James Thomas, M.D.

James A. Thomas, M.D. is an Associate Professor (with tenure) in the Departments of Pediatrics and Molecular Biology at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center. He is appointed to the Division of Pediatric Critical Care Medicine

• Education
  • Fellowship and research training in Pediatric Critical Care at UTSW/Children's Medical Center Dallas
    • Recipient of NICHD-funded Pediatric Scientist Development Award (1993-1995)
    • Awarded Jaws Award for Outstanding Fellow by the ICU faculty, nurses and respiratory therapists (1995)
  • Pediatrics residency at Children’s Hospital of Los Angeles (1989-1992)
    
    • Received the Victor E. Stork Award for "excellent work at the hospital and for promise of future abilities in the care of children" (1992)
    • Awarded Frances Nunnally Winzer Scholarship for "the resident who has shown unusual potential for growth and professional development" (1990)
  • M.D., Stanford University (1989)
    
    • Honors for Distinguished Research in Pediatrics.
  • A.B., Romance Languages and Literature/Latin-American Fiction, Princeton University (1981)
    
    • Awarded magna cum laude
• Faculty career
  • Assistant Professor of Pediatrics (1995)
  • Assistant Professor of Molecular Biology (1995)
  • Associate Professor (with tenure) of Pediatrics and Molecular Biology (2003)
• Certifications and Memberships
  • Diplomate of the American Board of Pediatrics (1992)
  • Diplomate of the Sub-Board Pediatric Critical Care Medicine, American Board of Pediatrics (1996)
  • Fellow of the American Academy of Pediatrics
  • Member, American Association for the Advancement of Science
  • Member, Society of Critical Care Medicine
  • Member, Shock Society
  • Member, Society for Pediatric Research.

• Critical Care Medicine
• Pediatrics

• Primary Interests
• Advanced Mechanical Ventilation
• Extracorporeal Life Support
• Sepsis
• Septic Shock

• Innate Immune Response to Infection
• Innate Immune Signaling and Autoimmunity
• Innate Immunity and Myocardial Dysfunction

Featured Publications

The dual functions of IL-1 receptor-associated kinase 2 in TLR9-mediated IFN and proinflammatory cytokine production.

Wan Y, Kim TW, Yu M, Zhou H, Yamashita M, Kang Z, Yin W, Wang JA, Thomas J, Sen GC, Stark GR, Li X J. Immunol. 2011 Mar 186 5 3006-14

Donation after cardiocirculatory death: a call for a moratorium pending full public disclosure and fully informed consent.

Joffe AR, Carcillo J, Anton N, deCaen A, Han YY, Bell MJ, Maffei FA, Sullivan J, Thomas J, Garcia-Guerra G Philos Ethics Humanit Med 2011 6 17

Outcomes among neonates, infants, and children after extracorporeal cardiopulmonary resuscitation for refractory inhospital pediatric cardiac arrest: a report from the National Registry of Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation.

Raymond TT, Cunnyngham CB, Thompson MT, Thomas JA, Dalton HJ, Nadkarni VM Pediatr Crit Care Med 2010 May 11 3 362-71

Innate immunity mediates myocardial preconditioning through Toll-like receptor 2 and TIRAP-dependent signaling pathways.

Dong JW, Vallejo JG, Tzeng HP, Thomas JA, Mann DL Am. J. Physiol. Heart Circ. Physiol. 2010 Mar 298 3 H1079-87

Age-dependent differences of interleukin-6 activity in cardiac function after burn complicated by sepsis.

Wang L, Quan J, Johnston WE, Maass DL, Horton JW, Thomas JA, Tao W Burns 2010 Mar 36 2 232-8

Identification of IRAK1 as a risk gene with critical role in the pathogenesis of systemic lupus erythematosus.

Jacob CO, Zhu J, Armstrong DL, Yan M, Han J, Zhou XJ, Thomas JA, Reiff A, Myones BL, Ojwang JO, Kaufman KM, Klein-Gitelman M, McCurdy D, Wagner-Weiner L, Silverman E, Ziegler J, Kelly JA, Merrill JT, Harley JB, Ramsey-Goldman R, Vila LM, Bae SC, Vyse TJ, Gilkeson GS, Gaffney PM, Moser KL, Langefeld CD, Zidovetzki R, Mohan C Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 2009 Apr 106 15 6256-61

Interleukin-1 receptor-associated kinase 2 is critical for lipopolysaccharide-mediated post-transcriptional control.

Wan Y, Xiao H, Affolter J, Kim TW, Bulek K, Chaudhuri S, Carlson D, Hamilton T, Mazumder B, Stark GR, Thomas J, Li X J. Biol. Chem. 2009 Apr 284 16 10367-75

Gender dependent importance of IRAK-1 in dextran sulfate sodium induced colitis.

Berglund M, Thomas JA, Fredin MF, Melgar S, Hörnquist EH, Hultgren OH Cell. Immunol. 2009 259 1 27-32

Lys63-linked polyubiquitination of IRAK-1 is required for interleukin-1 receptor- and toll-like receptor-mediated NF-kappaB activation.

Conze DB, Wu CJ, Thomas JA, Landstrom A, Ashwell JD Mol. Cell. Biol. 2008 May 28 10 3538-47

Toll-like receptor cross-hyporesponsiveness is functional in interleukin-1-receptor-associated kinase-1 (IRAK-1)-deficient macrophages: differential role played by IRAK-1 in regulation of tumour necrosis factor and interleukin-10 production.

Berglund M, Thomas JA, Hörnquist EH, Hultgren OH Scand. J. Immunol. 2008 May 67 5 473-9

• Jaws Award for Outstanding Fellow
  Awarded by critical care physicians, nurses, respiratory therapists at CMC, Dallas (1995)
• Victor E. Stork Award
  Awarded for excellent work in Children’s Hospital of Los Angeles (1992)
• Frances Nunnally Winzer Scholarship
  Awarded for Children’s Hospital of Los Angeles resident who has shown unusual potential growth and development (1989)
• Research Honors Award for Distinguished Research in Pediatrics
  Awarded by Stanford University School of Medicine (1989)
• Circulo Hispano-Americano Award
  Awarded by Princeton University for highest achievement as a Spanish Major (1981)

• American Academy of Pediatrics
• American Association for the Advancement of Science
• International Endotoxin Society
• Shock Society
• Society for Critical Care Medicine