Rui Xiao, PhD

Dr. Xiao’s methodological research centers around statistical genetics and genomics, where she develops statistical methods and computational tools for RNA-seq and single cell RNA-seq (scRNA-seq) data analysis. Particularly, she has made significant contributions in allele-specific expression (ASE) research by developing several novel statistical and computational tools for gene-level ASE detection across multiple individuals and cell-type-specific ASE detection in bulk RNA-seq by integrating information from external scRNA-seq reference. 

Dr. Xiao’s collaborative research has focused on pediatrics with particular emphasis on neurology, rheumatology and implementation science. Since joining CHOP in 2011, she has concentrated her research on Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities (IDD), developing deep expertise in the statistical issues arising in observational studies, particularly in disorders involving seizures and pediatric rheumatology. She currently serves as the Co-Director of the Biostatistics and Data Science Core for the NICHD-funded CHOP/Penn IDD Research Center. Additionally, she is the lead statistician for multiple high-profile clinical trials, including a PCORI-funded multi-center clinical trial to evaluate tapering strategies of medication in juvenile spondyloarthritis and an international multi-center cluster-randomized trial to evaluate de-implementation methods for reducing unnecessary Spo₂ monitoring in hospitalized children with bronchiolitis. She also plays a key role at the CHOP Mitochondrial Medicine Frontier Program where she has provided rigorous statistical leadership for over a decade.