James M. Gardner

Dr. James M. Gardner serves as Associate Professor in the Department of Surgery at the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) School of Medicine, where he is a board-certified transplant surgeon (American Board of Surgery, 2019) specializing in pediatric and adult kidney, liver, and pancreas transplants. He leads the Gardner Lab and directs the VIable Tissue Acquisition Lab (VITAL) Core, bridging clinical practice with fundamental research in immune tolerance mechanisms.

Education:

• AB in Biochemistry, Harvard University (2002)
• MD/PhD in Genetics, University of California San Francisco (2012)
• Residency in General Surgery, University of California San Francisco (2016)
• Chief Resident in General Surgery, University of California San Francisco (2017)
• Clinical Instructor and Fellow in Abdominal Transplant Surgery, University of California San Francisco (2019)

Research Interests: Dr. Gardner investigates how the immune system distinguishes self from non-self through immune tolerance mechanisms, with groundbreaking work on extra-thymic Aire-expressing cells (eTACs) discovered by his lab. His research spans autoimmune diseases (particularly type 1 diabetes), organ transplantation rejection, maternal-fetal tolerance during pregnancy, and cancer immunology. Using transgenic engineering, single-cell multiomics, and human tissue models, his lab aims to translate basic tolerance mechanisms into clinical therapies for improved patient outcomes.

Publication Trends: Recent work (2024-2025) reveals three dominant research trajectories: (1) eTACs biology in oral tolerance and autoimmune diabetes, (2) cellular engineering for transplant tolerance (e.g., T cell modification, CAAR-T therapy), and (3) diagnostic innovations for rejection monitoring. These articles consistently integrate immunology with surgical applications, featuring strong collaborations with UCSF's transplant community and extensive use of human tissue models through the VITAL Core.

Scientific Awards:

• Pew Biomedical Scholar (The Pew Charitable Trusts, 2023-2027)
• Burroughs Wellcome Next Gen Pregnancy Initiative (2023-2027)
• UCSF Sandler Physician-Scientist Scholar Program (2019-2024; first surgeon recipient)
• ASTS-Astellas Fellowship in Transplantation (2017-2019)
• Nusz Achievement Award (UCSF Surgery Department, 2017)
• Schecter Award for Senior Trauma Fellow (2016)
• ED Surgical Consultant of the Year (UCSF Emergency Medicine, 2016)
• PICI Investigator (Parker Institute for Cancer Immunotherapy, 2024)
• W.M. Keck Medical Research Grant (2024-2027)

Advising and Grants: As principal investigator, Dr. Gardner mentors graduate students and postdoctoral fellows in immunology and surgical research. He secured the highly competitive UCSF Physician-Scientist Scholar Program grant (2019), which supports his dual clinical-research career. Additional major funding includes the Pew Biomedical Scholar award (2023), Burroughs Wellcome Next Gen Pregnancy Initiative grant (2023), and W.M. Keck Foundation Medical Research Grant (2024), all focused on immune tolerance mechanisms applicable to transplantation and autoimmunity. His ASTS-Astellas Fellowship (2017-2019) specifically advanced transplant immunology research.

Labs and Teams: The Gardner Lab collaborates extensively with UCSF's Transplantation Society young members committee (which he co-founded) and the UCSF Transplant community. He established and directs the VIable Tissue Acquisition Lab (VITAL) Core, providing critical human tissue resources for immunology research. The lab maintains strong partnerships with the Parker Institute for Cancer Immunotherapy, UCSF Diabetes Center, and national consortia like the Tabula Sapiens project, utilizing human tissue models to translate basic tolerance mechanisms into clinical applications.