Research Summary

Dr. Puck earned her undergraduate and medical degrees at Harvard University and Harvard Medical School, after which she completed clinical and research training in pediatrics, infectious diseases and immunology at Washington University in St. Louis, Missouri, and Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, Texas. After serving on the faculties of the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia and the National Human Genome Research Institute, NIH, in Bethesda, Maryland, she joined UCSF in 2006 as Professor of Pediatrics. In addition to caring for patients as an immunologist and teaching biomedical trainees at all levels, Dr. Puck has a basic and translational research program that focuses on human immune disorders as well as mouse models of lymphocyte development. Dr. Puck has used genetic and genomic technology as well as cellular immunology to study the basis of impaired lymphocyte development as well as immune dysregulation. She has published over 215 peer reviewed research papers in addition to over 120 chapters and reviews; she is an editor and contributor to Primary Immunodeficiencies: A Molecular and Genetic Approach, 3rd 2014, and Clinical Immunology, Principles and Practice, 6th ed, 2021.
Noting the advantages in survival and outcomes for infants with severe combined immunodeficiency (SCID) after diagnosis and treatment early in life, Dr. Puck conceived and developed a newborn screening test that uses the universally collected dried blood spots to detect SCID. DNA extracted from the blood spots is assayed by PCR to quantitate T cell receptor excision circles (TRECs), a biomarker for the generation of a normal, diverse repertoire of T cells. Absent or low TRECs suggest SCID. This testing, now adopted in newborn screening panels throughout the USA and a growing number of countries, allows infants affected with SCID and other conditions with insufficient T cells to be detected early and treated.
Dr. Puck's translational research also includes advances in therapies for individuals with SCID. She and Dr. Mort Cowan lead the first in human gene therapy clinical trial for SCID due to defects of the DNA repair gene Artemis (DCLRE1C).
Dr. Puck directs the UCSF Jeffrey Modell Diagnostic Center for Primary Immunodeficiencies. She serves on the Medical Advisory Committee of the Immune Deficiency Foundation, the Committee on Primary Immunodeficiency Disease of the International Union of Immunological Societies. She is PI of the NIH-funded Primary Immune Deficiency Treatment Consortium (PIDTC), part of the Rare Disease Clinical Research Network. She has been elected to the American Society of Clinical Investigation (ASCI), Society for Pediatric Research (SPR), Association of American Physicians (AAP), American Pediatric Society (APS) and National Academy of Medicine. She received the Abbot Award in Clinical and Diagnostic Immunology from the American Society of Microbiology in 2013, the Colonel Harlan Sanders Award for Lifetime Achievement in Genetics from the March of Dimes in 2014, and the Boyle Achievement Award for service to primary immunodeficiencies from the Immune Deficiency Foundation in 2017.

Research Funding

  • September 8, 2020 - August 31, 2025 - Inherited T cell defects: Diagnosis, Mechanisms and Treatments , Co-Principal Investigator . Sponsor: NIH, Sponsor Award ID: P01AI138962
  • September 8, 2020 - August 31, 2025 - Inherited T cell defects: Diagnosis, mechanisms and treatments , Multi-PI . Sponsor: NIH/NIAID, Sponsor Award ID: P01 AI138962-01A1
  • October 1, 2009 - August 31, 2024 - Primary Immunodeficiency Treatment Consortium (PIDTC) (3rd competitive renewal 2019) , Contact PI . Sponsor: NIH/NIAID and NCATS ORD, Sponsor Award ID: U54 AI082973
  • June 1, 2018 - June 30, 2023 - Gene Therapy for Artemis-Deficient Severe Combined Immunodeficiency (ARTSCID) Using a Self-Inactivating Lentiviral Vector (AProArt) to Transduce Autologous CD34 Hematopoietic Stem Cells , Co-PI . Sponsor: California Institute for Regenerative Medicine (CIRM), Sponsor Award ID: CLIN2-10830
  • September 5, 2013 - August 31, 2019 - Sequencing of Newborn Blood Spot DNA to Improve and Expand Newborn Screening , Principal Investigator . Sponsor: NIH, Sponsor Award ID: U19HD077627

Education

Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, BA cum laude, 1971, Biochemistry
Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, (Harvard-MIT Program in Health Sciences & Technology), MD, 1975, Medicine

Honors & Awards

  • 1984-89
    Physician Scientist Award, NIH
  • 1986-89
    Ethyl Brown Foerderer Scholar, Children's Hospital of Philadelphia
  • 1991
    Election to Society for Pediatric Research
  • 1992
    Election to American Society for Clinical Investigation
  • 1997
    Election to Association of American Physicians
  • 1998
    NHGRI Director's Award for Studies Defining Autoimmune Lymphoproliferative Syndrome
  • 1995, 97, 98, 99
    NHGRI Director's Awards for Scientific Achievement and Outstanding Service
  • 2001
    Election to Committee on Primary Immunodeficiency Disease, IUIS

Selected Publications

  1. Sertori R, Truong B, Singh MK, Shinton S, Price R, Sharo A, Shultes P, Sunderam U, Rana S, Srinivasan R, Datta S, Font-Burgada J, Brenner SE, Puck JM, Wiest DL. Disruption of the moonlighting function of CTF18 in a patient with T-lymphopenia. Front Immunol. 2025; 16:1539848.  View on PubMed
  2. Jacovas VC, Zelnick M, McNulty S, Ross JE, Khurana N, Pan X, Nieto A, Martin S, McLean B, Elnagheeb MA, Cowan MJ, Puck JM, Hershfield M, Verbsky J, Walter J, Allenspach E, Chan AY, van Oers NSC, Ghosh R, Piazza M, Yuan B, Notarangelo LD, Johnson BA, Chinn IK. The ClinGen Severe Combined Immunodeficiency Disease Variant Curation Expert Panel: Specifications for classification of variants in ADA , DCLRE1C , IL2RG , IL7R , JAK3 , RAG1 , and RAG2. medRxiv. 2025 Feb 13.  View on PubMed
  3. Okuyama K, Yamashita M, Koumoundourou A, Wiegreffe C, Ohno-Oishi M, Murphy SJH, Zhao X, Yoshida H, Ebihara T, Satoh-Takayama N, Kojo S, Ohno H, Morio T, Wu Y, Puck J, Xue HH, Britsch S, Taniuchi I. A mutant BCL11B-N440K protein interferes with BCL11A function during T lymphocyte and neuronal development. Nat Immunol. 2024 Dec; 25(12):2284-2296.  View on PubMed
  4. Miranda MA, Tsalatsanis A, Trotter JR, Arnold DE, Squire JD, Kidd S, Parikh S, Marsh RA, Griffith LM, Mallhi K, Chellapandian D, Lim SS, Grunebaum E, Sullivan KE, Newburger PE, Dinauer MC, Cowan MJ, Dvorak CC, Haddad E, Kohn DB, Notarangelo LD, Pai SY, Puck JM, Pulsipher MA, Torgerson TR, Malech HL, Kang EM, Morton FB, Leiding JW. High symptom burden in female X-linked chronic granulomatous disease carriers. Clin Immunol. 2024 Nov; 268:110364.  View on PubMed
  5. McDonnell J, Cousins K, Younger MEM, Lane A, Abolhassani H, Abraham RS, Al-Tamemi S, Aldave-Becerra JC, Al-Faris EH, Alfaro-Murillo A, AlKhater SA, Alsaati N, Doss AMA, Anderson M, Angarola E, Ariue B, Arnold DE, Assa'ad AH, Aytekin C, Bank M, Bergerson JRE, Bleesing J, Boesing J, Bouso C, Brodszki N, Cabanillas D, Cady C, Callahan MA, Caorsi R, Carbone J, Carrabba M, Castagnoli R, Catanzaro JR, Chan S, Chandra S, Chapdelaine H, Chavoshzadeh Z, Chong HJ, Connors L, Consonni F, Correa-Jimenez O, Cunningham-Rundles C, D'Astous-Gauthier K, Delmonte OM, Demirdag YY, Deshpande DR, Diaz-Cabrera NM, Dimitriades VR, El-Owaidy R, ElGhazali G, Al-Hammadi S, Fabio G, Faure AS, Feng J, Fernandez JM, Fill L, Franco GR, Frenck RW, Fuleihan RL, Giardino G, Galant-Swafford J, Gambineri E, Garabedian EK, Geerlinks AV, Goudouris E, Grecco O, Pan-Hammarström Q, Khani HHK, Hammarström L, Hartog NL, Heimall J, Hernandez-Molina G, Horner CC, Hostoffer RW, Hristova N, Hsiao KC, Ivankovich-Escoto G, Jaber F, Jalil M, Jamee M, Jean T, Jeong S, Jhaveri D, Jordan MB, Joshi AY, Kalkat A, Kanarek HJ, Kellner ES, Khojah A, Khoury R, Kokron CM, Kumar A, Lecerf K, Lehman HK, Leiding JW, Lesmana H, Lim XR, Lopes JP, López AL, Tarquini L, Lundgren IS, Magnusson J, Marinho AKBB, Marseglia GL, Martone GM, Mechtler AG, Mendonca L, Milner JD, Mustillo PJ, Naderi AG, Naviglio S, Nell J, Niebur HB, Notarangelo L, Oleastro M, Ortega-López MC, Patel NR, Petrovic G, Pignata C, Porras O, Prince BT, Puck JM, Qamar N, Rabusin M, Raje N, Regairaz L, Risma KA, Ristagno EH, Routes J, Roxo-Junior P, Salemi N, Scalchunes C, Schuval SJ, Seneviratne SL, Shankar A, Sherkat R, Shin JJ, Siddiqi A, Signa S, Sobh A, Lima FMS, Stenehjem KK, Tam JS, Tang M, Barros MT, Verbsky J, Vergadi E, Voelker DH, Volpi S, Wall LA, Wang C, Williams KW, Wu EY, Wu SS, Zhou JJ, Cook A, Sullivan KE, Marsh R. COVID-19 Vaccination in Patients with Inborn Errors of Immunity Reduces Hospitalization and Critical Care Needs Related to COVID-19: a USIDNET Report. J Clin Immunol. 2024 04 05; 44(4):86.  View on PubMed
  6. Abraham RS, Basu A, Heimall JR, Dunn E, Yip A, Kapadia M, Kapoor N, Satter LF, Buckley R, O'Reilly R, Cuvelier GDE, Chandra S, Bednarski J, Chaudhury S, Moore TB, Haines H, Dávila Saldaña BJ, Chellapandian D, Rayes A, Chen K, Caywood E, Chandrakasan S, Lugt MTV, Ebens C, Teira P, Shereck E, Miller H, Aquino V, Eissa H, Yu LC, Gillio A, Madden L, Knutsen A, Shah AJ, DeSantes K, Barnum J, Broglie L, Joshi AY, Kleiner G, Dara J, Prockop S, Martinez C, Mousallem T, Oved J, Burroughs L, Marsh R, Torgerson TR, Leiding JW, Pai SY, Kohn DB, Pulsipher MA, Griffith LM, Notarangelo LD, Cowan MJ, Puck J, Dvorak CC, Haddad E. Relevance of lymphocyte proliferation to PHA in severe combined immunodeficiency (SCID) and T cell lymphopenia. Clin Immunol. 2024 04; 261:109942.  View on PubMed
  7. Grunebaum E, Arnold DE, Logan B, Parikh S, Marsh RA, Griffith LM, Mallhi K, Chellapandian D, Lim SS, Deal CL, Kapoor N, Murguía-Favela L, Falcone EL, Prasad VK, Touzot F, Bleesing JJ, Chandrakasan S, Heimall JR, Bednarski JJ, Broglie LA, Chong HJ, Kapadia M, Prockop S, Dávila Saldaña BJ, Schaefer E, Bauchat AL, Teira P, Chandra S, Parta M, Cowan MJ, Dvorak CC, Haddad E, Kohn DB, Notarangelo LD, Pai SY, Puck JM, Pulsipher MA, Torgerson TR, Malech HL, Kang EM, Leiding JW. Allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation is effective for p47phox chronic granulomatous disease: A Primary Immune Deficiency Treatment Consortium study. J Allergy Clin Immunol. 2024 May; 153(5):1423-1431.e2.  View on PubMed
  8. Leiding JW, Arnold DE, Parikh S, Logan B, Marsh RA, Griffith LM, Wu R, Kidd S, Mallhi K, Chellapandian D, Si Lim SJ, Grunebaum E, Falcone EL, Murguia-Favela L, Grossman D, Prasad VK, Heimall JR, Touzot F, Burroughs LM, Bleesing J, Kapoor N, Dara J, Williams O, Kapadia M, Oshrine BR, Bednarski JJ, Rayes A, Chong H, Cuvelier GDE, Forbes Satter LR, Martinez C, Vander Lugt MT, Yu LC, Chandrakasan S, Joshi A, Prockop SE, Dávila Saldaña BJ, Aquino V, Broglie LA, Ebens CL, Madden LM, DeSantes K, Milner J, Rangarajan HG, Shah AJ, Gillio AP, Knutsen AP, Miller HK, Moore TB, Graham P, Bauchat A, Bunin NJ, Teira P, Petrovic A, Chandra S, Abdel-Azim H, Dorsey MJ, Birbrayer O, Cowan MJ, Dvorak CC, Haddad E, Kohn DB, Notarangelo LD, Pai SY, Puck JM, Pulsipher MA, Torgerson TR, Malech HL, Kang EM. Genotype, oxidase status, and preceding infection or autoinflammation do not affect allogeneic HCT outcomes for CGD. Blood. 2023 12 14; 142(24):2105-2118.  View on PubMed
  9. Yan KK, Condori J, Ma Z, Metais JY, Ju B, Ding L, Dhungana Y, Palmer LE, Langfitt DM, Ferrara F, Throm R, Shi H, Risch I, Bhatara S, Shaner B, Lockey TD, Talleur AC, Easton J, Meagher MM, Puck JM, Cowan MJ, Zhou S, Mamcarz E, Gottschalk S, Yu J. Integrome signatures of lentiviral gene therapy for SCID-X1 patients. Sci Adv. 2023 10 06; 9(40):eadg9959.  View on PubMed
  10. Eissa H, Thakar MS, Shah AJ, Logan BR, Griffith LM, Dong H, Parrott RE, O'Reilly RJ, Dara J, Kapoor N, Forbes Satter L, Chandra S, Kapadia M, Chandrakasan S, Knutsen A, Jyonouchi SC, Molinari L, Rayes A, Ebens CL, Teira P, Dávila Saldaña BJ, Burroughs LM, Chaudhury S, Chellapandian D, Gillio AP, Goldman F, Malech HL, DeSantes K, Cuvelier GDE, Rozmus J, Quinones R, Yu LC, Broglie L, Aquino V, Shereck E, Moore TB, Vander Lugt MT, Mousallem TI, Oved JH, Dorsey M, Abdel-Azim H, Martinez C, Bleesing JH, Prockop S, Kohn DB, Bednarski JJ, Leiding J, Marsh RA, Torgerson T, Notarangelo LD, Pai SY, Pulsipher MA, Puck JM, Dvorak CC, Haddad E, Buckley RH, Cowan MJ, Heimall J. Posttransplantation late complications increase over time for patients with SCID: A Primary Immune Deficiency Treatment Consortium (PIDTC) landmark study. J Allergy Clin Immunol. 2024 01; 153(1):287-296.  View on PubMed
  11. Chandrasekaran P, Han Y, Zerbe CS, Heller T, DeRavin SS, Kreuzberg SA, Marciano BE, Siu Y, Jones DR, Abraham RS, Stephens MC, Tsou AM, Snapper S, Conlan S, Subramanian P, Quinones M, Grou C, Calderon V, Deming C, Leiding JW, Arnold DE, Logan BR, Griffith LM, Petrovic A, Mousallem TI, Kapoor N, Heimall JR, Barnum JL, Kapadia M, Wright N, Rayes A, Chandra S, Broglie LA, Chellapandian D, Deal CL, Grunebaum E, Lim SS, Mallhi K, Marsh RA, Murguia-Favela L, Parikh S, Touzot F, Cowan MJ, Dvorak CC, Haddad E, Kohn DB, Notarangelo LD, Pai SY, Puck JM, Pulsipher MA, Torgerson TR, Kang EM, Malech HL, Segre JA, Bryant CE, Holland SM, Falcone EL. Intestinal microbiome and metabolome signatures in patients with chronic granulomatous disease. J Allergy Clin Immunol. 2023 12; 152(6):1619-1633.e11.  View on PubMed
  12. Thakar MS, Logan BR, Puck JM, Dunn EA, Buckley RH, Cowan MJ, O'Reilly RJ, Kapoor N, Satter LF, Pai SY, Heimall J, Chandra S, Ebens CL, Chellapandian D, Williams O, Burroughs LM, Saldana BD, Rayes A, Madden LM, Chandrakasan S, Bednarski JJ, DeSantes KB, Cuvelier GDE, Teira P, Gillio AP, Eissa H, Knutsen AP, Goldman FD, Aquino VM, Shereck EB, Moore TB, Caywood EH, Lugt MTV, Rozmus J, Broglie L, Yu LC, Shah AJ, Andolina JR, Liu X, Parrott RE, Dara J, Prockop S, Martinez CA, Kapadia M, Jyonouchi SC, Sullivan KE, Bleesing JJ, Chaudhury S, Petrovic A, Keller MD, Quigg TC, Parikh S, Shenoy S, Seroogy C, Rubin T, Decaluwe H, Routes JM, Torgerson TR, Leiding JW, Pulsipher MA, Kohn DB, Griffith LM, Haddad E, Dvorak CC, Notarangelo LD. Measuring the effect of newborn screening on survival after haematopoietic cell transplantation for severe combined immunodeficiency: a 36-year longitudinal study from the Primary Immune Deficiency Treatment Consortium. Lancet. 2023 07 08; 402(10396):129-140.  View on PubMed
  13. Schuetz C, Gerke J, Ege M, Walter J, Kusters M, Worth A, Kanakry JA, Dimitrova D, Wolska-Kusnierz B, Chen K, Unal E, Karakukcu M, Pashchenko O, Leiding J, Kawai T, Amrolia PJ, Berghuis D, Buechner J, Buchbinder D, Cowan MJ, Gennery AR, Güngör T, Heimall J, Miano M, Meyts I, Morris EC, Rivière J, Sharapova SO, Shaw PJ, Slatter M, Honig M, Veys P, Fischer A, Cavazzana M, Moshous D, Schulz A, Albert MH, Puck JM, Lankester AC, Notarangelo LD, Neven B. Hypomorphic RAG deficiency: impact of disease burden on survival and thymic recovery argues for early diagnosis and HSCT. Blood. 2023 02 16; 141(7):713-724.  View on PubMed
  14. Cowan MJ, Yu J, Facchino J, Fraser-Browne C, Sanford U, Kawahara M, Dara J, Long-Boyle J, Oh J, Chan W, Chag S, Broderick L, Chellapandian D, Decaluwe H, Golski C, Hu D, Kuo CY, Miller HK, Petrovic A, Currier R, Hilton JF, Punwani D, Dvorak CC, Malech HL, McIvor RS, Puck JM. Lentiviral Gene Therapy for Artemis-Deficient SCID. N Engl J Med. 2022 12 22; 387(25):2344-2355.  View on PubMed
  15. Forlanini F, Chan A, Dara J, Dvorak CC, Cowan MJ, Puck JM, Dorsey MJ. Impact of Genetic Diagnosis on the Outcome of Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplant in Primary Immunodeficiency Disorders. J Clin Immunol. 2023 04; 43(3):636-646.  View on PubMed
  16. Dvorak CC, Haddad E, Heimall J, Dunn E, Buckley RH, Kohn DB, Cowan MJ, Pai SY, Griffith LM, Cuvelier GDE, Eissa H, Shah AJ, O'Reilly RJ, Pulsipher MA, Wright NAM, Abraham RS, Satter LF, Notarangelo LD, Puck JM. The diagnosis of severe combined immunodeficiency (SCID): The Primary Immune Deficiency Treatment Consortium (PIDTC) 2022 Definitions. J Allergy Clin Immunol. 2023 02; 151(2):539-546.  View on PubMed
  17. Dvorak CC, Haddad E, Heimall J, Dunn E, Cowan MJ, Pai SY, Kapoor N, Satter LF, Buckley RH, O'Reilly RJ, Chandra S, Bednarski JJ, Williams O, Rayes A, Moore TB, Ebens CL, Davila Saldana BJ, Petrovic A, Chellapandian D, Cuvelier GDE, Vander Lugt MT, Caywood EH, Chandrakasan S, Eissa H, Goldman FD, Shereck E, Aquino VM, Desantes KB, Madden LM, Miller HK, Yu L, Broglie L, Gillio A, Shah AJ, Knutsen AP, Andolina JP, Joshi AY, Szabolcs P, Kapadia M, Martinez CA, Parrot RE, Sullivan KE, Prockop SE, Abraham RS, Thakar MS, Leiding JW, Kohn DB, Pulsipher MA, Griffith LM, Notarangelo LD, Puck JM. The diagnosis of severe combined immunodeficiency: Implementation of the PIDTC 2022 Definitions. J Allergy Clin Immunol. 2023 02; 151(2):547-555.e5.  View on PubMed
  18. Bousfiha A, Moundir A, Tangye SG, Picard C, Jeddane L, Al-Herz W, Rundles CC, Franco JL, Holland SM, Klein C, Morio T, Oksenhendler E, Puel A, Puck J, Seppänen MRJ, Somech R, Su HC, Sullivan KE, Torgerson TR, Meyts I. The 2022 Update of IUIS Phenotypical Classification for Human Inborn Errors of Immunity. J Clin Immunol. 2022 10; 42(7):1508-1520.  View on PubMed
  19. Puck JM. A Spot of Good News: Israeli Experience With SCID Newborn Screening. J Allergy Clin Immunol Pract. 2022 10; 10(10):2732-2733.  View on PubMed
  20. Tran P, Gober L, Garabedian EK, Fuleihan RL, Puck JM, Sullivan KE, Spergel JM, Ruffner MA. Eosinophilic gastrointestinal disorders in patients with inborn errors of immunity: Data from the USIDNET registry. Front Immunol. 2022; 13:987895.  View on PubMed

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