
John S. Adams, M.D.
Bio
John S. Adams, M.D., is the founding director of the UCLA-UCI Alpha Stem Cell Clinic (ASCC), which is funded by the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine (CIRM). One of five CIRM-funded stem cell clinics in California, the UCLA-UCI ASCC is a partnership with University of California, Irvine that provides world-class, state-of-the-art infrastructure to accelerate and support stem cell clinical trials and the delivery of stem cell therapies to patients. The UCLA-UCI ASCC is the first-of-its-kind cross-institutional “center of excellence” attracting a diverse patient base in Los Angeles and Orange counties that together constitute about 34 percent of the total California population and 12 percent of the total U.S. population.
As director of the UCLA-UCI ASCC, Adams leads a team that removes roadblocks and accelerates stem cell clinical trials by providing assistance in fulfilling critical Food and Drug Administration (FDA) regulatory requirements. These requirements include filing investigational new drug (IND) and investigational device exemption (IDE) applications, identifying potential subject populations using tools developed by the UCLA Health Enterprise and the National Institutes of Health-supported UCLA Clinical Translational Science Institute. The ASCC also provides resources to ensure cell manufacturing meets strict FDA conditions. Under Adams’ leadership, the UCLA-UCI ASCC has expanded its number of active and in development clinical trials from five to 30.
Adams’ translational research focuses on how vitamin D regulates the human skeletal and immune systems. He discovered that vitamin D plays an essential role in the body’s fight against infections such as tuberculosis, a lung disease that causes an estimated 1.8 million deaths annually worldwide. Adams is now working to initiate clinical trials to learn whether new methods of vitamin D supplementation can enhance the body’s resistance to infections and skeletal fragility (e.g., osteoporosis).
As director of the UCLA Orthopaedic Hospital Research Center, Adams brings together multidisciplinary teams of scientists — including experts in molecular and stem cell biology, biomedical engineering, and materials science — and clinicians to develop novel means of regenerating bone and joint tissue in adults and children. This regenerative process is supported by stem cells in the bone marrow, called skeletal stem cells, which give rise to a variety of cells: bone cells (osteoblasts and osteocytes), cartilage cells (chondrocytes), fat cells (adipocytes), and stromal cells that support blood formation. As people age, skeletal stem cells produce fewer bone cells and more fat cells, resulting in brittle bones that are prone to fracture. Adams studies the genetic processes by which skeletal stem cells are driven to form bone, not fat, in order to inform the development of therapies that can increase bone cell production and prevent osteoporosis.
Adams earned his medical degree from the University of Kansas Medical Center and completed fellowships in endocrinology and internal medicine at Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School.
Publications
- Vitamin D status contributes to the antimicrobial activity of macrophages against Mycobacterium lepraePublished in PLOS One Neglected Tropical Diseases on Monday, July 2, 2018
- Associations between change in total and free 25-hydroxyvitamin D with 24,25-dihydroxyvitamin D and parathyroid hormonePublished in The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism on Wednesday, June 20, 2018
- CIRM Alpha Stem Cell Clinics: Addressing Regenerative Medicine ChallengesPublished in Cell Stem Cell on Friday, June 1, 2018
- Preoperative Vitamin D Deficiency is Associated with Higher Postoperative Complication Rates in Total Knee ArthroplastyPublished in Orthopedics on Monday, April 30, 2018
- Single-Dose, Preoperative Vitamin-D Supplementation Decreases Infection in a Mouse Model of Periprosthetic Joint InfectionPublished in The Journal of Bone & Joint Surgery on Wednesday, October 18, 2017
- Effects of Cholecalciferol vs Calcifediol on Total and Free 25-Hydroxyvitamin D and Parathyroid HormonePublished in The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism on Friday, February 10, 2017
- Concerted effects of heterogeneous nuclear ribonucleoprotein C1/C2 to control vitamin D-directed gene transcription and RNA splicing in human bone cellsPublished in Nucleic Acids Research on Monday, September 26, 2016
- Effects of high-dose vitamin D2 versus vitamin D3 on total and free 25-hydroxyvitamin D and markers of calcium balancePublished in The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism on Monday, August 1, 2016
- Differential Responses to Vitamin D2 and Vitamin D3 Are Associated With Variations in Free 25-Hydroxyvitamin DPublished in Endocrinology on Wednesday, July 13, 2016
- Role of Assay Type in Determining Free 25-Hydroxyvitamin D Levels in Diverse PopulationsPublished in New England Journal of Medicine on Thursday, April 28, 2016
- NELL-1 in the treatment of osteoporotic bone lossPublished in Nature Communications on Wednesday, June 17, 2015
- Human Developmental Chondrogenesis as a Basis for Engineering Chondrocytes from Pluripotent Stem CellsPublished in Stem Cell Reports on Thursday, December 12, 2013
Honors & Affiliations
Honors
- Distinguished Professor, University of California, 2014
- Boy Frame Award for Clinical Excellence in Bone and Mineral Metabolism, American Society for Bone and Mineral Research, 2005
- Elected member, Association of American Physicians, 2002
- Elected member, American Society for Clinical Investigation, 1990
Affiliations
- Associate Director, UCLA Clinical and Translational Science Institute
- Editorial board, Bone Research
- Editorial board, Journal of the Endocrine Society
- Consulting editorial board, Journal of Clinical Investigation
- Endocrine Society
- American Society of Bone and Mineral Research
- Orthopedic Research Society
Funding
Adams’ research is funded by the National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases, the National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences, the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine and the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute.