Lael Yonker, M.D. Titles and Appointments Chief, Division of Pediatric Pulmonology and Sleep Medicine Associate Professor & Division Chief Endowed Title Pogue Distinguished Chair in Pediatric Pulmonology Medicine Schools Medical School Departments Pediatrics You have reached the Academic Profile. For more information on the doctor and patient care, please visit the clinical profile. Biography Lael Yonker, M.D., is an Associate Professor in the Department of Pediatrics at UT Southwestern Medical Center. Dr. Yonker also holds the Pogue Distinguished Chair in Pediatric Pulmonology Medicine. Dr. Yonker joined the UT Southwestern faculty in 2025. She is certified by the American Board of Pediatrics. Previously, Dr. Yonker was a faculty member at Mass General Brigham, where she was director of the Cystic Fibrosis Center, co-director of the Cystic Fibrosis Therapeutic Development Center, co-director of the Pulmonary Genetics Program, and principal investigator for the Pediatric COVID-19 Biorepository. Dr. Yonker earned her medical degree at the University of Massachusetts. She completed a residency in pediatrics and received advanced training through a pediatric pulmonary fellowship, both at Mass General Brigham. She is a member of several professional societies including, the American Academy of Pediatrics, American Thoracic Society, and Massachusetts Medical Society. As a physician-scientist, Dr. Yonker integrates clinical pulmonary care with translational research to improve outcomes for children with complex respiratory disease. Her work bridges mechanistic studies in patient-derived samples with hypothesis‑driven clinical trials to identify and interrupt maladaptive inflammatory pathways. The goal of her scientific program is to define infection-driven mechanisms that lead to airway and systemic disease in children and leverage‑ these insights to develop targeted therapies. Dr. Yonker specializes in pediatric pulmonary disease and cystic fibrosis. Dr. Yonker contributes to national and international medical leadership through service with the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation and the American Thoracic Society. She has contributed foundational insights into post–COVID‑19 inflammatory syndromes, co‑invented a diagnostic method for a monocytic biomarker used to identify COVID‑19-related illness, and patented therapeutic strategies for multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children. In 2024, she earned the Emerging Leader Award from the National Academy of Medicine. Publications Featured Publications Viral spike antigen clearance and augmented recovery in children with post-COVID multisystem inflammatory syndrome treated with larazotide. Yonker LM, Kane AS, Swank Z, Papadakis L, Kenyon V, Han S, Lima R, Guthrie LB, Alvarez-Carcamo B, Lahoud-Rahme M, Balaguru D, Carroll RW, Lok J, El Saleeby C, Walt DR, Fasano A, Sci Transl Med 2025 Jul 17 809 eadu4284 Vanzacaftor-tezacaftor-deutivacaftor versus elexacaftor-tezacaftor-ivacaftor in individuals with cystic fibrosis aged 12 years and older (SKYLINE Trials VX20-121-102 and VX20-121-103): results from two randomised, active-controlled, phase 3 trials. Keating C, Yonker LM, Vermeulen F, Prais D, Linnemann RW, Trimble A, Kotsimbos T, Mermis J, Braun AT, O'Carroll M, Sutharsan S, Ramsey B, Mall MA, Taylor-Cousar JL, McKone EF, Tullis E, Floreth T, Michelson P, Sosnay PR, Nair N, Zahigian R, Martin H, Ahluwalia N, Lam A, Horsley A, Lancet Respir Med 2025 Mar 13 3 256-271 SARS-CoV-2 reservoir in post-acute sequelae of COVID-19 (PASC). Proal AD, VanElzakker MB, Aleman S, Bach K, Boribong BP, Buggert M, Cherry S, Chertow DS, Davies HE, Dupont CL, Deeks SG, Eimer W, Ely EW, Fasano A, Freire M, Geng LN, Griffin DE, Henrich TJ, Iwasaki A, Izquierdo-Garcia D, Locci M, Mehandru S, Painter MM, Peluso MJ, Pretorius E, Price DA, Putrino D, Scheuermann RH, Tan GS, Tanzi RE, VanBrocklin HF, Yonker LM, Wherry EJ, Nat Immunol 2023 Oct 24 10 1616-1627 Circulating Spike Protein Detected in Post-COVID-19 mRNA Vaccine Myocarditis. Yonker LM, Swank Z, Bartsch YC, Burns MD, Kane A, Boribong BP, Davis JP, Loiselle M, Novak T, Senussi Y, Cheng CA, Burgess E, Edlow AG, Chou J, Dionne A, Balaguru D, Lahoud-Rahme M, Arditi M, Julg B, Randolph AG, Alter G, Fasano A, Walt DR, Circulation 2023 Mar 147 11 867-876 Neutrophil profiles of pediatric COVID-19 and multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children. Boribong BP, LaSalle TJ, Bartsch YC, Ellett F, Loiselle ME, Davis JP, Gonye ALK, Sykes DB, Hajizadeh S, Kreuzer J, Pillai S, Haas W, Edlow AG, Fasano A, Alter G, Irimia D, Sade-Feldman M, Yonker LM, Cell Rep Med 2022 Dec 3 12 100848 Durability of Anti-Spike Antibodies in Infants After Maternal COVID-19 Vaccination or Natural Infection. Shook LL, Atyeo CG, Yonker LM, Fasano A, Gray KJ, Alter G, Edlow AG, JAMA 2022 Mar 327 11 1087-1089 Multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children is driven by zonulin-dependent loss of gut mucosal barrier. Yonker LM, Gilboa T, Ogata AF, Senussi Y, Lazarovits R, Boribong BP, Bartsch YC, Loiselle M, Rivas MN, Porritt RA, Lima R, Davis JP, Farkas EJ, Burns MD, Young N, Mahajan VS, Hajizadeh S, Lopez XIH, Kreuzer J, Morris R, Martinez EE, Han I, Griswold K, Barry NC, Thompson DB, Church G, Edlow AG, Haas W, Pillai S, Arditi M, Alter G, Walt DR, Fasano A, J Clin Invest 2021 Jul 131 14 Pediatric Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2): Clinical Presentation, Infectivity, and Immune Responses. Yonker LM, Neilan AM, Bartsch Y, Patel AB, Regan J, Arya P, Gootkind E, Park G, Hardcastle M, St John A, Appleman L, Chiu ML, Fialkowski A, De la Flor D, Lima R, Bordt EA, Yockey LJ, D'Avino P, Fischinger S, Shui JE, Lerou PH, Bonventre JV, Yu XG, Ryan ET, Bassett IV, Irimia D, Edlow AG, Alter G, Li JZ, Fasano A, J Pediatr 2020 Dec 227 45-52.e5 Recognizing genetic disease: A key aspect of pediatric pulmonary care. Yonker LM, Hawley MH, Moschovis PP, Lu M, Kinane TB, Pediatr Pulmonol 2020 Jul 55 7 1794-1809 Results 1-9 of 9 1
