Women in Pathology
May has been designated Women in Pathology Month. During the month of May each year, the ASIP and Women in Pathology highlight the history of women in the ASIP…their service through leadership…recognition of their exceptional accomplishments as scientists…and activities and events as a community equipping women scientists with strategies to overcome real-life issues.
The mission of Women in Pathology is to advance the professional and personal development of women in pathobiology research and pathology-related careers. Women in Pathology advocates for equity at research and healthcare institutions and endorses efforts to reduce barriers and maintain work-life balance experienced by women in science (particularly pathology) who work in academic science, government research, biomedical industry or biotech, or other settings.
Women in Pathology communicates resources and provides networking opportunities to support women at every career stage while celebrating the scientific and scholarly achievements of women in pathology. Women in Pathology Month provides an opportunity for the ASIP to shine a bright light on our women scientists, their legacy of dedicated service, leadership, and accomplishment…and the bright future that they represent for the ASIP and larger community of basic, clinical, and translational pathobiology researchers.
To learn more about some of our exceptional women pathologists, click on any of the images below.
Pilar Alcaide, PhD
Dr. Pilar Alcaide is the Assistant Dean of Faculty Development, Kenneth and JoAnn G Wellner Professor, and Associate Professor of Immunology at Tufts University School of Medicine. Dr. Alcaide completed her PhD in molecular biology from Universidad Autonoma in Madrid, Spain. As a recipient of a Fulbright postdoctoral fellowship, Dr. Alcaide trained in vascular biology at the Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston, where she studied the mechanisms regulating immune cell trafficking to sites of inflammation. After completion of her postdoctoral research training, Dr. Alcaide was appointed to Instructor of Pathology at Harvard Medical School, where she successfully competed for a Pathway to Independence NIH K99/R00 Award.
Dr. Alcaide’s lab combines the areas of immunology, vascular biology, and cardiac physiology to study the adaptive immune response in diverse inflammatory settings, with a particular focus on the heart in the context of heart failure. The over-arching goal of the lab is to better understand the molecular and cellular mechanisms taking place during T lymphocyte trafficking and how those can potentially be targeted in therapeutically useful ways. Her research has been continuously funded by grants from the American Heart Association (AHA), the National Heart Lung and Blood Institute (NHLBI) and other private foundations.
In addition to research, Dr. Alcaide is committed to teaching and mentoring. Most of her trainees have received awards from the AHA, the NIH, FASEB, and the ASIP. Dr. Alcaide serves in NIH study sections, including the Mentored Transition to Independence (MTI), which discusses scientific applications of the new upcoming independent research scientists.
Dr. Alcaide is a current member of the ASIP Council as a Councilor At-large and serves as a Co-Leader for Women in Pathology. She received the ASIP Cotran Early Career Investigator Award in 2018 which recognizes early career investigators with demonstrated excellence in research. Most recently, she was elected as Vice President of the ASIP and will begin her term July 2023. She will advance to President of the ASIP in 2025.
Stephanie Blocker, PhD
Dr. Stephanie Blocker is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Radiology at the Duke University Medical Center. She earned her BA in biology from Albion College and her PhD in cancer biology from Wayne State University.
Dr. Blocker’s lab is interested in developing novel utilities for digital pathology in the context of multi-modal imaging of solid tumors. Although Dr. Blocker has a strong interest in digital pathology technology, she is faculty in Radiology at Duke with a background is in vivo cancer imaging research, including MRI and PET imaging. She utilizes the power of digital pathology to connect these modalities with traditional pathology to facilitate information flow between the radiologist and the pathologist.
Dr. Blocker has been a member of the ASIP since 2022. In September 2022, her lab’s work was featured on the cover of The American Journal of Pathology (AJP). In February 2023, Dr. Blocker presented the monthly AJP Featured Author Seminar, highlighting not one, but two recent papers published in the Journal.
On a personal note, Dr. Blocker and her husband have a chocolate lab named Kona, and they play in a community symphonic band. She also loves cooking, sketch art, and writing in her free time.
Darlene A. Dartt, PhD
Dr. Darlene Dartt is a Senior Scientist at The Ocular Surface Scholar, Schepens Eye Research Institute and Mass Eye and Ear, and a Professor in the Department of Ophthalmology at Harvard Medical School. Dr. Dartt was also a Professor II (non-voting) at the University of Oslo School of Dentistry.
Dr. Dartt received her BA from Barnard College of Columbia University in New York City and her PhD from the Department of Physiology at the University of Pennsylvania. She joined the Schepens Eye Research Institute in 1985. Her primary research interests are the signaling pathways used by neurotransmitters in the lacrimal gland and conjunctival goblet cells to induce secretion and proliferation and how dysregulation of these pathways can lead to dry eye syndromes in mouse models and humans.
Currently, her lab is investigating the effect of allergic inflammation and its resolution on conjunctival goblet cell secretion and the effect of bacterial infection on goblet cell function. She has been continuously funded by NIH since 1980 for her work. Dr. Dartt directed the Institute’s Department of Defense Research Program and chaired six Military Vision Research Symposia. She has chaired the ARVO Cornea Program Planning Committee, chaired the 2016 Cornea, Biology and Pathobiology, Gordon Research Conference, served on the NIH Study Section Diseases and Pathology of the Visual System (DPVS), an is the President-Elect for the International Society for Contact Lens Research.
Additionally, Dr. Dartt has trained over fifty students and postdoctoral fellows including supporting Dr. Menglu Yang as a trainee member of ASIP, and with Dr. Yang supervised a Summer Research Intern, Nicholas Wang, who was sponsored by an ASIP Summer Research Opportunity Program in Pathology. Dr. Dartt has been an active participant in the ASIP Annual Meetings over the years.
Dr. Dartt’s honors include: postdoctoral fellowships from the Scandinavian-American Foundation and the National Institutes of Health; the Lew R. Wasserman Award from Research to Prevent Blindness; a Gold Fellow award (in the first class awarded) from the Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology, two Best Oral Presentation Awards from the Military Refractive Surgery Meeting, and the First Lifetime Achievement Award in Mentoring from Schepens Eye Research Institute/Mass Eye and Ear.
Anna Mae Diehl, MD, FAASLD
Dr. Anna Mae Diehl is the Florence McAlister Professor of Medicine at Duke University. She received her MD from Georgetown University School of Medicine. Dr. Diehl is a physician-scientist and academic hepatologist. Her lab-based research activities focus on basic mechanisms of liver repair and complement her translational/clinical research programs in alcoholic- and nonalcoholic fatty liver disease. Her basic research program has enjoyed uninterrupted NIH R01 support since 1990. She has been the Principal Investigator for the NASH CRN U01 clinical research program at Duke since its inception over 15 years ago. She is also the Duke PI for the Liver Cirrhosis U01 Network that began in August 2021.
Dr. Diehl’s research contributions to the fields of regenerative medicine, alcohol-related liver disease and NAFLD have been acknowledged by election for membership in the American Society for Clinical Investigation, Interurban Clinical Club, Association of Academic Professors, and Johns Hopkins University Society of Scholars, as well as awards such as an NIH/NIAAA Merit Award, the NIAAA Mendelson Award, the Duke Distinguished Faculty Award, and the AASLD Distinguished Scientific Achievement Award.
Training the next generation of biomedical researchers has always been a priority for Dr. Diehl. She has been the primary research mentor for over 70 individuals, served on multiple scientific review panels for NIH-, VA-, AGA- and AASLD- career development awards, and regularly participated in post-graduate courses and career development workshops as an invited speaker. Dr. Diehl’s contributions to mentoring have been acknowledged by the Duke School of Medicine Research Mentoring Award, the Elizabeth Hurlock Beckman Research Mentoring Award, and the AGA Hepatobiliary Section Research Mentoring Award. She co-chaired the AGA/AASLD/ACG Academic Skills Workshop in 2022.
Dr. Diehl has been an associate editor/editorial board member for major journals such as HEPATOLOGY, Gastroenterology, GUT, The American Journal of Physiology, The Journal of Clinical Investigation, Nature Reviews, and eLife. Dr. Diehl has been a member of the ASIP since 2007. In addition, she has served as a standing member of several NIH study sections and scientific advisory councils for NIDDK, NCI, NIAAA, the American Liver Foundation, the Alcoholic Beverage Medical Research Foundation, NIDDK Digestive Disease Centers at Baylor, USC and U Pittsburgh, and NIAAA Alcohol Research Centers at U Louisville and the Cleveland Clinic. She is a past-president of the Gastroenterology Research Group, former AASLD Governing Board Councilor-at-Large, and current member of the Executive Governing Council for the International Association for the Study of Cells of the Hepatic Sinusoid, as well as Co-Chair of the NAFLD Special Interest Group for the AASLD.
Mel Feany, MD, PhD
Dr. Mel Feany is Professor of Pathology at Harvard Medical School and Senior Neuropathologist at Brigham and Women’s Hospital (Boston, MA). She received her BA in biochemistry at Harvard College. Dr Feany completed her PhD in neurobiology at Harvard Medical School and continued on to complete her MD at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine (New York, NY). Subsequently, she completed her residency training in pathology and fellowship training in neuropathology at Brigham and Women’s Hospital (Boston, MA).
Dr. Feany’s research laboratory pioneered modeling of common age-related human neurodegenerative diseases, including Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s disease, in the powerful genetic model organism Drosophila. Her laboratory also has a major focus on understanding how glial cells control neuronal function and viability during aging and in disease states. In addition to uncovering new molecules and mechanisms using unbiased approaches in Drosophila, work in the Feany laboratory is highly collaborative and integrates data from human cells and tissue, and rat and mouse models to identify core pathways that are dysregulated in neurodegenerative disease. These pathways represent attractive therapeutic targets in affected patients.
Dr. Feany is currently co-Editor of the Annual Review of Pathology: Mechanisms of Disease. She is the recipient of the 2009 Outstanding Investigator Award from the ASIP, the Frontiers in Clinical Medicine Award from the American Academy of Neurology, and the 2019 Landis Award for Outstanding Mentorship from the NINDS. Dr. Feany is a longstanding member of the ASIP, and has served on the Meritorious Awards Committee and the Nominating Committee, as well as enthusiastically supported recognition by and involvement in the Society by her trainees and mentees, current and former.
Hayley Gorman, PhD Candidate
Hayley is a PhD candidate in Microbiology, Immunology, and Infectious Diseases at the University of Calgary and will be wrapping up her PhD this year. She completed her BSc in Nova Scotia at St. Francis Xavier University, with a joint advanced major in biology and psychology. After graduation, Hayley worked for a local non-profit supporting adults with developmental disabilities returning to the world of science in 2017. She joined the ASIP in 2018 and attended Experimental Biology for the first time in 2019. She served as an Official Social Ambassador for the ASIP in 2021.
Hayley has been recognized with a number of awards: Best Oral Presentation at the 2018 Canadian Digestive Diseases Week (CDDW) Conference, Crohn’s and Colitis Canada Student Research Prize at the 2019 CCDW Conference, ASIP Marion and Lawrence (Larry) Muller Memorial Trainee Scholar Award for Excellence in Inflammation Research in 2019 and 2021, Poster of Distinction 2021 at the CCDW Conference, and Oral Presentation Student Prize at the 2022 Shaffer-Davison Research Day (University of Calgary).
Hayley has authored a number of review articles appearing in the Encyclopedia of Microbiology, the Journal of Leukocyte Biology and Trends in Parasitology, as well as co-author for papers in PLoS Pathogens, The American Journal of Pathology, the American Journal of Physiology-Gastrointestinal and Liver Physiology, and Gastroenterology.
Karen Kaul, MD, PhD
Dr. Karen Kaul is Chair of the Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine at NorthShore University HealthSystem and is a Clinical Professor of Pathology at the University of Chicago Pritzker School of Medicine. She completed her BA in chemistry and biology in Drake University (Iowa), and both her MD and PhD from Northwestern University.
Dr. Kaul is board-certified in Anatomic and Molecular Genetic Pathology, and established one of the earliest molecular diagnostics laboratories in the US. She has been deeply involved in the development of DNA-based laboratory tests and has been significantly involved in education, quality, and standardization of the practice of molecular pathology.
Dr. Kaul served as president of the Association for Molecular Pathology (AMP), and Editor-in-Chief of The Journal of Molecular Diagnostics (co-published by AMP and the ASIP), was a Trustee of the American Board of Pathology, and has served in numerous roles related to pathology training and certification. As departmental Chair, she has led efforts to improve laboratory efficiency and utilization, and maximize the impact of the laboratory on clinical care.
Elaine Jaffe, MD
Dr. Elaine Jaffe completed her MD at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine in 1969, then an internship in pathology at Georgetown University Hospital from 1969-1970. She went to the National Cancer Institute at the NIH in 1972 as a resident in the Laboratory of Pathology and remained at the NCI/NIH since that time. Dr. Jaffe completed a fellowship in hematopathology from (1972-1974) prior to becoming a Senior Investigator in the Hematopathology Section of the Laboratory of Pathology at the NCI/NIH (1974-1980), and Head of the Hematopathology Section in 1980 (a position she still holds). In 1982, Dr. Jaffe became Deputy Chief of the Laboratory of Pathology, and then became Acting Chief from 2005-2008. Dr. Jaffe became an NIH Distinguished Investigator in 2019. Hence, for over 50 years, Dr. Jaffe has worked at the National Cancer Institute. Her long tenure is surpassed only by her productivity over this period of time.
Over the course of her 50+ year career, Dr. Jaffe has published 754 original papers, 46 invited commentaries and editorials, 103 book chapters, and she has authored/edited 7 major textbooks. Dr. Jaffe’s basic science and translational research is focused the pathobiology and genetics of human lymphomas and lymphoproliferative disorders with emphasis on their relationship to the normal immune system, and relevance for diagnosis and classification. The impact of Dr. Jaffe’s work on this field can be easily seen in her H-index, which is 186. This H-index reflects remarkable impact of Dr. Jaffe’s work and clearly shows that her work is being seen and cited by many investigators.
Dr. Jaffe has been elected into leadership positions with a number of scientific societies, including the Executive Council (1988-1991) and Advisory Board (1996-2000) for the American Society for Hematology, member of the Steering Committee (2001-2005) and Chair of the Medical Sciences Section of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, Meritorious Awards Committee (1997-2000, 2004-2007) for the American Society for Investigative Pathology, President (1998-1999) of the United States and Canadian Academy of Pathology, Chair of the Membership Committee for the National Academy of Medicine (2017-2019), President of the Society for Hematopathology (1994-1996), and President of the Washington Society of Pathologists (1988-1989), among others. She has also served on numerous Editorial Boards for scientific journals, and has contributed her time to numerous intramural groups and activities at the NIH. Further, Dr. Jaffe has served on many advisory committees and boards outside of the NIH and has served as organizer to numerous national and international scientific meetings and conferences. This observation, combined with her list of invited presentations, delivered all over the world, speaks to her local, national, and international reputation as a scientist.
Dr. Jaffe is a devoted educator and mentor, and has been recognized on a number of occasions for her excellent teaching in the clinical setting and the laboratory. She received the Outstanding Mentor Award from the NCI in 2001 and the Distinguished Clinical Teacher Award in 2006 from the NIH Clinical Fellows Committee, among others. Since her appointment as Head of the Hematopathology Section in 1980, she has trained more than 60 Clinical Fellows in Hematopathology. Since 2015, Dr. Jaffe’s trainees in the Hematopathology Section have authored more than 50 articles in the peer-reviewed literature.
Dr. Jaffe has received numerous awards over the course of her 50+ year career—too many to list here. Just last month, The Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology (FASEB) awarded her the Excellence in Science Lifetime Achievement Award which showcases outstanding achievements of women in biological science. Other recent awards include: the Inaugural Brooks Ragen Endowed Lectureship (Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, 2021), the Berard-Dorfman Founders Award (Society for Hematopathology, 2019), the Board’s Distinguished Pathologist Award (United States and Canadian Academy of Pathology, 2019), Honorary Fellow of The Royal College of Pathologists of Australasia (2019), NCI Center for Cancer Research Federal Technology Transfer Award (2017, 2018, 2019), Arthur Purdy Stout Society President’s Award (2016), Philip Levine Award for Outstanding Research (American Society for Clinical Pathology, 2014), Henry M. Stratton Medal (American Society of Hematology, 2013), NIH Merit Award and NIH Director’s Award (awarded to the members of the Lymphoma Leukemia Molecular Profiling Project, 2010), NIH Director’s Merit Award for graduate medical education (2005 and many others). In 2008 she was elected to the Institute of Medicine of the National Academies. Dr. Jaffe has received a number of awards from the American Society for Investigative Pathology, including the ASIP Gold-Headed Cane Award (conferred at the Experimental Biology 2022 meeting), the ASIP Rous-Whipple Award (2016), and the ASIP Chugai Award for Excellence in Mentoring and Scholarship (2008). Most recently, Dr. Jaffe became the inaugural recipient of the James S. Ewing-Thelma B. Dunn Award for Outstanding Achievement in Pathology in Cancer Research (2022), and was recognized by the Department of Health and Human Services with the DHHS Career Achievement Award (2022). The citation associated with the DHHS Career Achievement Award reads: “Dr. Elaine S. Jaffe has changed the way in which the diagnosis of lymphoma is made on a worldwide basis—(1) revolutionizing the integration of traditional pathological methods with immunologic and genomic approaches; (2) harmonizing for the first time the diagnosis of lymphoma and leukemia internationally; and (3) describing multiple new disease entities that have resulted in changes to clinical practice and management for numerous patients.”
Megan Lim, MD, PhD
Dr. Megan Lim is Attending Pathologist in the Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (New York, NY). She received her BSc, MD, and PhD from the University of Calgary. Dr. Lim joined Memorial Hospital as Attending Pathologist on the Hematopathology Service in September 2022. Before joining MSK, she was Professor in the Division of Hematopathology, and a Hematopathologist in the Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania (Philadelphia, PA).
Research in Dr. Lim’s group includes the discovery of novel pathogenetic biomarkers of hematopoietic cancers. She is currently investigating metabolic changes in lymphoma that result from changes in ALK tyrosine kinase activity, with a focus towards developing blood-based assays for early detection and improving prognosis and outcomes. She shares a lab with Dr. Elenitoba-Johnson, Chair of the Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center.
Dr. Lim has been a member of the ASIP since 2002. Some of her honors include: Best Doctors of America from 2005-2013, the 2004 Translational Research Award, Children's Oncology Group, and the 2002 Young Investigator Award, Children’s Oncology Group.
Stacy Lloyd, PhD
Dr. Stacy M. Lloyd is an Instructor in the Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology at Baylor College of Medicine. She completed her BS in biology from Prairie View A&M University and her MS in public health genetics from the University of Pittsburgh, then continued to complete her PhD in human genetics from the Pittsburgh Graduate School of Public Health. Her primary research interest is in understanding the molecular mechanisms regulating aberrant wound healing and how this information may provide insights into cancer disparities.
Dr. Lloyd is currently funded by the Department of Defense to explore keloid biology and prostate cancer disparities. She is committed to mentoring and training the next generation of researchers and health care providers.
Dr. Lloyd is new to the ASIP, joining the Society in 2022. She participated in the inaugural ASIP Leadership Academy (in 2022) and the PISA2022 virtual meeting. She plans to attend the upcoming Tissue, Matrix & Pathobiology meeting in Salt Lake City this October.
Linda McManus, PhD
Dr. Linda McManus is a Professor Emerita at the University of Texas Health San Antonio (UT Health San Antonio). She completed her PhD in experimental pathology from the University of Colorado Medical School and then completed her postdoctoral training at UT Health San Antonio. Her main research interests focus on the cellular and molecular regulation of inflammatory events in tissue injury and regeneration.
At UT Health San Antonio, Dr. McManus directed a NIH-sponsored research training program (T32) for postdoctoral fellows in cardiovascular pathobiology for over 2 decades. She also directed a NIH training program (TL1) that supports trainees in translational science, as well as an institutional K12 program (IRACDA) for postdoctoral trainees.
Dr. McManus is a longstanding member of the ASIP and has served many years in leadership, including as President, Secretary-Treasurer, member of Council, and Chair of several committees including many years as the Education Chair. Dr. McManus also served in the leadership of the Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology (FASEB), where she was Treasurer. Dr. McManus was a founding Co-Leader of the Women in Pathology. In recognition of her many contributions to pathology education, Dr. McManus received the ASIP Robbins Distinguished Educator Award in 2021. More recently, Dr. McManus’ contributions to the support of women in science will be recognized as the first recipient of the ASIP Frieda Robscheit-Robbins Award for Exceptional Achievement in the Advancement of Women in Experimental Pathology (to be presented in October 2023).
Jayshree Mishra, PhD
Dr. Jayshree Mishra is a Research Associate Professor in the Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences at Texas A&M University. Dr. Mishra earned her PhD from Indian Institute of Technology, India where she also completed her master’s in molecular biotechnology. She completed her post-doctoral fellowship in the Department of Physiology at the University of Tennessee, prior to joining Texas A&M.
Dr. Mishra’s research interests focus on understanding how low-grade chronic inflammation of gastrointestinal tract leads to different healthcare complications such as obesity and associated cancer. Her current research project is to investigate the role of a non-tyrosine kinase receptor (Jak3) in triple negative breast cancer brain metastasis and develop Jak3-targeted drugs against metastatic breast cancer.
Dr. Mishra’s research awards include: an SBIR award from the NIH, TAMU-PESCA award, Awards from Discovery Foundation, and Vishal Raju Bhagat Foundation, among others. Dr. Mishra has been teaching and mentoring professional pharmacy students at Texas A&M College of Pharmacy since 2014. She has been a graduate faculty member of Texas A&M since 2022. Additionally, she is instrumental in establishing a wellness program, “COP-Walk Across the Texas” at Texas A&M. Dr. Mishra has been serving as an elected representative on the TAMU-Council of Principal Investigators since 2018, where she works with the administration and faculty members on upcoming research activities, initiatives, research infrastructure, and resources available at Texas A&M.
Dr. Mishra has been a member of the ASIP since 2020. She attended the ASIP Leadership Academy last October and currently serves as a member of the ASIP Program Committee. She is planning to increase her engagement in the Society by joining the Committee for Equal Representation and Opportunity.
Laura Molina, PhD
Dr. Molina will graduate from the MD/PhD program at the University of Pittsburgh in May 2023 and will begin her residency in Anatomic Pathology at UPMC in Pittsburgh, PA. In 2015, she received her BS in biochemistry and molecular biology at the University of Florida. She completed her PhD thesis in 2021 working with Dr. Paul Monga, a longtime member and leader in the ASIP.
Dr. Molina’s research is focused on embryonic development and cancer biology of the liver, and she earned an F30 grant from the NIH NIDDK supporting this work. She showed that Yes-associated protein 1 (YAP) is critical for bile duct formation during development as well as during liver regeneration.
Dr. Molina was awarded a Chateaubriand Fellowship award, which funded several months of research with Dr. Jessica Zucman-Rossi in Paris, France. During this time, she learned bioinformatics techniques and analyze large patient data sets to identify mechanisms of disease driving hepatocellular carcinoma. In 2022, she was named a Thomas Kinney Scholar by the Association of Pathology Chairs Society of ’67 and received the College of American Pathologists Distinguished Medical Student Award representing the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine.
Dr. Molina has been a member of the ASIP since 2017 and has served on the ASIP Education Committee since 2021. She has won the ASIP-APSA Partnership Trainee Scholar Award in 2020 and 2022, and she was awarded the ASIP Experimental Pathologist in Graduate Training award in 2020, recognizing her excellence in scientific research. More recently, she co-chaired a session on Liver Pathobiology at the 2022 ASIP Annual Meeting at Experimental Biology in Philadelphia. Dr. Molina has a passion for teaching and mentoring students in both clinical and research settings, and is looking forward to continuing her service to ASIP in the years to come.
Joud Mulla, PhD Student
Joud is a PhD student at the University of Pittsburgh, working in the laboratory of Dr. Melanie Scott. Her research focuses on investigating the role of the noncanonical inflammasome in inflammation, coagulopathy, and organ damage after trauma. She earned her BS from Simmons University and MS from Brown University, where she conducted research on the therapeutic role of ASPH in non-alcoholic fatty liver disease.
As an emerging scientist, she received a travel award at the 45th Annual Conference on SHOCK for her work and presented her research during the conference. She also presented her work at the 2022 ASIP Annual Meeting at Experimental Biology and participated in the Women in Pathology Networking Event and SIG night while in Philadelphia.
Outside of her research, Joud is dedicated to promoting diversity and inclusion in the academic community. She serves as the Biomedical Graduate Student Association Diversity & Inclusion committee co-chair at the University of Pittsburgh and has been on the planning committee for the University of Pittsburgh Department of Pathology Research Day for two years.
Joud has been an active member of ASIP since 2021. She joined the planning committee for the virtual PISA2022 Young Investigator Meeting, presented her research, and received the Pre-doctoral Young Investigator Outstanding Research Award. She will be a featured speaker in June 2023, for the Young Investigator Keynote Seminar and plans to attend the Tissue, Matrix, and Pathobiology Joint Meeting in October.
Iqra Pervaiz, PhD Candidate
Iqra Pervaiz is a fourth year PhD candidate at Texas Tech University of Health Sciences at the Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences in the laboratory of Dr Abraham Alahmad. She graduated with her MS in molecular biology with biotechnology from Bangor University (Wales, United Kingdom).
Iqra’s current research is focused on understanding the Blood-Brain Barrier (BBB) physiology in GLUT-1 Deficiency Syndrome, where she is elucidating the role of BBB and how it is impacted in this rare disease. In the laboratory, Iqra has been interested in studying the phenotype of GLUT-1 deficient brain cells at the neurovascular unit, glucose and ketone body kinetics, and transport inhibitors to study the pathogenesis of disease and molecular mechanisms using CRISPR/Cas9 edited human induced pluripotent stem cells.
Iqra was inducted into The TTUHSC chapter of The Honor Society of Phi Kappa Phi which recognizes the top 10% graduate students. Throughout her student career, Iqra has received numerous awards for academic excellence including highly prestigious Phi Kappa Phi Graduate Research Grant and Dissertation Fellowship to support her research and expand career development opportunities.
Iqra joined the ASIP in 2021 and was able to attend her first in-person conference at the ASIP Annual Meeting at Experimental Biology in 2022. She delivered her first research talk to a live audience and received a Trainee Scholar Award. While in Philadelphia, Iqra participated in the Women in Pathology Networking event, the Trainee Highlights Poster Session, and SIG Night. Iqra is currently working as Spring Co-op at Rare and Neurological Disease Therapeutics Sanofi.
Liya Pi, PhD
Dr. Liya Pi is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine in the School of Medicine at Tulane University. Dr. Pi obtained her bachelor’s degree in biology from Lanzhou University in China and then her MS in biochemistry and molecular biology from University of California Davis. She transitioned to the field of biomedical research and obtained her PhD at the University of Florida, Gainesville.
Dr. Pi’s PhD research in mechanisms of liver progenitor/oval cell activation and liver regeneration led to the identification of connective tissue growth factor (CTGF) as an important player downstream of TGF-β in liver repair. Further postdoctoral training broadened her research ventures into CTGF regulation in ocular vascular repair and tumorigenesis at the University of Florida. As a junior faculty in the Department of Pediatrics at University of Florida, her research extended to investigate the role of CTGF and its signal partners in reparative processes of multiple organs including livers, lungs, and corneas. In particular, she has identified ADAMTS7 (a disintegrin and metalloproteinase with thrombospondin type I repeat 7) as a new protease for CTGF during hepatic progenitor cell activation and biliary fibrosis. Extracellular matrix protein (ECM)1 has also been identified to bind CTGF and inhibit TGF-Β activation. Her work with CTGF has led to multiple awards from the American Cancer Society, NIAAA K01, and NIAAA R01. The long-term goal of her research program is to identify molecular targets/pathways for anti-fibrotic therapy that can improve regeneration outcome after liver injury.
Dr. Pi was appointed a Tenure-track Assistant Professor at Tulane University in 2021. She has published more than 45 peer-reviewed research papers and served as panel reviewers in multiple NIH study sections. She has also owned patents related to “Mouse Model of Alcohol-induced Liver Cancer” and “Clear Senescent Cells with Bcl-2/xl/w Degraders.”
Dr. Pi has been a member of the ASIP since 2019. She presented her findings about liver regeneration and ethanol detoxification-a new link in YAP regulation of ALDH1A1 during alcohol-related hepatocyte damage at the 2019 ASIP Annual Meeting at Experimental Biology. In addition to participation in the ASIP scientific meetings, Dr. Pi is a member of the ASIP Immunohistochemistry and Microscopy Scientific Interest Group, and she participated in the 2022 ASIP Leadership Academy.
Katerina Politi, PhD
Dr. Katerina Politi is an Associate Professor in the Departments of Pathology and Internal Medicine in the Section of Medical Oncology at Yale University. She studied biology at the University of Pavia (Italy) and then moved to New York, where she completed her PhD in genetics and development at Columbia University.
Following graduate school, Dr. Politi joined Dr. Harold Varmus's lab at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center and began her work on the molecular basis of lung cancer. Her laboratory is focused on studying the biology of lung cancer and on uncovering mechanisms of resistance to targeted therapies and immunotherapies in this disease. At the Yale Cancer Center, Dr. Politi is a co-leader of the Cancer Signaling Networks Research Program and the Scientific Director of the Center for Thoracic Cancers.
Dr. Politi has been a member of the ASIP since 2012. In 2017, she received the ASIP Cotran Early Investigator Award.
Jennifer Sanders, PhD
Dr. Jennifer Sanders is currently a Scientific Review Officer in the Cancer Therapeutics Review Branch of the Center for Scientific Review at the National Institutes of Health (NIH). Dr. Sanders received her PhD in molecular biology, cell biology and biochemistry from Brown University. She then completed a postdoctoral fellowship in gastroenterology at Rhode Island Hospital.
Prior to joining NIH, she was an Associate Professor in the Departments of Pathology & Laboratory Medicine and Pediatrics at Brown University. There, her research focused on the signaling pathways and gene expression networks that regulate fetal liver development and liver regeneration to provide insight into the liver’s response to injury and dysregulated cell growth that occurs during the development of cancer.
At Brown University, Dr. Sanders exhibited great commitment to graduate education and mentoring. She was involved in developing grant programs for junior faculty members at Rhode Island Hospital and served as a mentor in a summer enrichment program designed to expose high school students from nontraditional backgrounds to careers in basic and translational research.
Dr. Sanders joined the ASIP in 2010 and is an ASIP Ambassador. In 2020, she received a Summer Research Opportunity Program in Pathology award to fund an underrepresented undergraduate in her laboratory. Dr. Sanders previously served as a Co-Leader of the Women in Pathology, Chair of the Education Committee, and a member of the ASIP Council. In recognition of her contributions in support of women in pathology, Dr. Sanders is the first recipient of the ASIP Marilyn G. Farquhar Early Career Award for Exceptional Achievement in the Advancement of Women in Experimental Pathology (to be presented in October 2023).
Melanie Scott, MD, PhD
Dr. Melanie Scott is the Vice Chair for Research, Associate Professor of Surgery, and Director of Graduate Education for Surgery Research at the University of Pittsburgh. She earned her MD at the University of Liverpool (England) and then her PhD in immunology at the University of Louisville.
As a post-doctoral research associate, Dr. Scott investigated the role of the pattern recognition receptor TLR4 on endotoxin uptake and clearance by the liver; this work is continuing. Dr. Scott's lab is now uncovering exciting findings suggesting cell-specific roles for TLR4 on endotoxin homeostasis during sepsis. Her PhD research investigated the role of natural killer and natural killer T-cells in the initiation of immune responses to sepsis, and she has since continued these studies in a model of hemorrhagic shock.
Dr. Scott has been a member of the ASIP since 2015 and currently serves on Council as the representative to the FASEB Science Policy Committee. She also will serve as 2023-2024 President to the Shock Society and is a NIH Surgery, Anesthesiology, and Trauma Study Section standing member.
Sasha Smolgovsky, Graduate Student
Sasha Smolgovsky, Graduate Student
Sasha is a fifth-year immunology graduate student at Tufts University in Somerville, MA. She completed her BS in biological sciences (cell and molecular physiology concentration) and microbiology from California Polytechnic University (Cal Poly), San Luis Obispo, and continued on to completed her MS in biological sciences with a regenerative medicine specialization.
During her master’s program, she interned at Capricor Therapeutics™, and attended the American Heart Association (AHA) Scientific Sessions meeting, where she heard Dr. Pilar Alcaide (Tufts University) present her outstanding achievements in cardioimmunology. Consequently, she applied and was accepted to the Immunology program at the Tufts University Graduate School in Biological Sciences, where she is currently under Dr. Alcaide’s mentorship.
Sasha has received predoctoral fellowships from the AHA and the NIH, as well as institutional awards, and awards from various poster competitions. She received the GALL Trainee Scholar Award and the Trainee Scholar Travel Award from the ASIP in 2021 and 2022, respectively, and showcased her research at the ASIP Annual Meeting at Experimental Biology in those years. She also gave her first oral presentation at the PISA2020 virtual meeting. Sasha participates in many of the ASIP events including the Women in Pathology group, in person seminars, socials, and networking opportunities. She will be a featured speaker in July 2023, for the Young Investigator Keynote Seminar Series.
Cecelia C. Yates, PhD
Dr. Cecelia Yates is an Associate Professor with Tenure in the Department of Health Promotion & Development in the School of Nursing at the University of Pittsburgh and holds secondary appointments in the Departments of Bioengineering and Pathology as well as at the Clinical and Translational Science Institute, and the McGowan Institute of Regenerative Medicine. Dr. Yates earned her BS in biology/chemistry from Tuskegee University (Tuskegee, AL) and her PhD in integrative biomedical science and pathology in conjunction with the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine (Pittsburgh, PA). Dr. Yates completed her advanced training in a Postdoctoral Fellowship in Pathology and Regenerative Medicine at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine.
Dr. Yates is one of the first experimental pathologists in the country to hold a primary appointment in a school of nursing and integrated experimental and diagnostic pathology into the curriculum. Her research group investigates molecular pathways that drive tissue fibrosis and correlates them with patient-centric outcome measures of disease severity. Dr. Yates' research has been supported externally by funding from the National Institute of Nursing Research, the National Institute of General Medical Sciences, the National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases, pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies, and internally continuously since its inception.
Dr. Yates has mentored over 50 scholars at the University of Pittsburgh and institutions nationally. Dr. Yates’ approach to recruiting and retaining women in experimental pathology has been to develop trainees and faculty based on their individual dexterities and aptitudes. Her goal is to arm each mentee with fundamental tools to become an innovator, entrepreneur, and—most importantly—a creative scientist.
Dr. Yates has been an active member of the ASIP since 2009. She has worked to help diversify the areas of pathology research that the ASIP supports and increase trainee and regular membership within these areas, specifically for women. She has served as chairwoman of the ASIP Committee for Career Development, Women, and Minorities, on the ASIP Council, as Chair of the ASIP Committee for Career Development and Diversity, as a Councilor At-large, and has served on the ASIP Education Committee, Research and Science Policy, Program, Membership, and Publications Committees. She has also Co-chaired the ASIP Cell Injury SIG, contributed to the organizing teams of the ASIP Annual Meetings and PISA Meetings. Dr. Yates is the current ASIP representative to the FASEB Excellence in Science Committee and Chair of the Committee for Equal Representation and Opportunity.
Dr. Yates has published 40 original papers, reviews, and book chapters. She is the Co-editor of Fibrosis in Disease: An Organ-based Guide to Disease Pathophysiology and Therapeutic Considerations. She is a Member of over 10 Editorial Boards and five Study Sections and a Member of 12 Advisory Boards. In addition, Dr. Yates engages in various entrepreneurial activities related to her research. She is co-founder of several Pittsburgh-based start-up companies, including Ocugenix LLC, a therapeutics company targeting macular degeneration, and FibroKine™ INC, a drug company that develops targeted chemokine peptide treatment for fibrosing diseases.
Dr. Yates has been recognized for her emerging discoveries and inventions with several University of Pittsburgh Innovator Awardees including the Emerging Innovator Award 2021 from the University of Pittsburgh, the Clinical and Translational Science Institute (CTSI) 2020 Distinguished Alumnus Award, and the 2022 Chancellor's Distinguished Research Award—one of the highest honors for a faculty member to receive at the University of Pittsburgh. In April 2023, the Society announced that Dr. Yates is the 2024 recipient of the ASIP Marilyn G. Farquhar Early Career Award for Exceptional Achievement in the Advancement of Women in Experimental Pathology.
Jingjing You, PhD
Dr. Jingjing You, is the Lead of Biovision and Multidimensional Biomedical Research Group at School of Medical Sciences and Save Sight Institute, University of Sydney and Vising Academic at School of Optometry and Vision Science, University of New South Wales (Australia). She completed her PhD in molecular biology, proteomics, and genetics at The University of New South Wales.
Dr. You is also the External Scientific advisor for NSW Tissue Bank, Co-founder of ANZ Corneal Bioengineering Working Group and iFix Medical Pty Ltd. She was appointed as a working committee member for Public Awareness Committee of Tear Film & Ocular Surface Society, and a Member of Managing Committee of BIENCO Australia (Bioengineering Human Cornea).
Dr. You’s research areas include: tear research, biomaterial, bioengineering and applying machine learning in eye disease management. She has over 30 publications, two professional publications, four intellectual properties, and one publicly available genetic database. As a Chief Investigator, she attracted over A$3 million funding in the recent 5 years including two national category one funds: NHMRC idea grant and MRFF frontier health and medical research, and a commercializing grant NSW Medical Device Fund.
Dr. You is a strong supporter for EMCR research community and scientific communication with public. In 2022, she received Vice Chancellor’s Award for Outstanding Mentoring and Leadership and selected to present at Raising the Bar 2023 to public about collagen in medicine. She joined the ASIP in 2022.