Michael Rauchman MD

Michael Rauchman is a Professor of Medicine, Pediatrics, and Developmental Biology at Washington University School of Medicine. He also serves as Section Chief of Nephrology at the St. Louis VA and directs a pediatric-to-adult transition clinic for kidney disease at Washington University. The main goal of his research is to investigate gene regulation during kidney development and disease. His lab applies this knowledge to understand birth defects of the kidney and to develop treatment strategies to promote repair and regeneration of the kidney in disease states.

Ongoing studies are focusing on understanding how transcription factors and their associated chromatin remodeling complexes regulate the cell fate of nephron progenitor cells during the formation of the kidney. To identify novel genetic causes of congenital anomalies of the kidney and urinary tract (CAKUT), his research group and their collaborators are performing whole-exome sequencing of parent-offspring trios comprising a child (fetus or newborn) with severe kidney defects identified on antenatal ultrasound. A second area of emphasis is to investigate epigenetic regulatory mechanisms of the kidney in response to acute and chronic disease. These studies are performed in mouse models and human tissues in collaboration with KPMP.