Scientific Advisory Board
The Scientific Advisory Board for the American Asthma Foundation includes members from a broad range of disciplines, reflecting our conviction that breakthroughs in asthma research will come from a wide array of scientific fields.
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Homer Boushey, M.D.
Professor of Medicine, University of California, San Francisco (UCSF)
Chief, Allergy and Immunology, Pulmonary/Critical Care Medicine, UCSF
Dr. Boushey’s current academic interests include clinical research on the pathogenesis and treatment of asthma, focusing especially on the role of viral respiratory infections in triggering asthma exacerbations. He serves also on editorial boards, expert panels, and advisory committees. He is a past-President of the American Thoracic Society (2003-2004) and is currently Chair of the ATS Foundation. Dr. Boushey received his M.D. from UCSF.
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Jack A. Elias, M.D.
Waldemar Von Zedtwitz Professor of Medicine and Immunobiology
Chair, Department of Internal Medicine, Yale University School of Medicine
Chief, Beeson Service, Yale New Haven Hospital
Dr. Elias’ research interests include cellular and molecular pathogenesis of asthma and COPD; cellular and molecular mechanisms of lung injury, repair and remodeling; transgenic modeling of pulmonary diseases and disorders; effector mechanisms of IL-13, VEGF, and TGF-beta type cytokines in the lung; and effector mechanisms of Th2 and Th1 cytokines in the lung. Dr. Elias received his M.D. from the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine.
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Laurie H. Glimcher, M.D.
Professor, Department of Medicine, Harvard Medical School
Irene Heinz Given Professor of Immunology, Department of Immunology and Infectious Diseases, Harvard School of Public Health
The major focus of Dr. Glimcher’s laboratory is the study of T helper cell differentiation. There is abundant evidence now that the ratio of Th1 to Th2 cells is highly relevant to clinical diseases, including autoimmune, infectious, and allergic diseases. Therefore, the ability to alter the ratios of Th1 and Th2 subsets provides exciting therapeutic options. Dr. Glimcher is a Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, and a Member of the National Academy of Sciences and the Institutes of Medicine (National Academy of Sciences). Dr. Glimcher received her M.D. from Harvard Medical School.
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Siamon Gordon, M.D., Ph.D
Emeritus Professor of Cellular Pathology, University of Oxford
Visiting Scientist, National Institutes of Health, 2009-2010
Professor Gordon is distinguished for discovering new macrophage-restricted plasma membrane antigens and receptors, and demonstrating their functions in differentiation, adhesion, phagocytosis, immune activation, and secretion. His research has been instrumental in understanding monocyte/macrophage surface receptor expression, and in elucidating the roles that these receptors play in innate immunity. These surface molecules are important in pathogenesis of a range of inflammatory and metabolic diseases. Professor Gordon is a fellow of the Academy of Medical Sciences and the Royal Society, and he is an honorary member of the American Association of Immunologists. He received his medical training in Capetown, South Africa, and received his Ph.D. from Rockefeller University in New York.
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Michael J. Holtzman, M.D.
Selma and Herman Seldin Professor of Medicine
Professor of Cell Biology and Physiology
Director, Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine, Washington University School of Medicine
Dr. Holtzman is renowned for his research into the cause of asthma, and he has proposed a new model of the disease that incorporates the role of a viral response early in life. Dr. Holtzman received his M.D. from Northwestern University School of Medicine.
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Jean-Pierre Kinet, M.D.
Professor of Pathology, Harvard Medical School
Director, Division of Allergy and Immunology, Department of Pathology, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (Boston)
Dr. Kinet’s recent focus includes the role of mast cells and their receptors in inflammation, and the mechanisms and biological consequences of calcium mobilization in immune system cells. Dr. Kinet has conducted extensive research and development of new therapies, and he is a Board member of several biotechnology companies, and a Director at UCB Pharma. Dr. Kinet received his M.D. from the University of Liege, Belgium.
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Mitch Kronenberg, Ph.D.
President and Scientific Director, La Jolla Institute for Allergy and Immunology
Dr. Kronenberg’s research focuses on natural killer T cells (NKT) and how they grow and regulate other immune cell types. Dr. Kronenberg is a former Roy and Robert Kroc Distinguished Visiting Professor of Immunology and Medicine at the University of California, Davis, and a former Burroughs Wellcome Fund Visiting Professor at Harvard University. Dr. Kronenberg received his Ph.D. from the California Institute of Technology.
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Richard M. Locksley, M.D.
Investigator, Howard Hughes Medical Institute, UCSF
Professor of Medicine and of Microbiology and Immunology, UCSF
Director, Strategic Asthma Basic Research Center, UCSF
Dr. Locksley’s laboratory focuses on tracking cytokine expression in model systems, as a mechanism to investigate complex functional interactions between innate and adaptive cells in the immune system. He is particularly interested in allergic diseases such as asthma. Dr. Locksley was recently elected a fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, and has received awards from the American Society for Clinical Investigation and the American Association of Physicians. Dr. Locksley received his M.D. from the University of Rochester, New York.
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Philippa Marrack, Ph.D.
Investigator, Howard Hughes Medical Institute
Senior Faculty Member, Integrated Department of Immunology, National Jewish Health and University of Colorado at Denver Health Sciences Center
Dr. Marrack is interested in the specificity, development, survival, and function of T cells bearing alpha-beta receptors for antigen + MHC. Together with John Kappler, she is establishing the rules that govern the interactions between T cells and the antigens they recognize. Her laboratory is also studying the function of the vaccine adjuvant alum, which dramatically biases immune responses to TH2-type cells. In addition, Dr. Marrack is studying how alum improves immunological memory and whether Bcl-2 proteins, which affect a cell’s lifecycle, are involved. Dr. Marrack received her Ph.D. from Cambridge University, New Hall.
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Carl F. Nathan, M.D.
R.A. Rees Pritchett Professor and Chairman, Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Weill Medical College of Cornell University
Dr. Nathan is a member of the Institute of Medicine of the National Academies of Science, and an editor of the Journal of Experimental Medicine. Dr. Nathan’s extensive work on macrophage and neutrophil activation/deactivation, the respiratory burst and inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS), has led to current projects that focus on inflammation and macrophage interactions with Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb). During these interactions, genetic and chemical screens converge on Mtb enzymes, helping the organism resist sterilization by the immune system. Dr. Nathan received his M.D. from Harvard Medical School, and is the recipient of the 2009 Robert Koch Award, from the Robert Koch Foundation, in recognition of his groundbreaking research work into the mechanisms of defense against bacterial infection.
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Paul W. Noble, M.D.
Professor of Medicine, Duke University School of Medicine
Chief, Division of Pulmonary, Allergy, and Critical Care Medicine, Duke University School of Medicine
Dr. Noble is a physician scientist with an active research laboratory focused on elucidating the basic mechanisms of lung injury, inflammation, and fibrosis. His focus is on identifying the mechanisms that lead to chronic tissue inflammation and remodeling in the absence of infection. In particular, Dr. Noble has identified interactions between extracellular matrix components, modified by the inflammatory milieu that interacts with innate immune recognition systems, to control lung inflammation. Dr. Noble is a member of the American Society of Clinical Investigation and the American Association of Physicians, and received his M.D. from New York University School of Medicine.
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Daniel Rotrosen, M.D.
Director, Division of Allergy, Immunology and Transplantation, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases
Dr. Rotrosen directs the Division of Allergy, Immunology and Transplantation, one of three extramural divisions of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, and is a strong proponent of the expansion of NIH programs in clinical immunology. He serves as chair of the NIH Autoimmune Diseases Coordinating Committee. Dr. Rotrosen received his M.D. from Boston University School of Medicine.
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William E. Seaman, M.D.
Professor of Medicine and of Microbiology and Immunology, UCSF
Program Director, American Asthma Foundation’s Research Program
Dr. Seaman’s research concerns the innate immune system, especially the mechanisms by which receptors on macrophages and natural killer cells activate and inactivate the functions of these cells. He is a member of the American Society of Clinical Investigation and the American Association of Physicians, and he is the immediate past President of the Society for Natural Immunity. Dr. Seaman received his M.D. from Harvard Medical School.
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Christine E. Seidman, M.D.
Professor of Genetics and Medicine, Harvard Medical School
Director, Cardiovascular Genetics Service, Brigham and Women’s Hospital
Dr. Seidman has investigated the molecular etiology of human diseases, with a focus on congenital heart disease, familial hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, and familial dilated cardiomyopathy. Her research has centered on defining the pathways involved in heart development, and identifying gene mutations that lead to pathologic remodeling of the human heart. Dr. Seidman is a member of the Howard Hughes Medical Institute and the National Academy of Sciences, and she received her M.D. from George Washington University.
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Kevan Shokat, Ph.D.
Professor of Cellular and Molecular Pharmacology, UCSF
Professor of Chemistry, University of California, Berkeley
Dr. Shokat has developed a chemical-genetics technique to decipher individual kinases and their cellular signaling networks. His goals are to understand each kinase’s role in the body, and to learn which kinases would be good drug targets. Dr. Shokat is a recipient of the Eli Lilly Award from the American Chemical Society, and the Outstanding Mentor Award from the UCSF Postdoctoral Scholars Association, and he received his Ph.D. from the University of California, Berkeley.
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Carl F. Ware, Ph.D.
Head and Member, Division of Molecular Immunology, La Jolla Institute for Allergy and Immunology (LIAI)
Adjunct Professor of Biology, University of California, San Diego
Dr. Ware has studied cytokines, proteins that act as communication signals between white blood cells and surrounding tissues. His goal is to understand the basic molecular and cellular processes of how cytokines regulate immunity to viruses, and to translate that information into new therapies to control persistent viral infections, autoimmune diseases, and cancer. Dr. Ware serves on several granting agencies and foundations supporting biomedical research. In addition, he is past President of the International Congress on TNF-related Cytokines and is the President of the International Cytokine Society. Dr. Ware received his Ph.D. from the University of California, Irvine.
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Arthur Weiss, M.D., Ph.D.
Investigator, Howard Hughes Medical Institute
Ephraim P. Engleman Distinguished Professor of Rheumatology, UCSF
Professor of Medicine/Microbiology and Immunology, UCSF
Dr. Weiss studies signal transduction events that control lymphocyte responses. His particular interest is in signal transduction by the T cell antigen receptor, how it is regulated, and how abnormalities in these mechanisms can lead to autoimmune diseases. Dr. Weiss is a member of the National Academy of Sciences, the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, the Institute of Medicine, and the American Academy of Microbiology, and received his M.D. and Ph.D. from the University of Chicago.
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Michael J. Welsh, M.D.
Professor of Internal Medicine/Physiology and Biophysics, Roy J. and Lucille A. Carver College of Medicine, University of Iowa
Dr. Welsh’s research is focused on the pathophysiology of airway disease in cystic fibrosis and on the DEG/ENaC family of Na+ channels. Dr. Welsh has served as President of the American Society for Clinical Investigation and the Association of American Physicians. He is a member of the Institute of Medicine, the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, and the National Academy of Sciences. Dr. Welsh received his M.D. from the University of Iowa College of Medicine.
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Christopher Wilson, M.D.
Professor and Chair, Department of Immunology, University of Washington
Dr. Wilson is interested in understanding how microbes evade recognition by the immune system, and mechanisms by which the innate immune system senses microbial invasion and alerts the adaptive immune system during the primary immune response. Dr. Wilson’s research explores the specificity and mechanisms by which Toll-like receptors contribute to microbial recognition and activation of innate immunity, and of antigen-specific immunity. His ongoing research seeks to determine the biological importance of differences between Toll-like receptors in humans, other primates, and mice, and their ability to recognize variant ligands, and in the specific cell types on which they are expressed. Dr. Wilson received his M.D. from the University of California, Los Angeles.
