Zarazuela Zolkipli-Cunningham, MBChB, MRCP
Areas of expertise: Mitochondrial disease
Locations: Main Building, Buerger Center for Advanced Pediatric Care
About Zarazuela Zolkipli-Cunningham, MBChB, MRCP
Zarazuela Zolkipli-Cunningham, MBChB, MRCP, is Director of Clinical Research in the Mitochondrial Medicine Frontier Program in the Division of Human Genetics at The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP) and Assistant Professor, at the University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine. Dr. Zolkipli-Cunningham completed training in Child Neurology at Great Ormond Street Hospital, London, UK, and the Dubowitz Neuromuscular Center, London, UK. She then completed a Neurometabolic Research Fellowship at the SickKids Hospital in Toronto Canada mentored by Dr. Ingrid Tein; and a Mitochondrial Disease Fellowship at the Metabolic and Mitochondrial Disease Center, University California, San Diego mentored by Dr. Richard Haas and Dr. Robert Naviaux. Dr. Zolkipli-Cunningham was the first North American Mitochondrial Disease Consortium (NAMDC) Fellow.
Dr. Zolkipli-Cunningham has established a Mitochondrial Myopathy Clinical Research program to design and validate new quantitative methods of Mitochondrial Myopathy for clinical trials, precision trials, and natural history studies. She is PI of NIH-R01, Industry, and Foundation grants and co-I of a Department of Defense Focused Development Award. As Clinical Research Director of the Mitochondrial Medicine Frontier Program, she is actively engaged in bridging academia-industry collaborations to pursue precision and clinical trials. She is also CHOP-site PI of the Pediatric Neuromuscular Research Network, co-leads a ClinGen NICHD U24 Leigh syndrome Mitochondrial Disease consortium gene-disease curation effort, member of the North American Mitochondrial Disease Consortium (NAMDC) committee, Rare Disease Clinical Research Network (RDCRN) Career Enhancement Committee, Scientific and Medical Advisory Board of the United Mitochondrial Disease Foundation (UMDF), co-leads the UMDF Bench to Bedside Education Seminars and is Scientific Organizer of the annual UMDF Clinical Research Pavilion. The focus of her work is to improve clinical care, validate new diagnostic approaches, and advance new therapies in Mitochondrial Disease.
Titles
Attending Physician
Clinical Research Director, Mitochondrial Medicine Frontier Program
Assistant Professor of Pediatrics (Human Genetics), Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania
Certifications
Child Neurology – American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology
Pediatrics – American Board of Pediatrics
Royal College of Pediatrics and Child Health (MRCPCH)
Awards and Honors
2018, Society for Inherited Metabolic Disorders Travel Award
2016, Rare Diseases Clinical Research Network Travel Support, Rare Disease Training Program
2016, Society for Inherited Metabolic Disorders Travel Award
2015, Translational Research in Mitochondria, Aging, and Disease Symposium conference sponsorship, Center for Mitochondrial and Epigenomic Medicine, Children's Hospital of Philadelphia
2013, UMDF Burroughs Wellcome Travel Award, USA
2012, UMDF Burroughs Wellcome Travel Award, USA
2011, United Mitochondrial Disease Foundation (UMDF) Burroughs Wellcome Travel Award, USA
2011, Gerber Foundation Novice Researcher Award, USA
2009, SSIEM, Travel Award for presentation at Annual meeting, UK
2009, Research Institute Travel Award, Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto
2009, European Paediatric Neurology Society (EPNS) Travel Bursary
2009 SSIEM, 3 year Membership Scholarship Award, UK
2007, Winston Churchill Travel Fellowship, London, UK2008 Research Institute Travel Award, Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto
2003, Sir Henry John Biggleswade Prize for Best Presentation. Pediatric Regional Meeting, Cambridgeshire, UK
1991-1996, Full Scholarship, National Oil Company of Malaysia for Medical School in the UK
Leadership and Memberships
Memberships in Professional Organizations
International
2013-present, International Child Neurology Association
National
2024-present, North American Mitochondrial Disease Consortium
- 2024-present, Sustainability Committee member
2022-present, NINDS
- 2022-present, Mitochondrial Disease v2.0 Common Data Elements (CDE) Working Group
- 2022-present, Co-Leader, U24 ClinGen Gene Curation International Working Group to Curate Primary Mitochondrial Disease Genes
2021-present, Rare Disease Clinical Research Network (RDCRN)
2019-present, New York Academy of Sciences
2018-present, North American Mitochondrial Disease Consortium
- 2024-present, Sustainability Committee
2018-present, ClinGen
- 2018-present, Mitochondrial Disease Gene Curation Expert Panel Co-Lead
2018-present, American Academy of Neurology
2017-present, American Medical Association
2016-present, Pediatric Neuromuscular Clinical Research Network
- 2016-present, Executive Steering Committee and CHOP PI
2016-present, Society of Inherited Metabolic Disease
2016-present, Mitochondrial Medicine Society
2016-present, Child Neurology Society
2015-present, American Society of Human Genetics
2010-present, United Mitochondrial Disease Foundation
- 2023-present, Scientific Organizer, Clinical Trial Pavilion
- 2022-present, Scientific Organizer, Clinical Trial Pavilion
- 2021-present, Scientific Medical Advisory Board,
- 2019-present, Scientific Abstract Review Committee
Editorial and Academic Positions
Editorial Positions
2024-present, Ad-hoc reviewer, Expert Opinion on Drug Safety
2024-present, Ad-hoc reviewer, Molecular Genetics and Metabolism
2023-present, Ad-hoc reviewer, New England Journal of Medicine
2023-present, Ad-hoc Reviewer, Neurotherapeutics
2019-present, Ad-hoc reviewer, Journal of Inherited Metabolic Disease
2019-present, Ad-hoc reviewer, Journal of Human and Clinical Genetics
2019-present, Ad-hoc reviewer, Journal of Cachexia, Sarcopenia and Muscle
2019-present, Ad-hoc reviewer, Mitochondrion
2018-present, Ad-hoc reviewer, Mitochondrial and Metabolic Medicine
2018-present, Ad-hoc reviewer, Journal of Child Neurology
2018-present, Ad-hoc reviewer, Muscle and Nerve
Academic and Institutional Committees
2021-present, Division of Human Genetics MMFP Scientific Review Committee
2020-present, Project Leader, Spinal Muscular Atrophy (SMA) Newborn Screen Project, Pediatric Neuromuscular Clinical Research Network (PNCR)
2016-present, Site PI and Executive Committee Member, Pediatric Neuromuscular Clinical Research Network (PNCR)
Education & training
Medical Degree
MBChB - Edinburgh University Medical School, Scotland, UK
Fellowship
Neurometabolic Research Fellowship - Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, ON
Mitochondrial Clinical Research Fellowship - Metabolic & Mitochondrial Disease Center (MMDC), University of California, San Diego, San Diego, CA
North American Mitochondrial Disease Consortium (NAMDC) Fellowship - University of California, San Diego, San Diego, CA
Neuromuscular Clinical Fellowship - The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, Philadelphia, PA