Ram Raj Singh is a physician-scientist and immunologist who returned to the UCLA School of Medicine as a Professor of Medicine and Pathology in 2004. He serves as a Program Director for an NIH Institutional Training grant in rheumatology and translational immunology. He is also Director of basic and translational research in the division of rheumatology and directs interdisciplinary translational immunology cluster series. Before returning to UCLA, he was Associate Professor (1998-2004) and then Professor (2004) at the University of Cincinnati College of Medicine where he had moved from UCLA after completing his research and fellowship training at UCLA in the Department of Medicine, Division of Rheumatology and Department of Microbiology, Immunology and Molecular Genetics. Dr. Singh received his medical education (MBBS and MD) and training at King George’s Medical College in Lucknow and All-India Institute of Medical sciences in New Delhi. His research on immune pathogenesis of lupus and autoimmune diseases and mechanisms of tolerance has been recognized by over a dozen national and international awards, including Carol Nachman Prize, one of the largest international prize in experimental rheumatology that he received from the President of Germany; Henry Kunkel Young Investigator Award from the American College of Rheumatology; Cutting Edge Lupus Research-Lupus Research Institute award; James R. Klinenberg Science Award from the National Arthritis Foundation; Henry Christian Award (in the Autoimmunity category) from the American Federation for Medical Research; and Science Recognition Award for New Investigators from the Clinical Immunology Society. His research team includes faculty members: Anagha Divekar, PhD, Ramesh Halder, PhD, Suzanne Kafaja, MD, Peter Kim, MD, Jennifer King, MD, Chetachi Okereke, MD, and Janny Zhu, MD, PhD; postdoc fellows Curtis Adams, PhD, Alexandra David, PhD, Rita Okorogu, MD, Julia Pinkhasov, PhD, and Isela Valera, PhD, student Sahar Salehi, volunteer Kelly van der Kar, lab assistant Rachael Philips, and lab manager Dora Acuna, MS. Research in his laboratory is currently funded by NIAID, NIAMS, NICHD, American College of Rheumatology Research and Education Foundation, Arthritis Foundation, and American Heart Association. Dr. Singh’s laboratory is devoted to understanding the cellular and molecular basis of immune-mediated inflammatory diseases such as systemic lupus erythematosus (lupus), scleroderma and rheumatoid arthritis. Currently active projects in his laboratory investigate: a) interactions between dendritic cells and other immune cells within a tissue in causing organ inflammation using skin Langerhans cells, skin gamma delta T cells and lupus dermatitis as model; b) regulation of immune and autoimmune responses by sex chromosomes and hormones; c) CD1d/lipid-reactive T cells in autoimmune diseases, atherosclerosis, vascular thrombosis, and pregnancy loss; d) NKT cell interactions with B cells and other immune cells; e) T cell tolerance and autoreactive T cells; f) mesenchymal stem cells role in immune changes in autoimmune diseases; and g) role of plasmacytoid DCs and T cells in lung and skin inflammation and fibrosis.