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Presence Current · Arkansas
Last published 2026
Sources OpenAlex · ORCID
Refreshed 2026-08-20

Gwen V. Childs

Federal Grant PI High Impact

Distinguished Professor

Also affiliated: Ain Shams University (1986); Northwestern University (1977–1983); Utah State University (1984); Brigham and Women's Hospital (1987–1991); National Institutes of Health (1982–1986); Howard Hughes Medical Institute (1987–1992); Harvard University (1987–1991); North Carolina State University (1996); Baylor University (1987–2001); Tel Aviv University (1987); University of New Mexico (1984); Baylor College of Medicine (1987–1990); Augusta University (2004); University of Arkansas Medical Center (2001–2014); Harvard University Press (1992); University of Alabama at Birmingham (2020–2024); Augusta University Health (2002); Massachusetts General Hospital (1987); National Institute of Child Health (1982–1986); University Hospital of Geneva (1987); Center for Neurosciences (2019); Center for Translational Molecular Medicine (2019); Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (1982–1985); Arkansas Department of Agriculture (2020); Health and Human Development (2HD) Research Network (1982–2019); Weizmann Institute of Science (1986–1987); The University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston (1981–2003); University of Nebraska Medical Center (1975–1982)

Faculty Researcher

47 h-index 267 pubs 6,702 cited

  • Animals
  • Rats
  • Female
  • Male
  • Pituitary Gland
  • Pituitary Gland, Anterior
  • Follicle Stimulating Hormone
  • Luteinizing Hormone
  • Adrenocorticotropic Hormone
  • RNA, Messenger
  • Cells, Cultured
  • Rats, Inbred Strains
  • Rats, Sprague-Dawley
  • Estrus
  • Growth Hormone

Biography and Research Information

OverviewAI-generated summary

Gwen V. Childs is a Distinguished Professor at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences. Her research focuses on the molecular mechanisms underlying pituitary gland function and plasticity. She has received significant funding from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) for her work, including an R01 grant awarded early in her career. Current federal funding includes three awards totaling over $1.7 million: one from the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK) investigating the impact of obesity on somatotrope function, and two from the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD) and NIDDK, respectively, exploring control of pituitary cell plasticity through regulated mRNA translation and the molecular mechanisms of pituitary plasticity.

Childs' recent publications investigate topics such as adipo-glial signaling in peripheral nerve regeneration, the regulatory landscape of murine pituitary using single nucleus multi-omics, and the impact of high-fat diets on anterior pituitary transcriptomics, particularly concerning oxidative stress and cell metabolism. Her work also delves into the role of Musashi RNA-binding proteins in controlling gonadotrope target mRNA translation during the mouse estrous cycle and the post-transcriptional regulation of Gnrhr as a metabolic control checkpoint in female reproduction. She has authored or co-authored over 270 publications and has a citation count of over 7,000, with an h-index of 49. Childs actively collaborates with researchers at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, including Angus M. MacNicol, Melanie C MacNicol, Angela K. Odle, and Alex Lagasse.

Metrics

  • h-index: 47
  • Publications: 267
  • Citations: 6,702

Selected Publications

  • Gonadotrope remodeling in sustained low estrogen states: single-cell transcriptomic analysis reveals gonadotrope subtypes and activation of stem cell populations (2026)
    Biology of Reproduction 1 citation DOI OpenAlex
  • OR13-08 Secretoneurin Modulates Gonadotrope Function Cyclically to Regulate LH Secretion (2025)
  • SAT-001 Impact of VCD-induced Menopause on Gonadotrope Transcriptomics Reveals Estrogen-dependent Genes in the GnRH Signaling Pathway (2025)
  • SAT-016 Musashi Contributes to the Specification and Maintenance of Distinct Pituitary Cell Lineages. (2025)
  • High fat diet-induced loss of pituitary plasticity in aging female mice with ablated leptin signaling in somatotropes (2025)
    Frontiers in Endocrinology 1 citation DOI OpenAlex
  • Musashi-dependent mRNA translational activation is mediated through association with the Scd6/Like-sm family member, LSM14B (2025)
    Scientific Reports 5 citations DOI OpenAlex
  • Ablation of Leptin Receptor Signaling Alters Somatotrope Transcriptome Maturation in Female Mice (2025)
    Endocrinology 5 citations DOI OpenAlex
  • Solving the Mystery of the Neonatal GH Surge (2024)
  • 8572 A 30% Maternal Caloric Restriction Alters Expression of Musashi Targets in the Neonatal and Adult Pituitary Proteomes of FVB Mice (2024)
  • 8649 Ablation of Leptin Receptors in Somatotropes Impacts Transcriptomic Plasticity in the Pou1f1 Lineage of Female Pituitary Cells (2024)
  • The Musashi RNA binding proteins direct the translational activation of key pituitary mRNAs (2024)
    Scientific Reports 8 citations DOI OpenAlex
  • Maternal undernutrition results in transcript changes in male offspring that may promote resistance to high fat diet induced weight gain (2024)
    Frontiers in Endocrinology 4 citations DOI OpenAlex
  • Anterior Pituitary Transcriptomics Following a High-Fat Diet: Impact of Oxidative Stress on Cell Metabolism (2023)
    Endocrinology 12 citations DOI OpenAlex
  • Adipo-glial signaling mediates metabolic adaptation in peripheral nerve regeneration (2023)
    Cell Metabolism 80 citations DOI OpenAlex
  • FRI290 Proteomic Identification Of Secretoneurin-Stimulated Proteins In Purified Mouse Gonadotropes (2023)

View all publications on OpenAlex →

Federal Grants 3 $1,783,459 total

NIH Co-PI Sep 2024 - May 2029

Molecular mechanisms of pituitary plasticity

National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases $632,231 R01
NIH Contact PI Jul 2021 - Jun 2026

The Impact of Obesity on Somatotrope Function

National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases $549,786 R01
NIH Co-PI Sep 2018 - Jun 2025

Control of pituitary cell plasticity through regulated mRNA translation

Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development $601,442 R01

Grants & Funding

As listed on this researcher's institutional profile. Federal awards with verified records are shown above.

  • Regulation of Leptin Production by Gonadotropes NIH
  • Regulation of Leptin Expression and Function in the Anterior Pituitary National Science Foundation
  • Significance of Pituitary Leptin to Gonadotropes NIH
  • DEAP Award-Childs UAMS College of Medicine
  • FUNCTIONAL DIFFERENTIATION OF CORTICOTROPES NIH
  • Post-transcriptional Pathways that Signal Leptin Regulation of Gonadotropes NIH
  • 120 kV FEI Electron Microscope and Supporting Sample Preparation Equipment for Biological Microscopy National Science Foundation
  • Tropic Roles for Leptin in the Maturation of Somatotropes NIH

Collaboration Network

86 Collaborators 26 Institutions 6 Countries

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