Pediatric Labs, Centers, & Programs

UCI Department of Pediatrics is home to several academic and clinical labs, centers, and programs that are focused on a variety of children's health issues. They include:

Kimonis Lab

The Kimonis lab studies genetic causes of and new treatments for muscle diseases, and other rare genetic disorders such as lysosomal storage diseases, Prader-Willi, and mitochondrial diseases. The Kimonis laboratory is particularly interested in Hereditary Inclusion body myopathies including Inclusion body myopathy, Paget disease of bone,  frontotemporal dementia, and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis associated with Valosin Containing Protein (VCP) mutations (also known as VCP disease,  IBMPFD or multisystem proteinopathy) and also Inclusion body myopathy associated with HSPB8 gene mutations. If you or a member of your family has one of the disorders that we are studying and you have questions, comments, or would like to participate in a study, please contact us.

The Schuck Child Development Lab

The Schuck Child Development lab studies the development and evaluation of novel integrative therapeutic interventions for children with Attention-deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder and related neurodevelopmental and mental health disorders including Autism Spectrum Disorder, Specific Learning Disorders, and Oppositional Defiant Disorder. The lab more specifically aims to develop and examine the safety, feasibility, and efficacy of interventions that can be readily accessible for children and their families, with an emphasis on those interventions that can be practically applied in schools and community settings.  Two current primary areas of study include Animal Assisted Intervention (AAI) and Digital Health Interventions (DHI) integrated with more traditional, evidence-based treatments.

The Center for Autism & Neurodevelopmental Disorders

The goal of The Center for Autism & Neurodevelopmental Disorders is to provide help and hope to children, adolescents, young adults and their families living with Autism Spectrum Disorder, ADHD, and other neurodevelopmental disorders through excellent clinical care, quality education and training, and community engagement. If your family is touched by one of these disorders, we want you to know that we understand, we care, and we’re here to help.

Conte Center 

The Conte Center @UCI addresses how early-life experiences influence the brain and contribute to vulnerability to mental illnesses starting during adolescence. Our research focuses on probing how patterns of sensory signals originating in the mother/parent early in life influence the maturation of brain cells and circuits that govern complex behaviors. We test if fragmented and unpredictable signals from caretakers or the environment leave long-lasting marks on the structure and function of the developing brain.

Exercise and Genomics Research Center 

The UCI Health Exercise and Genomics Research Center is dedicated to unleashing the healing power of exercise. We know that improving health outcomes for children starts with research. Our nationally renowned clinicians, exercise physiologists, and researchers are driven to learn what type of exercise, how much, and for how long, produces the most predictable, effective improvements in childhood health. We also seek the biological mechanisms that trigger specific physiological responses to exercise.

Epilepsy Research Center 

The Epilepsy Research Center (EpiCenter) was founded in 2002 with the mission of promoting epilepsy-related research at UC Irvine. It is now home to leading epilepsy researchers from across disciplines, providing an "incubator" for productive collaborative basic and translational research.