In The News

News

The UCLA Children’s Discovery and Innovation Institute (CDI) was founded in 2013 to inspire scientific discovery and design new avenues for innovation, and to cultivate collaborative teams and research support systems, to ensure its pediatric physician scientists can improve the lives of children today and in the future. We include here a collection of recent stories, for your further information.

Dr. Steven Mittelman honored with Pediatric Endocrine Society mentor award

By Alana Prisco, January 16, 2026

Dr. Steven Mittelman, chief of pediatric endocrinology at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, has received the 2026 Outstanding Mentor Award from the Pediatric Endocrine Society. The honor recognizes exceptional skill, dedication and sustained service in mentoring junior faculty and trainees.

Body Processes Good Fats and Bad Fats Differently, Vallim Lab Finds

The concept of “good fats” and “bad fats” has influenced diet trends, public health policy and biomedical research for decades. Now, a new study led by Thomas A. Vallim, PhD, a researcher and professor of medicine in the UCLA Division of Cardiology, offers new insights into how the body handles “good fats” and “bad fats” at the molecular level — opening a door to new treatments for obesity, diabetes and other metabolic conditions. An illustration of their work is featured on the cover of this month’s edition of the journal Cell Metabolism.

Sped-up evolution may help bacteria take 
hold in gut microbiome, 
UCLA-led research team finds

By Wayne Lewis, October 9, 2025
California NanoSystems Institute

The community of microbes in the human digestive tract have important implications for health in the gut, brain and immune system. In a study published in the journal Science, a UCLA-led team explored bacteria commonly seen in the healthy digestive tract and found that a unique mechanism driving mutations may help cells to adapt and colonize the gut.