Richard A. Schneider PhD | Department of Orthopaedic Surgery

Assistant Professor
Research Labs

Parnassus Heights:
(415) 502.4945 (Lab Phone) / (415) 476.1128 (Fax)
533 Parnassus Avenue, Suite U-453, Box 0514, San Francisco, CA 94143

Biography

Rich Schneider was raised in Maplewood, New Jersey. He graduated from Hampshire College in Amherst, Massachusetts in 1991. As an undergraduate, he published his first paper, which was on skull evolution among domestic dogs and wild canids, following an Internship at the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, DC. He then received his Master's Degree in 1994 and his Doctoral Degree in 1998 from Duke University in Durham, North Carolina. Both of his graduate thesis projects focused on skeletal development and evolution. Dr. Schneider also studied at the Marine Biological Laboratory in Woods Hole, Massachusetts, and at Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory on Long Island, New York. For his Post-doctoral fellowship, Dr. Schneider was sponsored by a NIH/NIDCR training grant at the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) beginning in 1998. His Postdoctoral work investigated the molecular and cellular biology of the craniofacial skeleton. In 2001, Dr. Schneider joined the faculty of the Department of Orthopaedic Surgery at UCSF, and in 2004 he was made Director of the Department's Molecular & Cell Biology Laboratory on the Parnassus Heights campus.

Career

1/95-8/98: Instructor, Department of Zoology, Duke University, Durham, NC.
7/01-5/03: Assistant Adjunct Professor, Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, UCSF.
6/03-6/04: Assistant Professor in Residence, Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, UCSF.
7/04-Present: Assistant Professor, Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, UCSF.
7/04-Present: Director, Molecular and Cell Biology Laboratory, Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, UCSF.

Education

8/87-5/91: B.A., Liberal Arts, Hampshire College, Amherst, MA.
6/90-8/90: Internship, Vertebrate Zoology, National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC.
8/91-5/94: M.Sc., Zoology, Duke University, Durham, NC.
6/94-5/98: Ph.D., Zoology, Duke University, Durham, NC.
6/95-7/95: Embryology Course, Marine Biological Laboratory, Woods Hole, MA.
6/98: Molecular Embryology of the Mouse, Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, Cold Spring Harbor, NY.
8/98-6/01: Postdoctoral Fellow, Departments of Orthopaedic Surgery, Growth & Development, UCSF.

Research

Dr. Schneider's current research program focuses on molecular and cellular mechanisms underlying development of the musculoskeletal system. He and his lab have been employing an avian chimeric transplantation system to exploit the divergent maturation rates and distinct species-specific anatomies of quail and duck. Specifically, his lab has been exchanging mesenchymal stem cells between quail and duck embryos, which challenges resultant chimeras to assimilate donor versus host-specific differences in growth and morphology. Using this approach, his lab has been identifying genes and signaling interactions that regulate the timing of musculoskeletal tissue differentiation, control size and shape, and which ultimately enable cartilage, bone, and muscle to achieve structural and functional integration. A goal of Dr. Schneider's research is to devise molecular-based therapies for inducing repair and regeneration of musculoskeletal tissues affected by congenital defects, disease, and trauma.

Publications

Jheon, A. and R. A. Schneider. 2009. The cells that fill the bill: Neural crest and the evolution of craniofacial development. Journal of Dental Research, 88:12-21.
Eames, B. F. and R. A. Schneider. 2008. Genesis of cartilage size and shape during development and evolution. Development, 135(23):3947-3958.
Merrill, A. E., B. F. Eames, S. J. Weston, T. Heath, and R. A. Schneider. 2008. Mesenchyme-dependent BMP signaling directs the timing of mandibular osteogenesis. Development, 135:1223-1234.
Derynck, R., E. Piek, R. A. Schneider, L. Choy, and T. Alliston. 2008. TGF-β family signalling in mesenchymal differentiation. Chapter 21 in The TGF-β Family. R. Derynck and K. Miyazono (editors). Cold Spring Harbor Press, New York. 613-666.
Lwigale, P Y., and R. A. Schneider. 2008. Other Chimeras: Quail-duck and mouse-chick. In Methods in Avian Embryology. M. Bronner-Fraser (editor). 2nd Edition, Chapter 3. Academic Press, San Diego. 59-74.
Eames, B. F., N. Allen, J. Young, A. Kaplan, J. A. Helms, and R. A. Schneider. 2007. Skeletogenesis in the swell shark Cephaloscyllium ventriosum. Journal of Anatomy, 210:542-554.
Schneider, R. A. 2007. How to tweak a beak: Molecular techniques for studying the evolution of size and shape in Darwin's finches and other birds. BioEssays, 29(1):1-6.
Ye, L., T. Q. Le, L. Zhu, Q. Yan, K. Butcher, R. A. Schneider, W. Li, P. K. DenBesten. 2006. Amelogenins in Human Developing and Mature Dental Pulp. Journal of Dental Research. 85:814-118.
Schneider, R. A. 2006. Developmental mechanisms facilitating the evolution of bills and quills. Journal of Anatomy. 207:563-573.
Noden, D. M. and R. A. Schneider. 2006. Neural Crest Cells and the Community of Plan for Craniofacial Development: Historical Debates and Current Perspectives. In Neural Crest Induction and Differentiation. Saint-Jeannet (editor). Advances in Experimental Medicine and Biology, Volume 589. Landes Bioscience. Georgetown. 1-31.
Haggstrom, A. N., E. J. Lammer, R. A. Schneider, R. S. Marcucio, and I. J. Frieden. 2006. Patterns of infantile hemangiomas: New clues to hemangioma pathogenesis and embryonic facial development. Pediatrics. 117:698-703.
Eames, B F. and R. A. Schneider. 2005. Quail-duck chimeras reveal spatiotemporal plasticity in molecular and histogenic programs of cranial feather development. Development, 132(7):1499-1509.
Miclau T., R. A. Schneider, B. F. Eames, and J. A. Helms. 2005. Common molecular mechanisms regulating fetal bone formation and adult fracture repair. In Bone Regeneration and Repair: Biology and Clinical Applications. Lieberman and Friedlaender (editors). Humana Press. Totowa. 45-55.
Radlanski, R.J., H. Renz, S. Lajvardi, and R. A. Schneider. 2004. Bone remodeling during prenatal morphogenesis of the human mental foramen. European Journal of Oral Sciences. 112:301-310.
Helms, J. A. and R. A. Schneider. 2003. Cranial skeletal biology. Nature, 423:326-331.
Schneider, R. A. and J. A. Helms. 2003. The cellular and molecular origins of beak morphology. Science, 299:565-568.
Schneider, R. A., T. Miclau, and J. A. Helms. 2002. Embryology of Bone. In Orthopaedics. Fitzgerald, Kaufer, and Malkani (editors). Mosby, Inc. St. Louis. 143-146.
Radlanski, R. J., H. Renz, U. Muller, R. A. Schneider, R. S. Marcucio, and J. A. Helms. 2002. Prenatal morphogenesis of the human mental foramen. European Journal of Oral Sciences, 110:452-459.
Schneider, R. A., D. Hu, J. L. R. Rubenstein, M. Maden, and J. A. Helms. 2001. Local retinoid signaling coordinates forebrain and facial morphogenesis by maintaining FGF8 and SHH. Development, 128:2755-2767.
Cordero, D., R. A. Schneider, and J. A. Helms. 2001. Morphogenesis of the Face. In Craniofacial Surgery: Science and Surgical Technique. Lin, Ogle, and Jane (editors). W. B. Saunders Company. Philadelphia. 75-83.
Young D. L., R. A. Schneider, D. Hu, and J. A. Helms. 2000. Genetic and Teratogenic Approaches to Craniofacial Development. Critical Reviews in Oral Biology & Medicine, 11(3):304-317.
Schneider, R. A., D. Hu, and J. A. Helms. 1999. From head to toe: conservation of molecular signals regulating limb and craniofacial morphogenesis. Cell & Tissue Research, 296:103-109.
Schneider, R. A. 1999. Neural Crest Can Form Cartilages Normally Derived from Mesoderm During Development of the Avian Head Skeleton. Developmental Biology, 208(2):411-455.
Schneider, R. A. and J. A. Helms. 1998. Development and regeneration of the musculoskeletal system. Current Opinion in Orthopedics, 9(6):20-24.
Smith, K. K. and R. A. Schneider. 1998. Have Gene Knockouts Caused Evolutionary Reversals in the Mammalian First Arch? BioEssays, 20(3):245-255.
Coppinger, R. P. and R. A. Schneider. 1995. Evolution of working dogs. In The Domestic Dog. J. Serpell (editor). Cambridge University Press. Cambridge. 21-47.

Presentations

Alliston, T., J. Chang, D. Brauer, J. Johnson, K. Butcher, G. Marshall, S. Marshall, R. A. Schneider, A. Lalwani, and L. Lustig. 2007. TGF-beta and runx2 control of bone matrix properties in bone disease-associated hearing loss. 53rd Annual Meeting, Orthopaedic Research Society. San Diego, CA. February 11th-14th.
Merrill, A. E., B. F. Eames, S. J. Weston, T. Heath, and R. A. Schneider. 2007. Mesenchyme-dependent bmp signaling controls the timing of intramembranous ossification. 53rd Annual Meeting, Orthopaedic Research Society. San Diego, CA. February 11th-14th.
Eames, B. F., A. H. Jheon, and R. A. Schneider. 2007. Mesenchymal stem cells and the temporal regulation of bone development. 53rd Annual Meeting, Orthopaedic Research Society. San Diego, CA. February 11th-14th.
Eames, B. F., A. H. Jheon, and R. A. Schneider. 2006. The Role of Cranial Neural Crest During Skeletal Development and Evolution. 1st Meeting of the European Society for Evolutionary Developmental Biology. Prague, Czech Republic. August 16th-19th.
Mitgutsch, C., B. F. Eames, and R. A. Schneider. 2006. Avian Jaw Development: Heterochronies During Neuromuscular and Musculoskeletal Integration. 1st Meeting of the European Society for Evolutionary Developmental Biology. Prague, Czech Republic. August 16th-19th.
Merrill, A. E., B. F. Eames, S. J. Weston, T. Heath, A. Kaplan, and R. A. Schneider. 2006. BMP signaling and the temporal control of mandibular osteogenesis. 65th Annual Meeting of the Society for Developmental Biology. Ann Arbor, MI. June 17th-21st.
Mitgutsch, A. H., B. F. Eames, K. Au, N. Sint, A. Kaplan, and R. A. Schneider. 2006. Spatiotemporal regulation of mandibular neuromusculoskeletal integration. 65th Annual Meeting of the Society for Developmental Biology. Ann Arbor, MI. June 17th-21st.
Jheon, C., B. F. Eames, and R. A. Schneider. 2006. Local and systemic mechanisms controlling osteogenesis. 65th Annual Meeting of the Society for Developmental Biology. Ann Arbor, MI. June 17th-21st.
Eames, B. F., K. D. Butcher, A. H. Jheon, and R. A. Schneider. 2006. Neural Crest Stem Cells Control the Timing of Bone and Cartilage Development. 52nd Annual Meeting of the Orthopaedic Research Society. Chicago, IL. March 19th-22nd.
Merrill, A. E., B. F. Eames, S. J. Weston, T. Heath, and R. A. Schneider. 2006. Bmp Signaling Mediates the Timing of Intramembranous Ossification. 52nd Annual Meeting of the Orthopaedic Research Society. Chicago, IL. March 19th-22nd.
R. A. Schneider. 2006. Mesenchymal stem cells and the regulation of skeletogenesis. Mesenchymal Stem Cells and Skeletal Biology: A Symposium. The Craniofacial and Mesenchymal Biology Program and the UCSF Institute for Stem Cell and Tissue Biology. University of California at San Francisco, March 17th.
Sint, N. S., C. Mitgutsch, K. Au, A. Kaplan, J. Staudinger, B. F. Eames, and R. A. Schneider. 2006. Spatiotemporal regulation of mandibular neuromusculoskeletal integration. 35th Annual Meeting of the American Association for Dental Research. Orlando, FL. March 8th-11th.
S. J. Weston, A.E. Merrill, B. F. Eames, T. Heath, and R. A. Schneider. 2006. BMP signaling and the temporal control of mandibular osteogenesis. 35th Annual Meeting of the American Association for Dental Research. Orlando, FL. March 8th-11th.
R. A. Schneider. 2006. From Collies to Qucks: The Role of Development in the Evolution of Facial Form. Ray and Lorna Coppinger Symposium. Hampshire College, Amherst, MA. March 11th.
Radlanski, R., H. Renz, and R. A. Schneider. 2006. The Expression of Runx2, Myf5, and Sox9 during the Prenatal Morphogenesis of the Quail Mandible. 38th Annual Meeting of the Arbeitsgemeinschaft fur Grundalgenforschung. Mainz, Germany. January 12th and 13th.
Eames, B. F., and R. A. Schneider. 2005. Plasticity and Constraint during Cranial Skeletogenesis. 64th Annual Meeting of the Society for Developmental Biology. San Francisco, CA. July 27th-August 1st.
Schneider, R. A. 2005. Neural Crest and the Evolution of Craniofacial Morphogenesis. Center for Developmental Biology Symposium: Origin and Development of the Vertebrate Traits. RIKEN Kobe, Japan. April 11th-13th.
Eames, B. F., A. Kaplan, and R. A. Schneider. 2005. Sharks have bone and other runx2-dependent skeletal features. 51st Annual Meeting of the Orthopaedic Research Society. Washington, DC. February 20th-23rd.
Schneider, R. A. 2005. Neural Crest and the Spatiotemporal Regulation of Craniofacial Development. Seminar Speaker for the Department of Organismic and Evolutionary Biology. Harvard University. Cambridge, MA. February 17th.
Schneider, R. A. 2005. Neural Crest and the Spatiotemporal Regulation of Craniofacial Morphogenesis. Symposium on Craniofacial Development held by the Anatomical Society of Great Britain and Ireland. St. Anne's College, University of Oxford. Oxford, England. January 5th-7th.
Schneider, R. A. 2004. Using Quail-Duck Chimeras to Understand Mechanisms of Craniofacial Morphogenesis. Charite Campus Benjamin Franklin. Berlin, Germany. October 12th.
Schneider, R. A. 2004. Using Quail-Duck Chimeras to Elucidate Mechanisms of Craniofacial Morphogenesis. 7th International Congress of Vertebrate Morphology. Boca Raton, FL. July 27th-August 1st.
Eames, B. F., N. Allen, J. Young, R. A. Schneider, and J. A. Helms. 2004. Sharks Exhibit All Skeletal Features Driven by the Genetic System Underlying Bone Formation. 7th International Congress of Vertebrate Morphology. Boca Raton, FL. July 27th-August 1st.
Radlanski, R.J., H. Renz, R. A. Schneider, and G. Schwabe. 2004. Prenatal Craniofacial Morphogenesis: Molecular Biological and Morphogenetic Aspects. Facing Challenges in Oral Facial Development, European COST Action B23, Working group 1 & 3 meetings. Ghent, Belgium, March 18th-21st.
Schneider, R. A. and B. F. Eames. 2004. Neural Crest Mesenchyme Regulates the Timing of Intramembranous Ossification. 50th Annual Meeting of the Orthopaedic Research Society. San Francisco, CA. March 7th-10th.
Schneider, R. A. 2003. The Role Of The Cranial Neural Crest In Regulating Musculoskeletal Differentiation. The Neural Crest: New Perspectives On Lineage And Morphogenesis. Mount Hood, OR. June 25th-27th.
Schneider, R. A. and J. A. Helms. 2003. Molecular and Cellular Origins of Species-Specific Beak Morphology. AAA Annual Meeting at the Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology. San Diego, CA. April 11th-15th.
Schneider, R. A. and J. A. Helms. 2003. Control of cytodifferentiation in the cranial musculoskeletal system. 49th Annual Meeting of the Orthopaedic Research Society. New Orleans, LA. February 2nd-5th.
Allen, N. C., B. F. Eames, R. A. Schneider, and J. A. Helms. 2003. Molecular and Cellular Analyses of Chondrogenesis in the Shark. 49th Annual Meeting of the Orthopaedic Research Society. New Orleans, LA. February 2nd-5th.
Chen, D., R. S. Marcucio, R. A. Schneider, and J. A. Helms. 2002. Morphological and cellular analyses of craniofacial defects in frogs. Spring Scientific Session of the California Dental Association. Anaheim, CA. April 5th-7th.
Schneider, R. A. and J. A. Helms. 2001. Establishment of Pattern in Neural Crest Mesenchyme. 2nd Workshop on Early Developmental Processes in Vertebrates in the Department of Anatomy in Dresden, Germany. July 15th-18th.
Kvichak, A. H., R. A. Schneider, J. Chou, D. Hu, and J. A. Helms. 2001. Fgf8 expression predicts divergent beak morphologies in distinct avian species. 30th Annual Meeting of the American Association for Dental Research. Chicago, IL. March 7th-10th.
Kvichak, A. H., R. A. Schneider, J. Chou, D. Hu, and J. A. Helms. 2001. Fgf8 expression predicts divergent beak morphologies in distinct avian species. 79th General Session of the International Association for Dental Research. Chiba, Japan. June 27th-30th.
Schneider, R. A. 2001. The Role of Vitamin A During Facial Development. UCSF Dental Alumni Association Annual Scientific Transfer Symposium: Recent developments in dental research and implications for the practice of dentistry. San Francisco, CA. February 2nd.
Chyuwei, G.H., R. A. Schneider, D. Hu, and J. A. Helms. 2000. Development of the Maxillary and Mandibular Primordia Requires Retinoid Signaling. 78th General Session of the International Association for Dental Research. Washington, DC. April 5th-8th.
Helms, J. A., R. A. Schneider, D. Hu, J. L. R. Rubenstein, and M. Maden. 2000. Retinoids coordinate development of the forebrain and face by maintaining FGF and SHH. Molecular Genetics of Development. National Institute of Child Health and Human Development. Airlie Conference Center, Airlie, VA. May 10th-13th.
Helms, J. A., R. A. Schneider, J. L. R. Rubenstein, and D. Hu. 1999. Retinoid-mediated signaling during development of the face and brain. Craniofacial Morphogenesis. British Society of Developmental Biology. Guy's Hospital, London, England. September 15th-17th.
Hu, D., R. A. Schneider, D. Young, J. L. Rubenstein, and J. A. Helms. 1999. Signals from the Forebrain Affect Morphogenesis of the Frontonasal Process. 77th General Session of the International Association for Dental Research. Vancouver, BC. March 10th-13th.
R. A. Schneider, and J. A. Helms. 1998. Disruptions to Sonic Hedgehog Signaling Produce a Range of Midline Patterning Defects Including Cleft/Lip Palate, Hypotelorism, and Facial Duplications. Toward a Molecular Understanding of Craniofacial Morphogenesis. NIDCR Symposium, NIH Campus, Bethesda, MD. November 22nd-24th.
Schneider, R. A. 1997. The Role of Neural Crest and Mesodermal Mesenchyme in Patterning the Avian Sphenoid Skeleton. 56th Annual Meeting of the Society for Developmental Biology. Snowbird, UT. July 5th-10th.
Schneider, R. A. 1996. Developmental Maintenance of Evolutionary Conservatism: A Comparative Analysis of Vertebrate Head Skeletogenesis. 55th Annual Meeting of the Society for Developmental Biology. Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN. May 30th-June 4th.
Schneider, R. A. 1994. Homology and Convergence in the Braincase Development of Snakes, Birds, and Mammals. 4th International Congress of Vertebrate Morphology. Chicago, IL. July 31st-August 4th.

Grants and Awards

1990: Internship Stipend Award. National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC.
1991: Threshold Grant. Hampshire College, Amherst, MA.
1995: Tuition and Stipend Award. Marine Biological Laboratory, Woods Hole, MA.
1997-1998: Dissertation Improvement Grant. National Science Foundation, Washington, DC.
1998: Tuition and Stipend Award. Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, NY.
1998-2001: Training Grant in Craniofacial Anomalies. NIH/NIDCR.
2002-2003: Research Evaluation and Allocation Committee Grant. School of Medicine, UCSF.
2002-2005: R03 (Principal Investigator), "The Role of Neural Crest in Facial Patterning." NIH/NIDCR.
2002-2003: Academic Senate Individual Investigator Award. UCSF.
2004: New Investigator Recognition Award, Best Poster. 50th Annual Meeting of the Orthopaedic Research Society.
2004-2006: Basil O'Connor Starter Scholar Award. March of Dimes Birth Defects Foundation.
2004-2009: R01 (Principal Investigator), "Temporal Regulation of Cranial Skeletogenesis." NIH/NIDCR.
2005-2009: R01 (Co-Investigator), "Intervertebral Disc Repair with Mesenchymal Stem Cells." NIH/NIAMS.
2006-2009: R21 (Principal Investigator), "A New System to Study the Control of Epidermal Growth." NIH/NIAMS.
2006: Young Investigator Award, Developmental Biology in Orthopaedics Research Symposium, American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
2008-2009: Disease Team Planning Award (Co–Investigator), "A CIRM Disease Team for the Regeneration of Cartilage Following Trauma and Arthritis." California Institute for Regenerative Medicine (CIRM).

Membership and Committees

1994-Present: International Society of Vertebrate Morphologists.
1996-Present: Society for Developmental Biology.
1996-Present: Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology.
1998-Present: Sigma Xi, The Scientific Research Society.
2002-Present: American Association for the Advancement of Science.
2003-Present: Orthopaedic Research Society.
2003-Present: Program in Craniofacial and Mesenchymal Biology (CMB), UCSF.
2003-Present: Fundraising and Alumni Relations Committee, Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, UCSF.
2004-Present: Society of Craniofacial Genetics.
2004-Present: Research Committee, Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, UCSF.
2004-Present: Committee on Library, Academic Senate, UCSF.
2005-Present: Oral and Craniofacial Sciences (OCS) Graduate Program Faculty Group, UCSF.
2005-Present: System-Wide University Committee on Library (UCOL), Academic Senate, University of California.
2005-Present: Human Embryonic Stem Cell Biology (hESC) Program, UCSF.
2005-Present: Biomedical Sciences (BMS) Graduate Program, UCSF.
2005-Present: Faculty Development Committee, Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, UCSF.
2005-Present: Communications Committee, Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, UCSF.
2006-Present: Tetrad Program in Developmental Biology (Program in Biological Sciences (PIBS)), UCSF.
2006-Present: European Society for Evolutionary Developmental Biology.
2008-Present: American Association of Anatomists.

Department of Orthopaedic Surgery

Assistant Professor Research Labs

Assistant Professor
Research Labs