Dr. Blanca Himes is Assistant Professor in the Department of Biostatistics and Epidemiology in the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania. Dr. Himes is also affiliated with the Graduate Group in Genomics and Computational Biology. As a computational scientist, Dr. Himes’ research interests focus on using biomedical informatics approaches to better understand complex respiratory diseases such as asthma. Among the on-going projects in the Himes lab include understanding the function of disease-associated genes by altering cell-specific transcriptomes, integrating diverse genomic datasets to model cellular transcriptome changes involved in disease, and using geospatial demographic and environmental data to better understand factors that contribute to asthma prevalence and exacerbation. In addition to research, Dr. Himes is active in mentoring students, and she blogs occasionally to address topics posed by young students such as career advice, personal motivation for doing research, and parenthood. Dr. Himes’ research potential and leadership skills have been recognized with the UCSD Sang-keng Ma Memorial Award (2001) and the Harvard-MIT Division of Health Sciences and Technology Student Leadership Award (2007).
Recent Publications
- Gleeson, PK, Morales, KH, Buckey, TM, Fadugba, OO, Apter, AJ, Christie, JD, Himes, BE. Benefits of Aeroallergen Testing on Oral Corticosteroid Bursts in Adults with Asthma. medRxiv 2024; : . PubMed PMID:38352545 PubMed Central PMC10863005.
- Bunyavanich, S, Becker, PM, Altman, MC, Lasky-Su, J, Ober, C, Zengler, K, Berdyshev, E, Bonneau, R, Chatila, T, Chatterjee, N et al.. Analytical challenges in omics research on asthma and allergy: A National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases workshop. J Allergy Clin Immunol 2024; 153 (4): 954-968. PubMed PMID:38295882 PubMed Central PMC10999353.
- Scorletti, E, Saiman, Y, Jeon, S, Schneider, CV, Buyco, DG, Lin, C, Himes, BE, Mesaros, CA, Vujkovic, M, Creasy, KT et al.. A missense variant in human perilipin 2 (PLIN2 Ser251Pro) reduces hepatic steatosis in mice. JHEP Rep 2024; 6 (1): 100902. PubMed PMID:38074507 PubMed Central PMC10701134.
- Park, HR, Azzara, D, Cohen, ED, Boomhower, SR, Diwadkar, AR, Himes, BE, O'Reilly, MA, Lu, Q. Identification of novel NRF2-dependent genes as regulators of lead and arsenic toxicity in neural progenitor cells. J Hazard Mater 2024; 463 : 132906. PubMed PMID:37939567 PubMed Central PMC10842917.
- Gleeson, PK, Morales, KH, Buckey, TM, Fadugba, OO, Apter, AJ, Christie, JD, Himes, BE. Factors associated with aeroallergen testing among adults with asthma in a large health system. J Allergy Clin Immunol Glob 2023; 2 (4): 100167. PubMed PMID:37841071 PubMed Central PMC10570953.
- Mennella, JA, Kan, M, Lowenthal, ED, Saraiva, LR, Mainland, JD, Himes, BE, Pepino, MY. Genetic Variation and Sensory Perception of a Pediatric Formulation of Ibuprofen: Can a Medicine Taste Too Good for Some? Int J Mol Sci 2023; 24 (17): . PubMed PMID:37685855 PubMed Central PMC10487938.
- Gregg, JT, Himes, BE, Asselbergs, FW, Moore, JH. Improving Genetic Association Studies with a Novel Methodology that Unveils the Hidden Complexity of All-Cause Heart Failure. medRxiv 2023; : . PubMed PMID:37577697 PubMed Central PMC10418568.
- Moore, BB, Ballinger, MN, Bauer, NN, Blackwell, TS, Borok, Z, Budinger, GRS, Camoretti-Mercado, B, Erzurum, SC, Himes, BE, Keshamouni, VG et al.. Building Career Paths for Ph.D., Basic and Translational Scientists in Clinical Departments in the United States: An Official American Thoracic Society Workshop Report. Ann Am Thorac Soc 2023; 20 (8): 1077-1087. PubMed PMID:37526479 PubMed Central PMC10405615.
- Schreibman, A, Xie, S, Hubbard, RA, Himes, BE. Linking Ambient NO2 Pollution Measures with Electronic Health Record Data to Study Asthma Exacerbations. AMIA Jt Summits Transl Sci Proc 2023; 2023 : 467-476. PubMed PMID:37350870 PubMed Central PMC10283087.
- Gleeson, PK, Morales, KH, Hvisdas, C, LaCava, AF, Harhay, MO, Rank, MA, Apter, AJ, Himes, BE. Factors Associated With Asthma Biologic Prescribing and Primary Adherence Among Adults in a Large Health System. J Allergy Clin Immunol Pract 2023; 11 (6): 1834-1842.e4. PubMed PMID:36907354 PubMed Central PMC10330036.
