University of California San Francisco

Chu, Simon
Simon
Chu
MD, MS

Resident Research Fellow
General Surgery

    Biography

    Simon N. Chu MD, MS is a General Surgery Resident in the UCSF Department of Surgery. He attended his undergraduate and graduate studies at the University of California, Berkeley in the fields of Public Health and Health and Medical Sciences. He completed his medical degree at UCSF in the UC Berkeley-UCSF Joint Medical Program and Program in Medicine for the Urban Underserved and was inducted into the Alpha Omega Alpha society. During his graduate and medical training, he conducted basic science research in virology and immunology, completing a Master's Degree and Howard Hughes Medical Institute Fellowship. He is currently a resident research fellow conducting basic science investigations utilizing novel techniques in genome engineering and transplant immunology.

    Education

    Institution Degree Dept or School End Date
    University of California, Berkeley MS Health and Medical Sciences
    University of California, Berkeley BA Public Health, Infectious Diseases and Vaccinology
    University of California, San Francisco MD Medicine

    Clinical Interests

    General Surgery

    Transplant Surgery

    Program Affiliations

    Howard Hughes Medical Institute

    Surgical Innovations Programs

    UC Berkeley-UCSF Joint Medical Program

    UCSF Program in Medical Education for the Urban Underserved

    Pre-Transplant Immune Markers of Rejection Risk in HIV-Positive Transplant Recipients. Oral presentation at the 27th International Congress of The Transplantation Society, Madrid, Spain, 2018. 
    Comparative Analysis of Alloantigen-Stimulated Gene Expression in HIV(+) Liver Transplant Rejectors Versus Non-Rejectors. Poster presentation at the 2018 American Transplant Congress, Seattle, Washington, 2018. 
    Peripheral Blood Gene Expression Analysis Reveals Recipient-Driven Markers of Rejection Risk in HIV(+) Transplant Recipients. Oral presentation at the 2018 UCSF School of Medicine Inquiry Symposium, San Francisco, California, 2018. 
    Comparative Analysis Alloantigen-Stimulated Gene Expression in HIV(+) Transplant Rejectors Versus Non-Rejectors. Oral presentation at the 31st Annual J. Engelbert Dunphy Resident Research Symposium, San Francisco, California, 2018. 
    Immune Profiling of Rejection Biomarkers in HIV-Positive Transplant Recipients. Poster presentation at the 2018 AAP/ASCI/APSA Joint Meeting, Chicago, Illinois, 2018. 
    Dealing with Rejection: The Future of Solid Organ Transplantation in Persons with HIV. Oral presentation at the 2018 Howard Hughes Medical Institute West Coast Regional Meeting, San Diego, California, 2018. 
    Gene Expression Profiling of Enhanced Transplant Rejection in HIV-Positive Recipients. Poster presentation at the 2018 Howard Hughes Medical Institute Science Meeting, Chevy Chase, Maryland, 2018. 
    Analysis of Instructional Behaviors in Robotic Surgery. Oral presentation at the 13th Annual Academic Surgical Congress Meeting, Jacksonville, Florida, 2018. 
    Host-Microbiome Dynamics During SIV Infection: Gut-Resident Lactobacilli Associate with Mucosal Immune Homeostasis. Oral presentation at the 2015 American Society for Microbiology General Meeting, New Orleans, Louisiana. 2015.  
    Abstract selected for a Young Investigator Oral Presentation Session: ASM Lecturer’s Choice: Recent Developments in Microbiome Research. Gut-resident Lactobacillus spp. Modulate Th17 Cells via IDO1 Inhibition in SIV-infected Rhesus Macaques. Poster presentation at 2015 Keystone Symposia: Gut Microbiota Modulation of Host Physiology: The Search for Mechanism, Keystone, Colorado, 2015. 
    Elucidating the Function of Lactobacillus in Modulating Tryptophan Catabolism and Maintaining Gastrointestinal Mucosal Integrity in SIV Pathogenesis. Oral presentation at the 2015 Pathways Explore Symposium, UCSF School of Medicine, San Francisco, California, 2015. 
    The Effect of Liquefaction on the Ability of Semen and Semen Amyloid Fibrils to Enhance HIV Infection. Oral presentation at the 19th International AIDS Conference, Washington D.C., 2012.  
    Identification and Characterization of Amyloid Fibrils from Human Semen that Enhance HIV Infection. Seminar at Symposium of the International Graduate School in Molecular Medicine, Ulm University, Germany, 2012. 
    Identification and Characterization of Amyloid Fibrils from Human Semen that Enhance HIV Infection. Seminar at Jiaotong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, China, 2011. 
    Identification and Characterization of Amyloid Fibrils from Human Semen that Enhance HIV Infection. Seminar at University of California, Berkeley, Infectious Diseases and Immunity Seminar Series, 2011. 
    Human Seminal Plasma Induces Transcriptome Changes in Endometrial Epithelial Cells and Stromal Fibroblasts Associated with Inflammation and Angiogenesis. Abstract at the 60th Meeting of the Society for Gynecological Investigation, Orlando, Florida, 2013.

    Research Narrative

    Before his acceptance in the General Surgery Residency Program, Dr. Chu was a medical research fellow in the Transplantation Research Laboratory, co-mentored by Dr. Qizhi Tang and Dr. Peter Stock in the Department of Surgery. He received his B.A. in Public Health at the University of California, Berkeley and his M.S. in Health and Medical Sciences through the UC Berkeley-UCSF Joint Medical Program. Simon is also a member of the PRIME Program in Medicine for the Urban Underserved at UCSF. His longstanding interest in the human immune system has lead him to numerous research investigations.

    In the laboratory of Dr. Warner Greene, he identified two unique proteins in seminal fluid that contributed to the enhancement of HIV infection and served as potential new drug targets in the creation of multi-combinational antiviral microbicides. In his graduate studies in the laboratory of Dr. Joseph "Mike" McCune, he characterized the role and mechanisms by which gut-resident commensal bacterial species can inhibit inflammatory pathways in the gut, which has been associated with HIV disease progression. He is currently pursuing the Doctor of Medicine degree at UCSF.

    Simon Chu In Lab For Bio

    Currently, Simon N. Chu is a Howard Hughes Medical Institute Fellow pursuing investigations into the immunological basis of enhanced transplant rejection in HIV-positive solid organ transplant recipients. In a large multi-site clinical trial of liver and kidney transplants in people living with HIV, recipients were found to have a 2 to 3 fold higher rate of rejection compared to age-matched individuals without the virus. This observation was unexpected and counterintuitive, given that such individuals are virally immunosuppressed. In order to make transplantation a safer and more efficacious option for people living with HIV who develop end-stage organ failure, he aims to identify pre-transplant immunological correlates of rejection in this patient population. By utilizing high-dimensional flow cytometric and multiplex gene expression analysis, he is seeking to identify novel biomarkers associated with the development of acute cellular rejection. In the era of precision medicine, these results may help transplant clinicians and surgeons identify at-risk patients and allow for individualized tailoring and targeted escalation of immunosuppression. Lastly, these studies will serve as a catalyst towards identifying new immunologic mechanisms responsible for this paradoxical enhanced rejection. 

    In addition to his basic science immunology research, Chu also conducts multidisciplinary research in translational biomedical device development and surgical education. He is the Clinical Lead of the Tabla Research Team for the laboratory of Shuvo Roy PhD, in the Department of Bioengineering. Utilizing a low-cost, non-invasive acoustic diagnostic device, he directs two clinical studies to characterize fluid accumulation during respiratory illnesses such as pneumonia and heart failure exacerbation. Combining audio processing methods and machine learning algorithms, this work aims to assist clinicians in the rapid and accurate diagnosis of lung disease. 

    Furthermore, in the research group of Patricia O'Sullivan, his research in surgical education aims to better understand the unique and challenging teaching environment of robotic surgery. Through qualitative analysis of the complex instructional behaviors and interactions between attending surgeons and residents, his efforts are guiding the development of a structured, evidence-based robotic surgery curriculum for surgical trainees. 

    Chu's research has an excellent track record of public and private funding, with publication in respected peer-reviewed journals. His work has been presented and recognized nationally and internationally. In 2018, he was awarded the School of Medicine Dean's Prize for Research and Scholarship in Molecular Medicine for the second time. 

    Research Interests

    Solid organ transplantation in persons with HIV

    Immunological correlates of transplantation rejection and tolerance

    Publications

    MOST RECENT PUBLICATIONS FROM A TOTAL OF 12
    1. Dual α-globin and truncated EPO receptor knockin restores hemoglobin production in α-thalassemia-derived red blood cells.
      Chu SN, Soupene E, Wienert B, Yin H, Sharma D, McCreary T, Jia K, Homma S, Hampton JP, Gardner JM, Conklin BR, MacKenzie TC, Porteus MH, Cromer MK| | PubMed
    2. Circadian clocks drive rhythmic antitumor immune responses mediated by migratory dendritic cells.
      Chu SN, Gardner JM| | PubMed
    3. Discordant Timing of Hypoglycemic Agent Screening Causing Delayed Diagnosis of Sulfonylurea-Induced Hypoglycemia.
      Folick A, Cheng C, Chu SN, Rick JW, Rushakoff RJ| | PubMed
    4. Everolimus, an mTORC1/2 inhibitor, in ART-suppressed individuals who received solid organ transplantation: A prospective study.
      Henrich TJ, Schreiner C, Cameron C, Hogan LE, Richardson B, Rutishauser RL, Deitchman AN, Chu S, Rogers R, Thanh C, Gibson EA, Zarinsefat A, Bakkour S, Aweeka F, Busch MP, Liegler T, Baker C, Milush J, Deeks SG, Stock PG| | PubMed
    5. Teaching in the robotic environment: Use of alternative approaches to guide operative instruction.
      Green CA, Chu SN, Huang E, Chern H, O'Sullivan P| | PubMed
    6. Improved Detection of Lung Fluid With Standardized Acoustic Stimulation of the Chest.
      Rao A, Chu S, Batlivala N, Zetumer S, Roy S| | PubMed
    7. Gut-Resident Lactobacillus Abundance Associates with IDO1 Inhibition and Th17 Dynamics in SIV-Infected Macaques.
      Vujkovic-Cvijin I, Swainson LA, Chu SN, Ortiz AM, Santee CA, Petriello A, Dunham RM, Fadrosh DW, Lin DL, Faruqi AA, Huang Y, Apetrei C, Pandrea I, Hecht FM, Pilcher CD, Klatt NR, Brenchley JM, Lynch SV, McCune JM| | PubMed
    8. Liquefaction of semen generates and later degrades a conserved semenogelin peptide that enhances HIV infection.
      Roan NR, Liu H, Usmani SM, Neidleman J, Müller JA, Avila-Herrera A, Gawanbacht A, Zirafi O, Chu S, Dong M, Kumar ST, Smith JF, Pollard KS, Fändrich M, Kirchhoff F, Münch J, Witkowska HE, Greene WC| | PubMed
    9. Interaction of fibronectin with semen amyloids synergistically enhances HIV infection.
      Roan NR, Chu S, Liu H, Neidleman J, Witkowska HE, Greene WC| | PubMed
    10. Seminal plasma induces global transcriptomic changes associated with cell migration, proliferation and viability in endometrial epithelial cells and stromal fibroblasts.
      Chen JC, Johnson BA, Erikson DW, Piltonen TT, Barragan F, Chu S, Kohgadai N, Irwin JC, Greene WC, Giudice LC, Roan NR| | PubMed
    11. Peptides released by physiological cleavage of semen coagulum proteins form amyloids that enhance HIV infection.
      Roan NR, Müller JA, Liu H, Chu S, Arnold F, Stürzel CM, Walther P, Dong M, Witkowska HE, Kirchhoff F, Münch J, Greene WC| | PubMed
    12. DNA fingerprint analysis of three short tandem repeat (STR) loci for biochemistry and forensic science laboratory courses.
      McNamara-Schroeder K, Olonan C, Chu S, Montoya MC, Alviri M, Ginty S, Love JJ| | PubMed