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Indiana University School of Medicine
Indiana University School of Medicine
Wells Center for Pediatric Research

Research

Named a Center of Excellence in Molecular Hematology by the National Institutes of Health (NIH), the Wells Center is one of only three such centers in the United States. Research at the Wells Center is at the forefront of molecular biology and genetics. Through the development of innovative approaches to diagnosis, the center continues to be a strong pillar for IU School of Medicine, providing outstanding training and increasing knowledge of the causes and mechanisms of serious pediatric diseases.

Wells Center researchers receive more than $28 million annually in federal research funds, along with grants from the American Cancer Society, the American Heart Association, the March of Dimes and many other private foundations.

Eleven programs constitute the working groups within the center: asthma and allergic diseases; diabetes; cardiovascular genetics; developmental cardiology; hematologic malignancies and stem cell biology; infectious diseases and global health; molecular oncology and experimental therapeutics; gene and cell therapy; kidney and urology; pediatric translational research; and nutrition and molecular metabolism.

Areas of Focus

The Cardiac Development Biology group studies the origins, etiology and treatment of heart failure in the young.

The Cardiovascular Genetics research group is investigating the developmental mechanisms and pathobiology of heritable cardiac disease.

The Diabetes research team is committed to understanding the biology and molecular mechanisms that lead to the development of both Type 1 and Type 2 diabetes in children.

Investigators in the Gene and Cell Therapy program are working to develop gene therapies to correct genetic disease and combat the issue of immune rejection.

Hematologic Malignancies and Stem Cell Biology research group focuses on comparing molecular and cellular regulation of stem and progenitor cell populations in hematopoietic, endothelial and mesenchymal lineages.

The Infectious Diseases and Global Health research group focuses on malaria, a leading causes of death and disability in children worldwide.

The Kidney and Urology Translational Research group pursues basic and translational studies to gain insight into pediatric diseases that involve the kidney and urinary tract.

The Molecular Oncology and Experimental Therapeutics research group focuses on translating the basic science related to genes and protein mechanisms into new therapeutic modalities as well as developing better models for tumor studies and a greater understanding of tumor biology.

The Nutrition and Molecular Metabolism research program is dedicated to advancing the understanding of gut-related factors in metabolic diseases and developing innovative treatments to improve outcomes for pediatric patients.

A major goal of the Pediatric Translational Research program is to help pediatric investigators across all disciplines at the Wells Center collaborate with engineers and other scientists, translating new insights and discoveries into products that will improve the health of children.

Wells Center researchers in the Pulmonary Inflammation, Asthma and Allergic Diseases group are working to understand the initiation, pathogenesis and progression of allergic diseases in the hopes of identifying better ways to treat or prevent allergic symptoms.

Featured Research

Delaying diabetes

Diabetes investigators in the Wells Center contributed clinical research that led to the first FDA-approved drug to delay the onset of Type 1 diabetes in at-risk individuals by almost three years.

Global perspective

Malaria continues to be a major threat to public health for much of the world’s population. A severe form called cerebral malaria is linked to increased risk for long-term impairment. A 2019 study from the Global Health team presents novel findings about one possible contributing factor to this impairment: a protein called tau.

Life-saving lettuce

Researchers in the Gene and Cell Therapy program collaborate with the biochemists at the University of Pennsylvania to create a genetically engineered lettuce plant that may help children with hemophilia whose bodies reject treatment. The plant effectively induced oral tolerance to treatment in animal models, the NIH-funded study found.

Core Facilities and Resources 

Beyond the diverse research cores available at IU School of Medicine, Wells Center investigators lead and collaborate with numerous research cores. Contribution towards these cores provides Wells Center investigators with critical insight to the availability and technical potential of these resources towards ongoing studies. These cores support research in areas such as gene therapy, cardiovascular development, stem cell biology, diabetes and immunology.

Wells Center-specific Cores

The Tissue Culture Core makes custom media for Wells Center investigators and is stocked with commonly used commercial tissue culture media provided at no cost for investigators. 

The Flow Cytometry Core oversees the management and maintenance of a ThermoFisher Attune NxT. The Attune NxT has 4 lasers with 2 blue, 3 red, 6 violet, and 3 yellow detectors that allow the detection 16 parameters. 

IU School of Medicine Cores supported by Wells Center Investigators 

The NIDDK P30-funded Indiana Diabetes Research Center (IDRC) houses four state-of-the art Research Cores that are available to members of the Wells Center. The Data and Analytics Core offers state-of-the-art computational and informatics services with diabetes expertise for large and/or multidimensional datasets. The Core facilitates the incorporation of advanced data analysis techniques into researchers’ projects and educates the research community on new and emerging methods to advance our understanding of molecular and environmental contributors to human health and disease.

The IU Cooperative Center of Excellence in Hematology (CCEH) supports three integral cores. The Experimental Mouse Resources Core facilitates xenograft animal studies through maintenance of essential mice to study human and murine hematopoiesis.

The IU Cooperative Center of Excellence in Hematology (CCEH) supports three integral cores. The Flow and Tissue Cytometry Core provides critical insight into the spatial distribution of cells of interest within tissue by supporting 3D tissue cytometry and intravital microscopy.

The IU Cooperative Center of Excellence in Hematology (CCEH) supports three integral cores. The Hypoxia Core supports cutting-edge stem cell research through the use of three separate O2 and CO2 regulated chambers with embedded equipment, including an Agilent Seahorse machine, critical for better understanding cellular, molecular, and biochemical aspects of hematopoietic stem, progenitor, immune and stromal cells under relevant physiological conditions (i.e., lowered oxygen tension).

The NIDDK P30-funded Indiana Diabetes Research Center (IDRC) houses four state-of-the art Research Cores that are available to members of the Wells Center. The Islet and Physiology Core provides a comprehensive set of services that includes rodent islet isolation, rodent and human islet characterization, rodent and human islet transplantation into immunodeficient rodent recipients, and rodent metabolic phenotyping, while facilitating the use of human model systems. The Core provides services to a vibrant group of islet biologists and functions as an important conduit to facilitate entry into the field for early-stage investigators and investigators who have not traditionally worked with islets or performed metabolic research.

The NIDDK P30-funded Indiana Diabetes Research Center (IDRC) houses four state-of-the art Research Cores that are available to members of the Wells Center. The Microscopy Core provides investigators with access to advanced methods of light microscopy that have been optimized for metabolic tissues. These powerful techniques include intravital microscopy, CODEX (CO-Detection by indEXing) imaging, FLIM (Fluorescence Lifetime Imaging Microscopy), expansion microscopy, and lightsheet microscopy.

The NIDDK P30-funded Indiana Diabetes Research Center (IDRC) houses four state-of-the art Research Cores that are available to members of the Wells Center. The Translation Core provides expertise in analyte measurement and human studies design and access to state-of-the-art equipment and banked human blood and tissue. The Core also serves as an important conduit to facilitate entry into the field for investigators who have not traditionally worked with human subjects or human specimens.

The Ultrasound Core contains a VisualSonics Vevo 2100 high frequency ultrasound machine, all software, and probes for evaluation of cardiac function, structure, and blood flow in mice, rats, and other small animals. This equipment provides high frame rates to yield high quality blood flow imaging.

Jeff Gordon Children’s Foundation

The Jeff Gordon Children’s Foundation is a generous partner in advancing cancer research at the Wells Center and Riley Hospital for Children at IU Health, providing vital resources to researchers seeking to impact treatments, therapies and cures.