About
Terry J. Watnick is the Joan B. and John H. Sadler, MD Professor of Nephrology at the University of Maryland School of Medicine, holding a primary appointment in the Department of Medicine. She directs the Inherited Renal Disease Clinic and serves as Principal Investigator for the NIDDK-funded Maryland Polycystic Kidney Disease (PKD) Research and Translation Core Center, one of four national PKD centers.
Her academic training includes a Sc.B. from Brown University (1981, Magna Cum Laude), an M.D. from Yale University School of Medicine (1987), Internal Medicine residency at Yale-New Haven Hospital (1990), and Nephrology fellowship at Johns Hopkins Hospital (1995).
Dr. Watnick's research centers on the molecular mechanisms of autosomal dominant polycystic kidney disease (ADPKD), with emphasis on how PKD1/PKD2 mutations cause vascular aneurysms and lymphatic defects. Her laboratory employs mouse models, Drosophila systems, and human studies to investigate polycystin signaling in endothelial cells, vascular smooth muscle, and ciliary trafficking pathways. Clinical work focuses on genotype-phenotype correlations and multicenter therapeutic trials for ADPKD.
Her publication record from 2003-2018 reveals consistent translational focus on vascular complications in ADPKD, genetic interactions (e.g., Pkd1-Fbn1), and genomic diagnostics for renal cystic diseases. Key contributions established polycystins' role in vascular integrity and lymphatic development, bridging basic science with clinical applications.
Major awards include the 2023 Andreoli Lectureship, 2003 Lillian Jean Kaplan International Prize, NIH Physician Scientist Award (1998-2004), and multiple foundation grants.
As PI of the Baltimore PKD Research Center (P30DK090868), she oversees four cores: Antibody Validation, Mouse Models/Biobank, Cell Culture/Engineering, and Clinical/Translational. She serves as site PI for ADPKD clinical trials and held leadership roles including Chair of the Polycystic Kidney Disease Foundation Scientific Advisory Committee (2013-2017).
Her integrated laboratory-clinic infrastructure supports a multidisciplinary team advancing therapeutic strategies for inherited kidney disorders through mechanistic discovery and clinical translation.
