UC Davis Medical Center has filled the newly established Children's Miracle Network Endowed Chair in Pediatric Genetics, appointing Simeon Boyadjiev Boyd, an expert in

craniofacial birth defects — which are defects that involve the skull and face. He also serves as chief of the medical center's Section of Genetics.

Boyd started at UC Davis on June 12, coming from the McKusick-Nathans Institute of Genetic Medicine at the Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore. He is board-certified in both pediatrics and clinical genetics.

"I see my transition to UC Davis as a unique opportunity to establish a strong genetic program with state-of-the-art clinical care for patients," Boyd said. "The endowed chair in pediatric genetics allows me to collaborate and provide genetic expertise to researchers throughout the UC Davis campus who are interested in the genetic analysis of human disease."

He brings with him grant money from the National Institutes of Health for research on the genetic and environmental causes of craniofacial defects.

The nonprofit Children's Miracle Network has provided more than $10 million to UC Davis Children's Hospital for research, education and patient care programs since 1989.

Boyd's research efforts have concentrated on congenital anomalies of the head and face, focusing on those that are not caused by single gene defects. Such craniofacial defects include cleft lip and palate, and facial asymmetry, as well as defects in skull formation. He has been credited with delineating several genetic syndromes and recently identified the genetic cause of craniolenticulosutural dysplasia, also known as Boyadjiev-Jabs syndrome.

With his office and laboratory at UC Davis' MIND Institute, an international center for research on neurodevelopmental disorders, Boyd plans to contribute to the analysis of the genetics of autism and other disorders involving developmental delay.

"We're certain he will make significant contributions to improving our understanding of the genetic causes of diseases in children," said Anthony Philipps, medical director of UC Davis Children's Hospital and chair of pediatrics for the School of Medicine.

Karen Finney is the senior public information officer for UC Davis Children's Hospital.