Immunology | Research Interests

Name	Email	PhD Program
Gjoneska, Elizabeth WEBSITE EMAIL PUBLICATIONS	PHD PROGRAM Neuroscience RESEARCH INTEREST Aging/Alzheimer's, Behavior, Epigenetics, Genomics, Immunology, Molecular Mechanisms of Disease, Neurobiology, Stem Cells	Neurodegenerative disorders like Alzheimer’s disease (AD) represent a global health emergency. Evidence showing that systemic inflammation can exacerbate cognitive decline during neurodegeneration, including AD, and identification of disease-associated genetic risk variants that perturb function of microglia, the resident brain immune cells, reveal that microglia play an active role in disease progression. Studies in the Gjoneska group aim to elucidate the mechanisms underlying microglia dysfunction during AD. To that end, our group combines cutting edge molecular, cellular and genomic tools together with genetic in vivo approaches to understand how genetic and environmental risk factors alter the function of microglia and contribute to increasing susceptibility to AD.
Free, Meghan WEBSITE EMAIL PUBLICATIONS	PHD PROGRAM Pathobiology & Translational Science RESEARCH INTEREST Autoimmune Disorders, Disease, Human Subjects Research, Immunology, Molecular Mechanisms of Disease, Pathology, Translational Medicine	My research focuses on understanding the immunological underpinnings of autoimmune disease, specifically anti-neutrophil cytoplasmic autoantibody (ANCA) vasculitis. We examine CD4+ T cells in the context of disease onset, remission, relapse, and long-term remission off therapy. By studying both autoreactive T cells and regulatory T cells, we aim to create biomarkers of disease activity and potential new targets for immunotherapy.
Sparkenbaugh, Erica WEBSITE EMAIL PUBLICATIONS	PHD PROGRAM Pathobiology & Translational Science RESEARCH INTEREST Cell Signaling, Genetic Basis of Disease, Hematology, Immunology, Molecular Mechanisms of Disease	The broad goal in my laboratory is to investigate crosstalk between coagulation and inflammation in animal models of disease. My primary interest is sickle cell disease, a blood disorder caused by a hemoglobin mutation that results in sickling of red blood cells. The primary complications of sickle cell disease are anemia and vaso-occlusive crisis (VOC), as well as chronic inflammation and coagulation activation. VOC is caused by the formation of multicellular aggregates between neutrophils, platelets, sickle red blood cells and the endothelium that is due, in part, to thrombin-dependent activation of protease activated receptor 1 (PAR-1). We are currently investigating how biased agonism of PAR1 with activated protein C (APC) can beneficially influence vaso-occlusive crisis and other pathologies in sickle cell disease. We use a variety of tools, such as transgenic mice, clinically relevant pharmacologic inhibitors, and molecular and cellular biology techniques to study the role of coagulation proteases and protease activated receptors in health and disease.
Jenson, Justin WEBSITE EMAIL PUBLICATIONS	PHD PROGRAM Biochemistry & Biophysics RESEARCH INTEREST Biochemistry, Biophysics, Evolutionary Biology, Immunology, Molecular Biology, Structural Biology, Virology	Our lab studies molecular interactions between bacteria and the viruses that infect them, called phage. For billions of years, phage and bacteria have been locked in a ‘molecular arms race’. To survive, bacteria have evolved many immune systems to protect against infection and, in response, phage have counter-adapted to evade these defenses. Our lab is interested in 1) understanding how these systems work biochemically and structurally and 2) discovering new factors involved in this ‘molecular arms race’. We are particularly interested in systems that share homology with human immune factors.
Fletcher, Sarah EMAIL	PHD PROGRAM RESEARCH INTEREST Bacteriology, Immunology, Pathogenesis & Infection	“I hope to pursue research within the scope of pathogenic microbiology, focusing on host-pathogen interactions and what processes and conditions alter them. Specifically, virulence and antimicrobial resistance are two of my major areas of interest.”
Yuan, Runjie EMAIL	PHD PROGRAM RESEARCH INTEREST Cancer Biology, Immunology, Virology	“I am broadly interested in virology. Specifically, I hope to investigate intercellular communications during viral life cycles. I am also interested in utilizing tools like cryogenic electron microscopy to study virion and viral membrane protein structures. In the meantime, I am very much open to other topics in the field, as well as in cancer biology and biochemistry.”
Wang, Xing EMAIL	PHD PROGRAM RESEARCH INTEREST Cardiovascular Biology, Immunology, Neurobiology, Stem Cells	“I am fascinated by the field of stem cell biology. The great potential and ground-breaking findings it presents motivate me to further investigate the mechanisms of how stem cells communicate with their environment and how they integrate signals to differentiate.”
van Rooyen, Lara EMAIL	PHD PROGRAM RESEARCH INTEREST Cancer Biology, Drug Discovery, Immunology, Metabolism	“To build on my experience studying the metabolism of pancreatic islets at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, I am eager to continue studying cell stress and metabolism, specifically in the context of disease. As such, I am interested in cancer metabolism, and how different metabolic vulnerabilities can be exploited to target cancer cells. As part of this interest, cancer immunology also fascinates me due to its promise of specifically targeting cancer cells with the deleterious effects on other somatic cells caused by many current chemotherapeutic treatments. My experience working on drug discovery in the muscular dystrophy space at Fulcrum Therapeutics has also given me an appreciation for the value of characterizing pharmacological compounds and their mechanisms of action, especially in the context of cancer biology.”
Trumbo, Aftyn EMAIL	PHD PROGRAM RESEARCH INTEREST Immunology, Neurobiology, Translational Medicine	“I’m interested in a variety of research topics pertaining to neurodegeneration. In particular I desire to expand our understanding of environmental factors that influence the onset of age related dementias. I’m fascinated by asymptomatic Alzheimer’s disease, particularly what neuroprotective factors maintain cognitive function in these individuals with full plaque and tau pathology. Furthermore, I’m intrigued by lipids, fungi, and mental illness and their roles in neurodegeneration.”
Sofian, Christina EMAIL	PHD PROGRAM RESEARCH INTEREST Bacteriology, Bioinformatics, Immunology	“My background and previous work are in bacteriology and immunology. While I would like to further my understanding on these topics, I am also interested in learning more about bioinformatics and its application related to my interests.”

Research Interest: Immunology