Ph.D. students in Pathology receive extensive training in the mechanisms of human disease, which emphasizes cell biology, molecular biology, genetics, immunology and microbiology. Pathology integrates these areas of study with the goal of improving disease management at the organismal level. Using a variety of research tools provides our doctoral students an understanding of disease processes that allows them to translate mechanistic insights from the laboratory to the clinic.Read More
Pathology doctoral students must be admitted to the Biomedical Sciences (BMS) Graduate Program. BMS Ph.D. students receive tuition remission, a stipend for living expenses, and health insurance. The first year of BMS training includes laboratory rotations and a core curriculum designed to give students a background in a variety of disciplines and research approaches. After selection of a research mentor at the end of the first year, the second year of the program provides students the opportunity to perform research and receive specialized instruction in specific areas of interest. Admission to candidacy for the Ph.D. is granted after successful completion of the qualifying exam at the beginning of the third year. Pathology Ph.D. students present their ongoing research to the assembled researchers in the department once or twice per academic year in the weekly Pathology Research Conference. Generally, students complete their scholarly research and successfully defend their dissertation in 4-5 years.
For more information regarding the Pathology Ph.D. program, contact Dr. Gil Morris.
The table below provides a synopsis of research areas and contact information for research faculty in the Pathology Department. Click on individual faculty names for links to more detailed research descriptions.
Tulane School of Medicine
| Investigator | Phone (504-988) | Email (@Tulane.edu) | Office | System/Organ | Disease of Emphasis |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chen, Wei | 0474 | wchen18 | 318 BIC | Bone | aging, inflammation, bone metastasis |
| Dash, Srikanta, PhD | 2519 | sdash | 6503 | Liver | hepatitis viruses, immune injury, cancer |
| Flemington, Erik, PhD | 1167 | erik | 814 LCRC | EBV/Immune | cancer, transcriptomics, bioinformatics |
| Khambu, Bilon, PhD | 6024 | bkhambu | 6549A | Liver | Liver metabolism, regeneration and cancer |
| Lee, Sean, PhD | 1331 | slee30 | 808 LCRC | Pediatric cancers | chromosomal translocations |
| Li, Yi-Ping, PhD | 0475 | yli81 | 319 NOBIC | Immune/ Musculoskeletal | Cancer, Immune, oral and Musculoskeletal Diseases |
| Lin, Zhen, MD, PhD | 1506 | zlin | 742 LCRC | Epstein-Barr virus | virus-associated cancers, bioinformatics |
| Morris, Gilbert, PhD | 6953 | gmorris2 | 257 JBJ | Lung | cancer, fibrosis, environmental exposures |
| Pi, Liya, PhD | 2869 | lpi | 7103 | Liver | chronic liver disease, extracellular matrix |
| Savkovic, Suzana, PhD | 1409 | ssavkovi | 306 JBJ | Colon | lipid droplets, inflammation, cancer |
| Tian, Di, MD, PhD | 0793 | dtian2 | 6513 | Brain | cancer, sleep, molecular diagnostics |
| Wu, Tong, MD, PhD | 5210 | twu | 8712B | Liver | inflammation, carcinogenesis, signaling |
| Xu, Xiaojiang, PhD | 0464 | xxu17 | 315 BIC | Genomics | bioinformatics |
| Yan, Shengmin PhD | 0286 | syan2 | 6710 | Liver | alcoholic fatty liver disease, hepatotoxicity |
| Yin, Xiao-Ming, MD, PhD | 1162 | xmyin | 6519 | Liver | autophagy, alcoholic-, fatty-liver disease |
| Zhang, Haitao, PhD | 7696 | hzhang | 807 LCRC | Prostate | cancer, androgen signaling |
| Zhang, Jinqiang, PhD | 5209 | jzhang | 8301 | Liver | noncoding RNAs, signaling |
Tulane National Primate Center
| Investigator | Phone (985-871-) | Email (@tulane.edu) | System/Organ | Disease Process |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Robert Blair, DVM, PhD | 6426 | rblair3 | Immune | infectious disease |
| Peter Didier, DVM, PhD | 6289 | pjdidier | Immune | infectious disease |
| Ahmad Saied, DVM, PhD | 6267 | asaied | neuropathology | gene/viral therapy |
| Krystal Vail, DVM, PhD | 6563 | kvail1 | immune | bacterial pathogenesis |
| Ronald Veazey, DVM, PhD | 6228 | rveazey | Immune | SIV/HIV |
| Xiaolei Wang, PhD | 6618 | xwang | Immune | infectious disease |
| Huanbin Xu, PhD | 6401 | hxu | Immune | SIV/HIV |
Current Pathology PhD students
| Student | Lab Phone (504-988-) | Email (@tulane.edu) | Lab Room | Mentor | Research Topic |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0286 | kbaral | 6710 | Khambu | Liver regeneration and cancer |
| 1331 | dflinchum | 808 LCRC | Lee | Epigenetic analyses of desmoplastic small round cell tumor |
| 1331 | jmagrath | 808 LCRC | Lee | Desmoplastic small round cell tumor stem cells |
| 0286 | amercer | 6710 | Yin/Khambu | Liver Pathology |
| 6923 | smukhopa | 221 JBJ | Morris | herpesvirus in lung tumorigenesis |
| 1169 | tnguyen25 | 843B4 LCRC | Flemington | EBV early genes in remodeling the cell transcriptome |
| 1331 | ssampath | 808 LCRC | Lee | Therapeutics for desmoplastic small round cell tumors |
| 0482 | ysong14 | NOBIC | Chen | Immunity and Musculoskeletal Diseases |
| 1168 | Jwang59 | 843B4 LCRC | Flemington | EBV in cancer and disease |
| 0499 | Jwang76 | NOBIC | Li | Microbiota and Osteoimmunology |
| 1168 | Nwickramarachchigedo | 843B4 LCRC | Flemington | EBV chromatin remodeling during reactivation |
*PSP student
The BMS office has an individual dedicated to career counseling. The Office of Graduate and Post-doctoral Studies (OGPS) offers career counseling and workshops to assist in career development. Career workshop information is distributed to all interested parties via Canvas.
Contact Lauren Lukkarila (llukkarila@tulane.edu) to be included in Canvas distributions. Additional resources for career development can be found on the Office of Graduate and Post-doctoral Studies website (ogps.tulane.edu).
| Name | Start Year | End Year | Mentor | First Possition | Current Possition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aboulnasr, Fatma | 2011 | 2015 | Dash | Research fellow. Mayo Clinic. 2015-2018 | Pediatrics residency. Texas Tech University. 2020-2024 |
| Cao, Subing | 2008 | 2014 | Flemington | Postdoctoral fellow. Tulane University. 2014-2019 | |
| Collins, Morgan | 2017 | 2022 | Savkovic | Moved to North Carolina | |
| Concha, Monica | 2009 | 2015 | Flemington | Postdoc, InnoGenomics Technology, New Orleans LA, 2015- | |
| Dribus (Little), Marian | 2019 | 2023 | Gragert | married, moved to Meridian, MS | |
| Hartono, Bonita | 2014 | 2022 | Lee | Post-doc, Stanford University | |
| Iftikhar, Rida | 2017 | 2021 | Savkovic | Faculty position maternity leave Pakistan | |
| Kwon, Hyunjoo | 2012 | 2017 | Wu | Working for a pharmaceutical company in Korea | |
| Li, Jianzhou | 2014 | 2018 | Zhang | Research Assistant M.D. Anderson | |
| Nakhoul, Hani | 2013 | 2019 | Flemington | Post-doc NIH | Resident, Graduate Medical Education, Tulane University |
| O'Grady, Christina | 2011 | 2016 | Flemington | Post-doc, Univ Liege, Leige Belgium, 2016- | Instructor, Tulane Department of Pathology |
| Penrose, Harrison | 2015 | 2019 | Savkovic | Completing MD/PhD Program | |
| Poat, Bret | 2007 | 2010 | Dash | Postdoc, St Jude Children's Hospital, Memphis TN, 2010-2011 | Pharmaceutical Research and Development, Miami Beach, FL 2016- |
| Qadir, Ximena | 2010 | 2014 | Wu | Epidemiology Postdoctoral fellowship. NIH- National Cancer Institute. 2014-2015 | Director. Clinical Services. WSMC/NIH. 2017- |
| Strong, Michael | 2011 | 2015 | Flemington | Completed MD/PhD Program, 2015-2017 | Neurosurgery Resident, Univ Michigan Med School, Ann Arbor MI, 2017- |
| Ungerleider, Nathan | 2012 | 2017 | Wu | Postdoc, Tulane University, 2018-2019 | Asst Director, Next-Gen Sequening Analysis Core, Tulane University, 2019- |
| Xu, Beibei | 2009 | 2014 | Morris | Postdoc, Tulane University 2014-2017 | Postdoc, Univ Minnesota, Minneapolis MN 2017- |
| Yao, Lu | 2010 | 2015 | Wu | Postdoc, UCSF, San Francisco CA, 2016-2017 | Research Scientist II, Poseida Therapeutics Inc, San Diego, 2019- |
How to Apply
For more information about the Department of Pathology Ph.D. program, contact Gil Morris, Email: gmorris2@tulane.edu.
For general information about the BMS program, the application process and application status, contact Zylkia Lozano, Email: zlozano@tulane.edu .
To apply, access the application portal: https://applygrad.tulane.edu/apply
