Diana J Laird

Diana J. Laird is a principal investigator at the University of California San Francisco (UCSF) Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology. Her research spans epigenetics, developmental biology, stem cell biology, and environmental health, focusing on germ cell potential, environmental influences on reproductive development, and germ cell roles in aging. She is Deputy Director and Pilot Core Director of the P30 Center for Environmental Research and Translation for Health (EaRTH) at UCSF, a federally-funded lab advancing human health through reproductive science.

• Stanford University, Ph.D. in Biological Sciences (2003)
• Sloan Kettering Institute, Postdoctoral Research in Developmental Genetics (2007)

Her lab investigates:
• Equal potential of germ cells to become functional gametes
• Environmental impacts (chemicals, stress) on germ cell development
• Germ cell roles in ovarian and systemic aging
• Transgenerational effects of exposures
• Genetic infertility mechanisms (e.g., Fragile X syndrome)
• Comparative biology using mouse models, human cells, and naked mole-rats

Current research trends include:
• 3D imaging of ovarian development
• Glucocorticoid signaling in germ cells
• Genomic adaptations in naked mole-rats
• DNA methylation dynamics in gametogenesis
• Cell competition and apoptosis in germ cell quality control

• Tektronix Scholarship (1990)
• NSF Predoctoral Fellowship (2002)
• Jane Coffin Childs Fellow (2008)
• NIH New Innovator Award (2016)
• Deleage Prize (2019)
• Keck Foundation Award (2025)

Laird's NIH-funded work includes projects on:
• Stress and chemical interactions in germ cell reprogramming
• Ovary-based anti-aging approaches
• FMR1 gene function in fertility
• Transgenerational phthalate effects