Tullius is the chief of the Division of Transplant Surgery at Brigham and Women’s Hospital and a professor of surgery at Harvard Medical School. He received his medical degree from the Johann-Wolfgang Goethe University in Frankfurt, Germany; a PhD from the Charité in Berlin, Germany; and a (honorary) Master of Arts from Harvard University.  He has published over 280 peer-reviewed articles, led numerous externally funded studies, and is frequently invited to speak locally, nationally, and internationally.

His research career in transplantation immunology covers a period of more than 15 years and has greatly contributed to an improved understanding of the pathophysiology of long-term graft failure. His more recent research interests include individualized immunosuppression and the investigation of basic mechanisms of clinically relevant aspects in organ transplantation, focusing on novel routes for optimized utilization of organs for transplantation and organ preservation/perfusion. Dr. Tullius has also contributed with pioneering work in face, hand and uterus transplantation.

In addition to his clinical practice and research interests, Dr. Tullius has contributed to the international transplant community with his editorial, societal and committee activities. He is an executive editor of Transplantation, associate editor of Transplant International, and has served as associate and consulting editor of the American Journal of Transplantation. He has also served on the board of the European Society for Organ Transplantation (ESOT) and was the founding chair of the Basic Science Committee of ESOT. He has co-chaired several international meetings for The Transplantation Society (TTS), chaired several committees for the American Society of Transplantation (AST) and was the founding chair of the AST Vascular Composite Tissue Transplant Committee.

Dr. Tullius is currently a member of the National Kidney Registry (NKR) Medical Board, the Declaration of Istanbul Custodian Group (DICG), the senior treasurer of TTS and vice president of the International Society of Uterus Transplantation (ISUTx). In recognition of his contributions, Dr. Tullius has received several awards, including the Clinical Science Investigator Award of the AST, the Joseph E. Murray and Simon J. Simonian Award and the Excellence in Kidney Transplantation Award from the National Kidney Foundation.

Dr. O’Brien-Coon has been awarded an R01 grant for the project titled, “Molecular mechanisms of hormone-mediated sex differences in wound healing.”

Wound healing is a major clinical problem affecting millions of patients. Preliminary clinical and large animal data show that testosterone impairs tissue repair while estrogen improves it, yet the mechanisms of these effects are poorly understood. This study seeks to transform current concepts of how testosterone and estradiol modulate soft tissue repair with the dual aim of defining hormone-induced alterations in the wound immune environment that drive regenerative versus fibrotic responses and developing potential new therapeutic approaches.

Devin O’Brien-Coon, MD, MSE
Associate Surgeon, Brigham & Women’s Hospital
Fellowship Director, BWH Complex Gender & Microsurgery Program
Clinical Director and Surgical Co-Director, Brigham Center for Transgender Health
Associate Professor of Surgery, Harvard Medical School

Dr. O’Brien directs a basic science lab focusing on cutaneous repair, fibrosis and regeneration, as well as sex hormone-mediated control of wound healing and scarring. He is also interested in biomedical innovation and has invented and successfully translated two FDA-approved medical devices (a bioresorbable implant and a 3D ultrasound system) to clinical use.

Before joining the Brigham, Dr. O’Brien served as the founding chief medical director of the Johns Hopkins Center for Transgender Health, where he developed a multidisciplinary service line across eight departments that became one of the largest academic programs in the U.S. He is recognized as a leader in genitourinary salvage procedures and is frequently referred secondary revision cases. He initiated and directed the Johns Hopkins Complex Gender & Microsurgery Fellowship. He will serve as inaugural clinical and surgical director of the new Brigham Center for Transgender Health.

His primary clinical areas are facial gender surgery, facial aesthetic surgery, genital gender-affirming surgery and genital/pelvic reconstruction for revision or oncologic patients.

Dr. O’Brien attended college and medical school at the University of Pittsburgh and holds a master’s in biomedical engineering from Johns Hopkins University. He completed integrated plastic surgery training at the Johns Hopkins/UMD Shock Trauma Center program and is board certified in plastic and reconstructive surgery.

Dr. Cooper and Dr. Nguyen have been awarded a $1.6M NIH National Institute on Aging grant for the program Mentored Research Training in Aging and Surgery (MERITAS).

The Mentored Research Training in Aging and Surgery (MERITAS) program at the Center for Surgery and Public Health (CSPH) at Brigham and Women’s Hospital will train surgical residents in health services research at the intersection of surgery and aging, with particular focus on frailty, Alzheimer’s Disease and related dementias, multimorbidity and serious illness. The overall goal of this training program is to create a diverse community of superbly trained surgeon-scientists to conduct studies and take on the mounting research, clinical and policy challenges to improving care for older surgical patients.

Zara Cooper, MD, MSc
Michele and Howard J. Kessler Distinguished Chair in Surgery and Public Health
Kessler Director, Center for Surgery and Public Health, Brigham and Women’s Hospital
Chair, Executive Advisory Committee, Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Community Health
Director, Center for Geriatric Surgery
Professor of Surgery, Harvard Medical School

Dr. Cooper is an acute care surgeon, trauma surgeon and surgical intensivist at Brigham and Women’s Hospital, where she also serves as Kessler director of the Center for Surgery and Public Health (CSPH), chair of the Executive Advisory Committee for Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Community Health and director of the Center for Geriatric Surgery. Dr. Cooper is an associate professor of surgery at Harvard Medical School and adjunct faculty at the Marcus Institute for Aging Research. A graduate of the Mount Sinai School of Medicine, Dr. Cooper completed her general surgery residency and critical care fellowship at the Brigham; a trauma fellowship at Harborview Medical Center and the University of Washington; and training in hospice and palliative medicine at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and the Brigham.

Her research aims to improve palliative and geriatric care for older seriously ill surgical patients. A national leader in surgical palliative care and geriatric trauma, she has authored over 150 peer-reviewed manuscripts, chapters, and abstracts and lectures nationally about surgical care in complex older patients. Dr. Cooper is currently funded through the National Institute on Aging (NIA), the American Federation for Aging Research (AFAR), the National Palliative Care Research Center (NPCRC), the Department of Defense and is a co-investigator on multiple federally funded grants. She also serves on numerous editorial boards and committees for professional societies, Mass General Brigham and Brigham and Women’s Hospital.

Louis L. Nguyen, MD, MPH, MBA
Vice Chair for Digital Health Systems, Department of Surgery, Brigham and Women’s Hospital
Fellowship Director, Center for Surgery and Public Health
Associate Professor of Surgery, Harvard Medical School

Dr. Nguyen has a career that combines clinical practice, outcomes research and digital health. He is associate professor of surgery at Harvard Medical School and a practicing vascular surgeon at Brigham and Women’s Hospital. Within the Department of Surgery, he serves as the vice chair for Digital Health Systems; fellowship director for the Center for Surgery and Public Health; and within the Division of Vascular and Endovascular Surgery, he is the director of Clinical and Outcomes Research, as well as the director of Quality, Safety, and Value. 

Dr. Nguyen earned a bachelor’s degree in molecular biology at Northwestern University.  He then received his medical degree from the University of Chicago Pritzker School of Medicine and his business administration degree from the University of Chicago Booth Graduate School of Business.  He completed his general surgery residency at Barnes-Jewish Hospital and the Washington University in St. Louis, the Vascular Biology Program at Boston Children’s Hospital, and a vascular surgery clinical fellowship at Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Harvard Medical School.  During his clinical fellowship, he also earned a Master of Public Health from the Harvard T. H. Chan School of Public Health.

Dr. Nguyen’s health services research program combines clinical outcomes and economic analysis with three major focus areas: quantitative modeling of complex socioeconomic factors and interactions in patient care; quality and incentives in provider and systems health care delivery; and health care environmental sustainability. His fields of expertise include racial and ethnic disparities, innovation and market competition, novel statistical methods in HSR and the application of behavioral economics to implementation programs. He has received research funding from the National Institutes of Health (NIH), the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ), the Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute (PCORI), and the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD). His unique education and experiences allow him to bring medical expertise to health economics research and to bring econometric analytical techniques to medical research. He is most proud of his research mentorship of students, residents, and young faculty who come from diverse medical and surgical specialties for research training.  In his role as fellowship director at CSPH, he oversees the research and career development of surgical residents during their academic years.

Dr. Nguyen’s clinical interests are in vascular and endovascular surgery.  He utilizes a combination of open and minimally invasive modalities to diagnose and treat diseases of the arterial and venous system.  He is nationally recognized for his care of vascular thoracic outlet syndrome, a rare condition affecting young active adults. He is also a recognized expert in the treatment of acute and chronic venous disease, having a broad referral base for patients with complex venous issues.