Watowich Lab Members
Stephanie S. Watowich, Ph.D.
Vivian L. Smith Distinguished Chair in Immunology
Professor and Deputy Chair
Department of Immunology
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View Dr. Watowich's LinkedIn
Bhakti Patel, Ph.D.
Postdoctoral Fellow
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My research interests lie in understanding the anti-inflammatory role of STAT3 in bone marrow derived macrophages (BMDM) and hematopoietic stem cell (HSC) function. I am further interested in determining transcriptional targets of STAT3 in HSCs and myeloid cells, to elucidate the mechanism by which STAT3 protects HSCs and BMDMs from inflammation-induced DNA damage.
Josué Pineda
Ph.D. Student (co-mentored with Dr. Matt Gubin)
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My research interests are in dendritic cells and cancer vaccines. For my doctoral project, I am elucidating the role of MHC class I and MHC class II antigen presentation by tumor-specific CD103+ dendritic cell vaccines.
Elizabeth Park, Ph.D.
Postdoctoral Fellow (co-mentored with Dr. Jen Wargo)
Email Elizabeth
My research project focuses on identifying how the gut microbiome affects response to immune checkpoint blockade (ICB) therapy and ICB-induced toxicity. I am investigating the links between the specific composition of the microbiome, activation of the innate and adaptive immune systems and tumor response in mouse models to identify gut microbiome manipulations capable of improving ICB responses in both pre-clinical and clinical settings.
Morgan Riba
M.D./Ph.D. Student (co-mentored with Dr. Cassian Yee)
Email Morgan
My research interests include dendritic cell biology, cancer vaccines and cell-based immunotherapies. My project involves exploring and manipulating the diversity of T cell responses to cDC1-based vaccination strategies. I’m working to understand how changes in the T cell landscape drive a clinically relevant immune response to murine tumor models in vivo.
Sarah Schneider
Ph.D. Student
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Immune related toxicities occur in the majority of patients treated with immune checkpoint blockade (ICB) therapy. My research focuses on understanding the role of the innate immune system and the gut microbiome in ICB-associated colitis.
Ariel Nash, M.D.
Postdoctoral Fellow
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I am a pediatric clinical fellow interested in solid tumor pathology and the immunological response to the tumor microenvironment. My research work involves cDC1 vaccines, specifically investigating their role in the tumor microenvironment and in the recruitment of T cells.
Sara Meril, Ph.D.
Postdoctoral Fellow
Email Sara
My research endeavors revolve around deepening our comprehension of dendritic cell biology within the context of tumor development, as well as enhancing dendritic cell-based cancer therapy. Additionally, I am passionate about leveraging advancements in cell engineering to manipulate the tumor microenvironment, thereby bolstering dendritic cell infiltration and potency in combating cancer.
Watowich Lab Alumni
Prior Postdocs
David K. Wooten, Ph.D., 11/1998–3/2000
Current: Partner, Tumey LLP, Intellectual Property Law, Houston, TX
Eiji Esashi, Ph.D., 2/2005–1/2009 (co-supervision with Dr. Yong-Jun Liu)
Current: Director and Executive General Manager, SBI Biotech Co, Toyko
Huiyuan Zhang, M.D., Ph.D., 4/2007–8/2013
Current: Assistant Professor, The National Key Laboratory of Biotherapy, Clinical Cancer Center, Sichuan University, China
Haiyan Li, M.D., M.P.H., Ph.D., 4/2008–8/2013
Current: Research Scientist, Pharmacyclics, Sunnyvale, CA
Xianxiu Wan, Ph.D., 2019–2020
Allision Dyevoich, Ph.D., 2020–2022
Current: Medical Science Liaison, Amgen
Yusra Medik, M.D., 2018–2021
Current: Medical Resident, Rutgers – RW Johnson Medical School
Yifan Zhou, Ph.D., 2017–2023
Current: Research Scientist, Zhujiang Hospital, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou
Khaoula Ouchen, Ph.D., 12/2023–3/2025
Prior Clinical Fellows
Natalie Slone, D.O., 9/2016–6/2018
Current: Hospitalist, Hematology, Oncology, and Blood & Marrow Transplant Department, Nationwide Children’s Hospital, Columbus, Ohio
Prior Students
Donghoon Yoon, Ph.D., 4/1999–6/2004
Current: Assistant Professor of Medicine, Winthrop P. Rockefeller Cancer Institute, University of Arkansas
Donna Badgwell, Ph.D., 4/1999–8/2004
Athanasia Panopoulos, M.S., Ph.D., 6/1999–8/2007
Current: Gallagher Family Assistant Professor of Stem Cell Biology, University of Notre Dame
Jack Bevers III, M.S., 6/2002–7/2004
Current: Senior Scientific Researcher at Genentech, South San Francisco, CA
Hoainim Nyugen-Jackson, Ph.D., 11/2004–7/2011
Current: Teacher, Seven Lakes High School, Katy, TX
Nathanial Greeley, M.S., 5/2011–8/2012
Current: Researcher, The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia | CHOP · Department of Neurology
Rachel Babcock, Ph.D., 1/2018–5/2022
Current: Postdoctoral Fellow, Texas Tech University
Taylor Chrisikos, Ph.D., 9/2017–9/2021
Current: Postdoctoral Fellow, Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School
Laura Kahn Serrudo, Ph.D., 1/2020–12/2024
Prior Undergraduates
Keysha Lopez Vega
University of Puerto Rico, San Juan, Puerto Rico
U54 UPR Summer Undergraduate Student, 6/2010–7/2010
Allison Matthews
Mt. Holyoke College, South Hadley, MA
CPRIT CURE Summer Undergraduate Student, 6/2011–8/2011
YeJi Jun
Carleton College, Northfield, MN
CPRIT CURE Summer Undergraduate Student, 6/2011–8/2011
Allison Bloom
Brown University
CPRIT CURE Summer Undergraduate Student, 6/2012–8/2012
Marisa Luck
Carleton College, Northfield, MN
CPRIT CURE Summer Undergraduate Student, 6/2012–8/2012
Elisabeth Massey
Carleton College, Northfield, MN
CPRIT CURE Summer Undergraduate Student, 6/2013–8/2013
Emily Hillmer
Carleton College, Northfield, MN
CPRIT CURE Summer Undergraduate Student, 6/2014–8/2014
Jessica Wilder
Rice University, Houston, TX
CPRIT CURE Summer Undergraduate Student, 6/2014–8/2014
Malavika Suresh
Carleton College, Northfield, MN
CPRIT CURE Summer Undergraduate Student, 6/2016–8/2016
Katherine Ortell
Carleton College, Northfield, MN
CPRIT CURE Summer Undergraduate Student, 6/2017–8/2017
Oleksandr Kyrysyuk
Carleton College, Northfield, MN
CPRIT CURE Summer Undergraduate Student, 6/2018–8/2018
Emma Lederer
Carleton College, Northfield, MN
CPRIT CURE Summer Undergraduate Student, 6/2019–8/2019
Katherine Nowak
Carleton College
CPRIT CURE Summer Undergraduate Student, 6/2021–8/2021
Bailey Harmon
Carleton College
CPRIT CURE Summer Undergraduate Student, 6/2021–8/2021
Meredith Klay
CPRIT CURE Summer Undergraduate Student, 6/2023–8/2023
Wanying Na
CPRIT CURE Summer Undergraduate Student, 6/2023–8/2023