Charles Cox, Jr., MD

Biography

Dr. Charles S. Cox, Jr., is the Children’s Fund, Inc. Distinguished Professor of Pediatric Surgery and directs the Pediatric Surgical Translational Laboratories and Pediatric Program in Regenerative Medicine at the University of Texas Medical School at Houston.  He directs the Pediatric Trauma Program at the University of Texas-Houston/Children’s Memorial Hermann Hospital in the Texas Medical Center.

A Texas native, Dr. Cox received his undergraduate degree from the University of Texas at Austin in the Plan II Liberal Arts Honors Program.  Upon graduating from the University of Texas Medical Branch, he completed his Surgery residency at the University of Texas Medical School at Houston.  Further post-graduate fellowships were completed in Pediatric Surgery at the University of Michigan, an NIH T32 sponsored clinical and research fellowship in cardiopulmonary support/circulatory support devices/bio-hybrid organs at the Shriner’s Burns Institute, and Surgical Critical Care/Trauma at the University of Texas Medical School at Houston.  He is certified by the American Board of Surgery in Surgery, with added qualifications in Pediatric Surgery and Surgical Critical Care.

The Pediatric Translational Laboratories and Pediatric Program in Regenerative Medicine is a multi-disciplinary effort that addresses problems that originate with traumatic injury and the consequences of resuscitation and critical care.  The Program focuses on progenitor cell based therapy (stem cells) for traumatic brain injury, and related neurological injuries (hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy, stroke, spinal cord injury), recently completing the first acute, autologous cell therapy treatment Phase I study for traumatic brain injury in children (Neurosurgery, 2011). Three subsequent INDs have been approved for cell-based therapies for neurological injury. The program also develops novel bio-hybrid organs using cell-based and tissue engineering approaches to trauma and injury related problems.  These efforts have recently resulted in two IND based cell therapeutic studies, and three patents in the past two years.  The program is funded through the National Institutes of Health, Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board/Emerging Technology Funds, Industry Collaboration, and philanthropic contributions.  The Program is housed in state-of-the-art laboratory facilities (4500 sf), and includes two cGMP facilities for the production of clinical grade cell and tissue products: Hoffberger Cellular Therapeutics Laboratory and the Griffin Stem Cell

Therapeutics Research Laboratory

Dr. Cox has served on scientific study sections/review groups for the National Institutes of Health, American Heart Association, Veterans Affairs MERIT Awards, Department of Defense, Congressionally Directed Medical Research Programs, as well as National Research Programs in Canada, Singapore, Spain, and the Czech Republic.  He is the author of over 120 scientific publications, 20 book chapters, and is the editor of a text entitled, Progenitor Cell Therapy for Neurological Injury.