Gay M. Crooks

Dr. Gay M. Crooks is a distinguished Professor holding appointments in Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, Orthopaedic Surgery, and Pediatrics at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA. She holds the Rebecca Smith Chair in Molecular and Cellular Pathology and leads a highly productive research program focused on stem cell biology and immunology. Her laboratory has made significant contributions to understanding T cell development and creating novel immunotherapies.

Dr. Crooks' research interests center on hematopoietic stem cell biology, T cell development from pluripotent stem cells, and the engineering of artificial thymic organoids. Her work bridges basic science with clinical applications, particularly in developing off-the-shelf T cell therapies for cancer and correcting immunodeficiencies through gene editing. She has pioneered methods to generate functional T cells from induced pluripotent stem cells, which has significant implications for cancer immunotherapy and treatment of immune disorders.

Analysis of her most recent publications reveals a strong focus on translating stem cell biology into clinical applications. Her work spans from fundamental studies of hematopoietic stem cell regulation to engineering CAR T cells and correcting genetic immunodeficiencies. A notable trend is the development of artificial thymic organoid systems that enable the production of functional T cells from stem cells, offering potential universal cancer immunotherapies.

• Tumor Cell Biology Training Program (NIH/NCI T32CA009056)
• The role of BCL11B in T lineage fate (NIH R01 AI176249-01)
• Engineering pluripotent stem cells for T cell therapies (CIRM DISC0-14422)
• The Role of Lymphatic Endothelium in the Developing Thymus (NIH R01 AI173496-01A1)

Dr. Crooks actively mentors numerous students and postdoctoral fellows, many of whom appear as co-authors on her publications. Her laboratory collaborates extensively with other leading researchers in immunology and gene therapy, including Drs. Seet, Kohn, and Montel-Hagen. Current projects focus on developing universally available T cell therapies and understanding the molecular mechanisms controlling T cell development from stem cells.

Her laboratory maintains active research programs in artificial thymic organoid development, stem cell engineering for immunotherapy, and gene editing approaches to correct immunodeficiencies. The team combines expertise in stem cell biology, immunology, and tissue engineering to create novel therapeutic approaches for cancer and immune disorders.