Current Research Interests
Our current research interests span a range of areas:
- Understanding Maternal and Fetal T-Cell Responses in Preterm Birth: Our research delves into the mechanisms whereby maternal and fetal T-cell responses contribute to the pathophysiology of preterm labor and birth. By investigating the dynamic interplay between these T-cell responses and pregnancy complications, we aim to shed light on potential intervention strategies and novel therapeutic approaches to improve maternal and neonatal health outcomes.
- Exploring Macrophage Function in Parturition: We are dedicated to unraveling the multifaceted functions of macrophages in both the physiologic and pathologic processes of parturition. Our research seeks to elucidate how these immune cells impact various aspects of parturition, which will provide insight into their potential therapeutic relevance.
- Advanced Insights into the Maternal-Fetal Interface through Omics and Spatial Technologies: Leveraging state-of-the-art omics and spatial technologies, our research takes a comprehensive approach to dissecting the maternal-fetal interface. By integrating these advanced techniques, we aim to decode the molecular landscape at this critical interface, opening new avenues for understanding and intervention.
- Investigating Host-Immune Response in Pregnancy Complications: Our research is centered on exploring the complex interactions between the host and the immune system during pregnancy, with a specific focus on cases involving complications. By gaining deeper insights, we aim to develop safe and personalized therapeutic approaches for the benefit of both mothers and children.
- Study of Neonatal Immunity in Preterm Infants: Our research program focuses on studying neonatal immune responses following preterm labor and birth as well as after therapeutic interventions aimed at preventing preterm birth.
Highlighted Recent Publications
- Deciphering maternal-fetal cross-talk in the human placenta during parturition using single-cell RNA sequencing. Garcia-Flores V, Romero R, Tarca AL, Peyvandipour A, Xu Y, Galaz J, Miller D, Chaiworapongsa T, Chaemsaithong P, Berry SM, Awonuga AO, Bryant DR, Pique-Regi R, Gomez-Lopez N. Sci Transl Med. 2024;16(729):eadh8335. [PubMed]
- Microbiome preterm birth DREAM challenge: Crowdsourcing machine learning approaches to advance preterm birth research. Golob JL, Oskotsky TT, Tang AS, Roldan A, Chung V, Ha CWY, Wong RJ, Flynn KJ, Parraga-Leo A, Wibrand C, Minot SS, Oskotsky B, Andreoletti G, Kosti I, Bletz J, Nelson A, Gao J, Wei Z, Chen G, Tang ZZ, Novielli P, Romano D, Pantaleo E, Amoroso N, Monaco A, Vacca M, De Angelis M, Bellotti R, Tangaro S, Kuntzleman A, Bigcraft I, Techtmann S, Bae D, Kim E, Jeon J, Joe S; Preterm Birth DREAM Community; Theis KR, Ng S, Lee YS, Diaz-Gimeno P, Bennett PR, MacIntyre DA, Stolovitzky G, Lynch SV, Albrecht J, Gomez-Lopez N, Romero R, Stevenson DK, Aghaeepour N, Tarca AL, Costello JC, Sirota M. Cell Rep Med. 2024;5(1):101350. [PubMed]
- Host-microbiome interactions in distinct subsets of preterm labor and birth. Galaz J, Romero R, Greenberg JM, Theis KR, Arenas-Hernandez M, Xu Y, Farias-Jofre M, Miller D, Kanninen T, Garcia-Flores V, Gomez-Lopez N. iScience. 2023;26(12):108341. [PubMed]
- Blockade of IL-6R prevents preterm birth and adverse neonatal outcomes. Farias-Jofre M, Romero R, Galaz J, Xu Y, Miller D, Garcia-Flores V, Arenas-Hernandez M, Winters AD, Berkowitz BA, Podolsky RH, Shen Y, Kanninen T, Panaitescu B, Glazier CR, Pique-Regi R, Theis KR, Gomez-Lopez N. EBioMedicine. 2023;98:104865. [PubMed]
- Immune-featured decidual stromal cells: pregnancy’s multitasking superstars. Gomez-Lopez N. Trends Immunol. 2023;44(11):862-864. [PubMed]
- Immunosequencing and Profiling of T Cells at the Maternal-Fetal Interface of Women with Preterm Labor and Chronic Chorioamnionitis. Miller D, Romero R, Myers L, Xu Y, Arenas-Hernandez M, Galaz J, Soto C, Done B, Quiroz A, Awonuga AO, Bryant DR, Tarca AL, Gomez-Lopez N. J Immunol. 2023;211(7):1082-1098. [PubMed]
- A single-cell atlas of murine reproductive tissues during preterm labor. Garcia-Flores V, Romero R, Peyvandipour A, Galaz J, Pusod E, Panaitescu B, Miller D, Xu Y, Tao L, Liu Z, Tarca AL, Pique-Regi R, Gomez-Lopez N. Cell Rep. 2023;42(1):111846. [PubMed]
- Preparation of single-cell suspensions from the human placenta. Garcia-Flores V, Xu Y, Pusod E, Romero R, Pique-Regi R, Gomez-Lopez N. Nat Protoc. 2023;18(3):732-754.[PubMed]
- Fetal and maternal NLRP3 signaling is required for preterm labor and birth. Motomura K, Romero R, Galaz J, Tao L, Garcia-Flores V, Xu Y, Done B, Arenas-Hernandez M, Miller D, Gutierrez-Contreras P, Farias-Jofre M, Aras S, Grossman LI, Tarca AL, Gomez-Lopez N. JCI Insight. 2022;7(16):e158238. [PubMed]
- Maternal-fetal immune responses in pregnant women infected with SARS-CoV-2. Garcia-Flores V, Romero R, Xu Y, Theis KR, Arenas-Hernandez M, Miller D, Peyvandipour A, Bhatti G, Galaz J, Gershater M, Levenson D, Pusod E, Tao L, Kracht D, Florova V, Leng Y, Motomura K, Para R, Faucett M, Hsu CD, Zhang G, Tarca AL, Pique-Regi R, Gomez-Lopez N. Nat Commun. 2022;13(1):320. [PubMed]
- Macrophages exert homeostatic actions in pregnancy to protect against preterm birth and fetal inflammatory injury. Gomez-Lopez N, Garcia-Flores V, Chin PY, Groome HM, Bijland MT, Diener KR, Romero R, Robertson SA. JCI Insight. 2021;6(19):e146089. [PubMed]