Kyle E. Orwig, PhD

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Kyle E. Orwig, PhD

Professor, Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology & Reproductive Sciences, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine; Marcus Allen Hogge Chair of Reproductive Genetics; Director, Fertility Preservation Program of Pittsburgh; Director, UPMC Magee Center for Reproduction and Transplantation; Director, Genome Editing, Transgenic and Virus Core Facility, Magee-Womens Research Institute

Contact

Magee-Womens Research Institute
204 Craft Avenue
Pittsburgh, PA 15213

Phone: 412-641-2460
Email: orwigke@upmc.edu

Administrative Contact
Jennifer Orwig
Phone: 412-641-2415
Email: shuttleworthjj@upmc.edu

Areas of Research

Reproductive Development

Reproductive Endocrinology & Infertility

Education

BS, Whitworth College

PhD, Biochemistry & Biophysics and Animal Sciences, Oregon State University

Postdoctoral training, University of Kansas Medical Center

Senior Postdoctoral Fellow, University of Pennsylvania

Affiliations

Sometimes we talk about ‘how many people in the world are really impacted by infertility.’ For me, the only person that matters is the one that walks in the door today and desperately wants to have a biological child.
Kyle E. Orwig, PhD

Research in Brief

Dr. Orwig's research aims to help individuals facing infertility, particularly those affected by cancer treatments or genetic conditions. By studying stem cells and the development of eggs and sperm, his team is working to develop new methods to preserve and restore fertility, offering hope to those who wish to have biological children in the future.

Current Projects

THE GENOME EDITING, TRANSGENIC AND VIRUS CORE FACILITY OF MAGEE-WOMENS RESEARCH INSTITUTE

The Genome Editing, Transgenic and Virus Core Facility of Magee-Womens Research Institute provides state-of-the-art services for generating transgenic mice/rats and knockout mice. The facility also produces replication defective lentiviral vectors for delivering recombinant transgenes and performs teratoma and chimera analyses to evaluate stem cell developmental potential.

GENETICS OF MALE INFERTILITY, ACCELERATING THE PACE OF DISCOVERY

A National Centers for Translational Research in Reproduction and Infertility (NCTRI) P50 Program grant is a collaboration between the University of Pittsburgh, Cornell University and the Oregon Health and Science University to discover the genetic/epigenitic causes of male infertility. This knowledge is used to develop diagnostic screens and targeted gene therapies.

THE FERTILITY PRESERVATION PROGRAM OF PITTSBURGH

The Fertility Preservation Program of Pittsburgh educates patients and their physicians about the reproductive consequences of chemotherapy and radiation treatments for cancer or other conditions while developing pioneering reproductive technologies to preserve fertility. The program rapidly translates these state-of-the-art technologies to the clinic, and trains the next generation of clinicians and researchers in the rapidly evolving discipline of fertility preservation.

THE UPMC MAGEE CENTER FOR REPRODUCTION AND TRANSPLANTATION

The UPMC Magee Center for Reproduction and Transplantation (CRT) is comprised of the UPMC Fertility Preservation Program and a dedicated Andrology and Fertility Preservation Laboratory located in Magee-Womens Hospital. CRT is a research and clinical center that provides a comprehensive menu of fertility preservation options (experimental and standard of care) to adults and children to UPMC and collaborating institutions around the US. The center is dedicated to developing novel reproductive technologies and translating them into clinical practice.

Selected Publications

Sheng Y, Yap YT, Li W, Dhikhirullahi O, Niu C, Rabbani M, Krawetz SA, Hammoud SS, Orwig KE, Zhang Z. Normal embryo development needs MEIG1-mediated sperm formation. FASEB J 2025. doi: 10.1096/fj.202500109R. [PUBMED]
Harancher MR, Sukhwani M, Castro CA, Hsieh MH, Orwig KE. Generation of two isogenic sickle cell disease induced pluripotent stem cell lines from testicular fibroblasts. Stem Cell Res. 2023 Dec:73:103257. doi: 10.1016/j.scr.2023.103257. [PUBMED]
Younis N, Caldeira-Brant AL, Chu T, Abdalla S, Orwig KE. Human immature testicular tissue organ culture: a step towards fertility preservation and restoration. Front Endocrinol (Lausanne). 2023 Aug 28:14:1242263. doi: 10.3389/fendo.2023.1242263. [PUBMED]
Tran KTD, Valli-Pulaski H, Colvin A, Orwig KE. Male fertility preservation and restoration strategies for patients undergoing gonadotoxic therapies. Biol Reprod
 2022;107(2):382-405. doi: 10.1093/biolre/ioac072. [PUBMED]
Shami AN, Zheng X, Munyoki SK, Ma Q, Manske GL, Green GD, Sukhwani M, Orwig KE, Li JL*, Hammoud SS. Single-cell RNA sequencing of human, macaque, and mouse testes uncovers conserved and divergent features of mammalian spermatogenesis. Dev Cell 2020, 54(4):529-547.e12. doi: 10.1016/j.devcel.2020.05.010. [PUBMED]
Valli-Pulaski H, Peters KA, Gassei K, Steimer SR, Sukhwani M, Hermann BP, Dwomor L, David S, Fayomi AP, Munyoki SK, Chu T, Chaudhry R, Cannon GM, Fox PJ, Jaffe TM, Sanfilippo JS, Menke MN, Lunenfeld E, Abofoul-Azab M, Sender LS, Messina J, Klimpel LM, Gosiengfiao Y, Rowell EE, Hsieh MH, Granberg CF, Reddy PP, Sandlow JI, Huleihel M, Orwig KE. Testicular tissue cryopreservation: 8 years of experience from a coordinated network of academic centers. Hum Reprod. 2019; May 21; doi: 10.1093/humrep/dez043. [PUBMED]
Fayomi A, Peters K, Sukhwani M, Valli-Pulaski H, Shetty G, Meistrich M, Houser L, Robertson N, Roberts V, Ramsey C, Hanna C, Hennebold J, Dobrinski I, Orwig KE. Autologous Grafting of Cryopreserved Prepubertal Rhesus Testis Produces Sperm and Offspring. Science. 2019; March 22; 363(6433): 1314-1319. doi: 10.1126/science.aav2914. [PUBMED], [PDF]