MSTP students are required to do at least two rotations before choosing a thesis mentor.
Past Mentors
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Mentor's | Department or Graduate Program | Research Description | MSTP Student |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ted Abel, PhD | * Psychiatry * Psychological & Brain Sciences * Neuroscience Graduate Program * Biochemistry Molecular Medicine * Molecular Physiology & Biophysics * Neuroscience & Pharmacology | Research in the Abel lab focuses on the molecular mechanisms of memory storage and the molecular basis of neurodevelopmental and psychiatric disorders. We use mouse models to examine the role of molecular signaling pathways as well as transcriptional and epigenetic regulation of gene expression in defining how neural circuits mediate behavior. | Hassan Karoam (Ahamed) Victor Kilonzo |
| Ferhaan Ahmad, MD, PhD | * Internal Medicine - Cardiovascular Medicine * Molecular Physiology & Biophysics * Radiology | Dr. Ahmad directs a laboratory conducting basic and translational research into the genetic and genomic mechanisms underlying inherited cardiovascular disorders, including hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, dilated cardiomyopathy, arrhythmogenic right ventricular cardiomyopathy, glycogen storage cardiomyopathy, inherited arrhythmias, and pulmonary hypertension. | Lucas Barrett (Summer 2020) |
| Georgina Aldridge, MD, PhD |
*Neurology | Our main goal is to understand the role that pathology and protein misfolding in the cortex plays in the development of these symptoms. Dr. Aldridge and her team use 2-photon microscopy to image neuronal structure (dendritic spines, dendrites, and axons) and function (calcium imaging) over time in living mice to evaluate how alpha-synuclein and other proteins involved in neurodegenerative conditions lead to changes in cortical function. | Campbell Krusemark (Summer 2024) Peyton Alder (Summer 2023) |
| Brad Amendt, PhD | *Anatomy & Cell Biology *Orthodontics *Cell & Developmental Biology Graduate Program | My laboratory is dedicated to understanding the role of transcription factors & signaling pathways in tooth & craniofacial development by: 1) studying the expression & regulation of transcription factor genes & signaling processes involved in craniofacial/tooth development 2) the molecular basis of selected human genetic disorders & 3) the role of stem cells & microRNAs in regulating craniofacial & regenerative medicine. | Amelia Hurley-Novatny (Summer 2021) |
| Vladimir Badovinac, PhD | *Pathology | Our long-term interest lies in elucidating the mechanisms that govern CD8 T cell responses after infection and/or immunization. We are interested in exploring the pathways that are involved in Ag-specific CD8 T cell homeostasis in vivo and exploring how the manipulation of these pathways can be used to facilitate the generation and maintenance of productive memory CD8 T cell responses in health and disease. We are also investigating the sepsis-induced state of immunoparalysis and exploring treatments to restore/improve immunity in sepsis survivors. | Andreas Kantartzis (Summer 2023) |
| Kelly Baker, PhD | * Epidemiology * Occupational & Environmental Health | Global maternal and child health, Water, sanitation, and hygiene, Ecology and evolution of enteric disease transmission: the human-environment-microbial system interface, Environmental microbiology and exposure assessment, Evaluation of global health and development interventions | Sahaana Arumugam (Summer 2019) |
| Martha Carvour, MD, PhD | *Epidemiology *Internal Medicine - Infectious Diseases | Diabetes-related foot ulcers and infections of the skin, muscle, or bone that can result from these ulcers. She is developing and testing an epidemiological method that permits diabetes researchers, public health scientists, and health systems to evaluate health disparities, improve healthcare environment communication, and identify interventions. | Sadie Solomon Summer 2022 |
| John Dagle, MD, PhD | *Neonatology *Epidemiology | My research is focused on identifying genetic and metabolic risk factors for several common complications seen in infants following preterm birth. The goal of this clinical/ translational research is to allow early identification and precision-based environmental modification to reduce short-term morbidities and improve long-term health outcomes into adulthood. | Erica Fossee (Summer 2024) |
| Adam Dupay, PhD | * Anatomy & Cell Biology * Pathology * Cancer Biology * Cell & Developmental Biology Graduate Program * Genetics Graduate Program * Molecular Medicine | The goal of my current research is to understand the role that somatic mutation plays in all aspects of tumor biology. Much of our work has made use of the Sleeping Beauty (SB) transposon system to engineer mouse cancer models in which somatic mutations are generated by transposon insertions. The current work in my laboratory focuses on the genetics of hepatocellular carcinoma and T-cell leukemia. | Stepan Orlovskiy Shruthi Kondaboina Levi Doyle |
| John Engelhardt, PhD | *Anatomy & Cell Biology *Internal Medicine *Molecular Medicine | Research in the Engelhardt laboratory focuses on the molecular basis of cystic fibrosis disease pathologies, and on the development of gene therapies for this disorder. | Grace Gasser (Summer 2022) |
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Mentor's | Department or Graduate Program | Research Description | MSTP Student |
|---|---|---|---|
| Joel Geerling, MD, PhD | *Neurology *Neuroscience Graduate Program | Identifying and deciphering previously unknown connections between neurons in the brainstem and other subcortical brain region | Fillan Grady (co-mentor) (Fall 2020) |
| David Gordon, MD, PhD | * Pediatrics | Our laboratory is focused on developing innovative approaches to creating genetically defined, as well as biologically relevant, models of cancer in human cells by combining genomic data from the sequencing of cancer genomes with the pluripotent nature of human embryonic stem cells. Using this approach, we have generated a genetically defined model of Ewing sarcoma, a common pediatric tumor, from human stem cells differentiating through an embryoid body intermediate. The goal of our work is to now use these model cells to study the pathophysiology of Ewing sarcoma tumors, as well as develop additional human tumor models through more advanced stem cell differentiation methodologies. | Ellen Voigt (Summer 2020) |
| Michael Henry, PhD | *Molecular Physiology and Biophysics *Internal Medicine *Radiation Oncology *Pathology *Urology | The long term research goals of my laboratory are to understand the molecular and cellular basis of prostate cancer progression and metastasis in order to develop new methods for the diagnosis and treatment of this disease. Current efforts are focused on the role of a cell-matrix receptor dystroglycan and epithelial-mesenchymal transition in this process. We approach this problem using both cell-based and animal models of disease progression. Emerging interests include how physiological and environmental components interact with central genetic pathways related to disease progression. | Jacquelyn Nielson (Summer 2024) |
| Jon Houtman, PhD | * Microbiology & Immunology * Internal Medicine * Molecular Medicine * Microbiology Graduate Program * Immunology Graduate Program * Cancer Biology | T cell activation is critical for the ability of the human immune system to properly fight an infection by a pathogen. However, inappropriate or aberrant T cell induction drives the initiation and progression of numerous human diseases, including T cell lymphoma/leukemia, human malignancies, autoimmune disorders, cardiovascular disease, and transplant rejection. The goal of my laboratory is to understand the molecular mechanism of the formation of the multiprotein signaling complexes that occur after TCR and to investigate the ability of therapeutic agents to alter TCR signaling. | Levi Doyle (Summer 2021) |
| Rainbo Hultman, PhD | * Molecular Physiology & Biophysics | My lab studies networks of electrical activity in the brain using pre-clinical rodent models of disease and is working to identify the cellular and molecular factors that contribute to the organization of such networks. Our overarching goal is to promote the development of precision medicine (i.e. therapeutics targeted to specific individuals) by identifying therapeutic targets that promote healthy brain electrical network activity. | Michelle Chen (Summer 2022) |
| Jong Sung Kim, MS, PhD | *Toxicology (Nanotoxicology) *Health Rick Assessment *Immunology *Exposure Science *CHronic Diseases | Dr. Kim's lab has actively worked on a broad spectrum of topics including, but not limited to, nanotoxicology, exposomics, metabolomics, mechanistic toxicology, human risk assessment, and biomarkers. | Erica Fossee (Summer 2023) |
| Kevin Legge, PhD | *Pathology *Microbiology Graduate Program *Experimental Pathology *Immunology | My laboratory is focused upon determining the contribution of dendritic cells (DC) to both the initiation and regulation the adaptive immunity to pulmonary pathogens, in particular influenza virus. Overall the goals of our studies are to determine which DC-derived factors and interactions are necessary to induce protective immunity during pathogen infections of the lungs. This knowledge is important in the rational design of methods to alter respiratory immunopathology, improve vaccinations, and boost T cell responses to influenza virus and other pulmonary pathogens. | Daniel Sands (Summer 2022) |
| Steven Lentz, MD, PhD | *Internal Medicine - Heme/Onc *Molecular Medicine *Cancer Biology | Endothelial function in vascular diseases and tissue injury. Current areas of investigation include vascular function in hyperhomocysteinemia and atherosclerosis. | Kathy Nguyen (Summer 2022) |
| Hongshuai Li, MD, PhD | *Orthopedics and Rehabilitation | Research includes study of muscle-bone crosstalk during exercise, neuromuscular diseases, and aging and cellular and molecular mechanisms of musculoskeletal injuries and regeneration. | David Chang (Summer 2024) |
| Dominique Limoli, PhD | * Microbiology & Immunology | Interactions between microbial species can have profound influences on health and disease. We seek to understand the cellular mechanisms driving these interactions in order to modulate polymicrobial community behavior and improve patient outcomes. | Xavier Tijerina (Summer 2019) Steven Huang (Summer 2022) |
| Barry London, MD, PhD | *Internal Medicine *Cardiovasular Medicine *Molecular Physiology and Biophysics | My laboratory studies the molecular and genetic basis of sudden cardiac death in animal models, human families with inherited rhythm disorders, and populations at increased risk for sudden death. Pioneering studies in my laboratory engineered the first mouse models of long QT syndrome. Using these mouse models of arrhythmias and heart failure, we helped to define the ion channels important for cardiac repolarization, developed technologies for studying arrhythmias, and identified some of the basic mechanisms involved in the initiation and propagation of arrhythmias through collaborations with Dr. Guy Salama using optical mapping at the University of Pittsburgh. | Sebastian Gomez (Summer 2024) |
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Mentor's | Department or Graduate Program | Research Description | MSTP Student |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ashutosh Mangalam, MD, PhD | * Pathology * Immunology * Molecular Medicine | The major goal of my research is to develop better treatment options to cure multiple sclerosis (MS). | Jessie Knobbe (Summer 2020) Lauren Tabor (Summer 2021) |
| Paul McCray, PhD | * Pediatrics - Pulmonary Allergy & Immunology * Microbiology & Immunology * Genetics Graduate Program * Human Toxicology * Molecular Medicine * Informatics * Microbiology Graduate Program | Our research interests include airway epithelial cell biology and the pathogenesis and treatment of the recessive disease cystic fibrosis. We are using large scale gene expression and genomics approaches to study epithelial cell mRNA and microRNA gene networks regulating biologic processes involved in health and disease. | Daniel Sands (Summer 2021) |
| Jacob Michaelson, PhD | * Psychiatry - Computational & Molecular Psychiatry Division * Communication Sciences & Disorders * Biomedical Engineering * Genetics Graduate Program * Informatics | We are interested in the use of computing to improve the understanding, diagnosis, monitoring, and treatment of neuropsychiatric and neurodevelopmental conditions. 1) Genetics & comorbidities in Autism, 2) Genetics of language impairment, 3) Predictions of top autism gene candidates, 4) Genetics of twice-exceptionality. | Chris Hunter (Summer 2021) |
| Sarah Nash, MPH, PhD | *Epidemiology | Dr. Nash's research includes leveraging the cancer registry system to understand and address Indigenous and rural cancer disparities; understanding the role of modifiable risk and protective factors in chronic disease etiology; determining the impact of weight and weight stigma in shaping cancer treatment and treatment experiences; and, understanding how experiences of racism experienced by Black and African American Iowans shape engagement in cancer prevention and control behaviors. | Emily Janio (Spring 2024) |
| Peg Nopoulos, MD | * Psychiatry * Neurology * Pediatrics * Neuroscience Graduate Program | Our lab studies the structure and function of the brain using imaging tools such as MRI and cognitive / behavioral assessment. In the healthy brain we study topics such as brain development over the lifespan, gender differences and social cognition. Disease populations that we work with include patients with schizophrenia, Huntington's Disease, and children with clefts of the lip/palate. | Gabby Bierlein-De La Rosa (Summer 2020) |
| Michael O'Rorke, PhD | *Moleular Epidemiology *Biomarkers of treatment response and prognostication *Molecular epidemiology of breast cancer *Triple negative breast cancer (TNBC) | This research focuses on verious aspects of epidemiology including Molecular Epidemiology, Clinical Epidemiology, Cancer Epidemiology, and Pharmacoepidemiology. | Lexi Golden (Summer 2023) |
| Eli Perencevich, MD, MS | *Internal Medicine *Epidemiology | Research focuses on preventing and treating infections in the healthcare environment, as well as improved antibiotic prescribing through antibiotic stewardship. The ultimate goal is to make hospital stays safer and free of infection. | Sadie Solomon (Summer 2023) |
| Stanley Perlman, MD, PhD | * Microbiology & Immunology * Pediatrics * Neuroscience Graduate Program * Microbiology Graduate Program * Immunology Graduate Program * Cancer Biology | My laboratory has been interested in the pathogenesis of murine coronavirus infections for several years. Now, we also study three respiratory human coronavirus infections: SARS (Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome)-coronavirus, Middle East Respiratory syndrome (MERS)-coronavirus, human coronavirus-OC43 and human coronavirus-NL63. | Daniel Sands (Summer 2020) |
| Andy Russo, PhD | My research interest is to understand how neurons respond to changes in their environment. We have focused on regulation of CGRP and its actions in the context of trigeminal-mediated disorders, especially migraine. A recent focus of the lab is a CGRP-sensitized transgenic mouse model we generated based on clinical reports that injection of CGRP is able to induce a migraine, but not in people who do not suffer from migraine. These sensitized mice overexpress the RAMP1 subunit of the CGRP receptor in the nervous system. The RAMP1 mice have elevated CGRP-induced neurogenic inflammation, mechanical allodynia, and light aversion analogous to photophobia. In collaborative projects, the lab is also studying the beneficial effects of CGRP and RAMP1 against hypertension and obesity, with overall goals to develop effective diagnostic and therapeutic strategies for neurovascular disorders. | Michael Huebner (Summer 2024) | |
| Thomas Rutkowski, PhD | * Anatomy & Cell Biology * Internal Medicine * Cell & Developmental Biology Graduate Program * Molecular Medicine | The cellular response to ER stress (also known as the Unfolded Protein Response, or UPR) serves as a model for understanding not only the mechanisms by which stress is sensed, but also the ways in which the consequences of alterations of homeostasis in one location (i.e., the ER) impact diverse areas of cell function, including gene expression, metabolism, cancer, cell signaling, & apoptosis. | Renato Jensen (Summer 2021) |
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Mentor's | Department or Graduate Program | Research Description | MSTP Student |
|---|---|---|---|
| Edward Sander, PhD | * Biomedical Engineering | Our lab - the Multi-scale Mechanics, Mechanobiology, and Tissue Engineering Laboratory (3MT) - is focused on integrating experiment with theory to understand the dynamic and multi-scale mechanical interplay between cell-cell and cell-matrix interactions in forming and remodeling tissues. | Riley Behan-Bush (Summer 2021) |
| Patrick Sinn, PhD | The unifying goal of the Sinn Lab is to explore mechanisms of viral entry in the lungs for disease prevention or gene therapy applications. | David Chang (Summer 2023) | |
| Levi Sowers, PhD | My laboratory studies the neurocircuitry underlying migraine and post-traumatic headache. Our preclinical laboratory focuses heavily on the sensory abnormalities associated with migraine and post-traumatic headache, including photophobia, spontaneous pain and touch hypersensitivity. Our lab’s research uses functional MRI, optogenetic and DREADD approaches to better understand the circuits contributing to those sensory abnormalities. | Michael Huebner (Summer 2023) | |
| M. Ashley Spies, PhD | *Biochemistry & Molecular Biology *Pharmaceutical Sciences & Experimental Therapeutics (PSET) | Our research group investigates the fundamental properties of protein-ligand interactions, from a physical and chemical perspective. Our primary focus is on pharmaceutically relevant enzymes. The application and development of computational chemistry often plays a central role in addressing research questions centering on the discovery and design of novel ligands to validated drug targets. Computational insights are bolstered by in vitro and in vivo assays. | Andrew Kalenkiewicz (Spring 2022) |
| Doug Spitz, PhD | * Radiation Oncology * Free Radical & Radiation Biology * Human Toxicology * Pathology | In this work his lab has showed that tumor cell mitochondria were producing much greater levels of O2•- and H2O2, relative to normal cells and this apparent defect in cancer cell mitochondrial metabolism could be exploited for therapeutic purposes...(view profile for full descriptions) | Ellen Voigt Ian Sutton |
| Edwin Stone, MD, PhD | * Ophthalmology & Visual Sciences * Genetics Graduate Program * Informatics * Neuroscience Graduate Program | Dr. Stone is interested in finding and characterizing genes that are involved in three classes of human eye disease: macular degeneration, glaucoma, and heritable photoreceptor degeneration. | Lola Lozano (co-mentor) (Summer 2020) Renato Jensen (Summer 2022) |
| James Torner, PhD | * Epidemiology * Informatics | Dr. Torner has conducted research in clinical trials, women’s health and disability related to injuries. He has been teaching, designing and conducting clinical trials for four decades. He has directed the Iowa Trauma Registry and has evaluated effective triage and critical care. | Madi Wahlen (Summer 2020) |
| Budd Tucker, PhD | * Ophthalmology & Visual Sciences * Molecular Medicine * Neuroscience Graduate Program | Dr. Tucker’s Laboratory is focused on combining state-of-the-art patient-specific stem cell, gene therapeutic and human retinal engineering technologies to study and treat inherited retinal degenerative blindness. | Lola Lozano (co-mentor) (Summer 2020) |
| Eric Van Otterloo, PhD | * Peridontics * Iowa Institute for Oral Health * Anatomy & Cell Biology * Cell & Developmental Biology Graduate Program | The Van Otterloo Lab uses a combination of sophisticated animal genetics, coupled with cutting-edge molecular biology based approaches, to uncover the interactions of tissue:tissue signaling during embryonic craniofacial development—and ultimately, how their disruption results in human birth defects. | Amelia Hurley-Novatny (Summer 2022) |
| Lori Wallrath, PhD | Research in the Wallrath laboratory is centered on the role of chromatin packaging, nuclear organization, pre-mRNA processing and gene expression with respect to human disease. Currently, the focus is on two types of nuclear factors. (1) Lamins are filamentous proteins that form a meshwork underlying the inner nuclear membrane. The provide structural support for the nucleus and organize the genome in the nucleus. Mutations in the LMNA gene encoding A-type lamins cause a collection of diseases known as laminopathies that includes muscular dystrophies, adipose tissue disorders, and early onset aging syndromes. (2) SNRNP200 is a pre-mRNA splicing factor with RNA helicase activity that is a core component of the spliceosome. Mutations in SNRNP200 cause Retinitis Pigmentosa, a rare vision disorder. Members of the laboratory have developed Drosophila (fruit fly) models of these diseases that recapitulate many aspects of the human diseases. These models are being used to identify pathways altered by these mutations and perform genetic and pharmacological screens to identify potential therapies. | Jessica Smith (Summer 2024) | |
| George Weiner, MD | * Internal Medicine - Heme/Onc * Pharmacy - Pharmaceutical Sciences & Therapeutics Dept (PSET) * Immunology Graduate Program * Informatics * Cancer Biology | Dr. Weiner’s research focuses on understanding the mechanisms of action of anti-cancer monoclonal antibodies, and on development of novel approaches to immunotherapy of lymphoma. | Ryan Reis (co-mentor) (Summer 2022) |
Last update 12/21/2022