Advances in Genetic & Genomic Medicine
Recent advances in medical genetics have made it possible for many people and their families to obtain more accurate information about their chances for developing a genetic disorder or hereditary cancer. Preconception and prenatal genetic consultation can also help couples learn about possible risks to their offspring.
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Our mission is to integrate new genetic technologies with comprehensive and compassionate healthcare so we can help people understand and adapt to the implications of genetic variation for their health.
Our faculty consists of medical geneticists and genetic counselors who are experts in diagnosing hereditary conditions, supporting individuals with making decisions about whether to have genetic testing, interpreting test results and providing education that can be helpful to them, their family members and their healthcare providers.
Medical Genetics Residency Program
The Medical Genetics Residency Program trains physicians who, through their expertise in genetic and genomic medicine, will become leaders in the application of genetic and genomic information to the healthcare of our patients. The program options are:
- A two-year, categorical Medical (Clinical) Genetics and Genomics Residency that requires prior satisfactory completion of 24 months of direct patient-care-related, ACGME-accredited residency training in a specialty other than medical genetics and genomics.
- A four-year, combined Pediatrics/Medical (Clinical) Genetics and Genomics training program.
Graduate Program in Genetic Counseling
Our Graduate Program in Genetic Counseling is committed to training professionals who are prepared to help people understand and adapt to the implications of genetic information on their lives and those of family members.
Led by Eric Vilain, MD, PhD, the MGRC innovates through a partnership between UCI, Children’s National Hospital, an acute and specialty care pediatric hospital in Washington, D.C., and Invitae Corporation, a CLIA-certified clinical genetics testing laboratory in San Francisco, Calif.
The MGRC is one of five genomics research centers participating in the GREGoR Consortium under the NIH. It houses a cohort of interdisciplinary faculty and support staff, including clinical geneticists, translational researchers, genetic counselors, molecular geneticists, bioinformaticians, clinical biochemical geneticists and others. The center’s goals are to:
- Identify novel causes of Mendelian conditions
- Disambiguate uncertain variants and investigate the mechanisms of undiagnosed Mendelian conditions, and
- Disseminate findings to enable translational research on new and rare Mendelian conditions.
Led by an interdisciplinary team, including neurologists Changrui Xiao, MD, and Tahseen Mozaffar, MD, and doctors Eric Vilain and Jose Abdenur, the Diagnostic Center of Excellence in Neurogenetics and Neurometabolism serves as a regional center for the Undiagnosed Diseases Network, a national network of referral sites for patients with undiagnosed rare diseases. This collaborative program leverages clinical and research programs across the UCI ecosystem to bring a wide breadth of experts together with the common aim of facilitating the discovery of rare genetic conditions.
Virginia Kimonis, MD, manages a component of the Rare Diseases Clinical Research Network, focusing on Prader-Willi syndrome, Rett syndrome and Angelman syndrome. While each condition is individually rare, research findings can lead to important insight into treatment strategies for these conditions and may have major implications for other disorders.
In addition to his clinical expertise in working with individuals with cardiomyopathies and congenital heart disease, Michael Zaragoza, MD, PhD, runs the Cardiogenomics Clinical and Research Program, which is focused on identifying and characterizing the genetic variants that contribute to the risk for these conditions.
Division of Genetic & Genomic Medicine Faculty
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Volunteer Faculty
- Jose Abdenur, MD
- Maureen Bocian, MD, MS
- Richard Chang, MD
- Cristel Chapel-Cresto, MD
- Suellen Hopfer, MD
- Manuel Porto, MD
- Leslie Raffel, MD FACMG
- Moyra Smith, MD, PhD, MFA
- Kathryn Steinhaus-French, MS, LCGC
- Maya Thangavelu, PhD
- Valerie Watiker, MS, MD, CGC, FACMG
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Connect with Us
For more information about the Division of Genetic and Genomic Medicine's education and research programs, please contact us at 714-456-5791.
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Clinical Services
For information on patient care, please visit our healthcare website. There, you will find comprehensive information on genetic evaluation, testing and counseling services, including details on our dedicated healthcare providers.