Faculty

All of the faculty associated with the BMS graduate program are listed below. Click on a faculty name to view a detailed description of an individual research program, contact information, recent publications and links to other relevant websites. Each of our faculty is associated with one or more of our eight thematic areas; click on the thematic area name listed by each of our faculty to read more about the research going on in that area, and to view a list of all faculty associated with that thematic area.
 

James Rubenstein, MD, PhD

Primary Thematic Area: 
Cancer Biology & Cell Signaling
Secondary Thematic Area: 
Immunology

Davide Ruggero, PhD

Primary Thematic Area: 
Cancer Biology & Cell Signaling
Secondary Thematic Area: 
Human Genetics
Research Summary: 
Dynamics of translation control in gene expression, cancer, and disease

Rachel Rutishauser, MD, PhD

Primary Thematic Area: 
Immunology
Secondary Thematic Area: 
Virology & Microbial Pathogenesis
Research Summary: 
CD8+ T cell immunity to viral pathogens (e.g., HIV, SARS-CoV2) and vaccination at various stages of human development.

Julie Saba, MD, PhD

Primary Thematic Area: 
Cancer Biology & Cell Signaling
Secondary Thematic Area: 
Human Genetics
Research Summary: 
Sphingolipid signaling and metabolism in the pathophysiology and treatment of cancer, inflammatory conditions, and rare diseases

Carolyn Sangokoya, MD, PhD

Primary Thematic Area: 
Developmental & Stem Cell Biology
Secondary Thematic Area: 
Human Genetics
Research Summary: 
Using functional + spatial molecular tools to study post-transcriptional RNA + metabolic networks at single cell resolution and in 3D; Re-engineering/re-wiring cell fates for regenerative therapies

Minnie Sarwal, MD, PhD

Primary Thematic Area: 
Immunology
Secondary Thematic Area: 
Tissue / Organ Biology & Endocrinology
Research Summary: 
Organ transplant biology and immunology advances by the use of high throughput technologies using single-cell and single-nuclear RNASeq, T cell and B cell receptor sequencing, single-cell and phsopho-protoemics, CyTOF and spatial imaging.

Tiffany Scharschmidt, MD

Primary Thematic Area: 
Immunology
Secondary Thematic Area: 
Virology & Microbial Pathogenesis
Research Summary: 
Immune mechanisms that support host-commensal symbiosis
Mentorship Development: 

11/23/20    Building Community in the UCSF MSTP 
2/16/21    Three Truths and Three Tries: Facing and Overcoming Critical Social Justice Challenges at the Micro, Mezzo, and Macro Levels    

Hilde Schjerven, PhD

Primary Thematic Area: 
Immunology
Secondary Thematic Area: 
Cancer Biology & Cell Signaling
Research Summary: 
Normal and malignant blood cell development, including break of immune tolerance (autoimmunity) and blood cell cancer (leukemia), with a focus on transcriptional regulation.
Mentorship Development: 

12/12/19    ACRA: Setting Training Expectations for Trainees on the Academic Career Track (1.5 hours)
3/3/20    Promoting Student Mental Health:A Presentation and Discussion (Staff and Faculty)
3/3/20    Promoting Student Mental Health: Faculty Workshop (Faculty only)
4/23/20    Effective Strategies for IDPs
11/10/20    Optimizing the Efficiency of Your Lab
2/18/21    Three Truths and Three Tries: Facing and Overcoming Critical Social Justice Challenges at the Micro, Mezzo, and Macro Levels

Sonja Schrepfer, MD, PhD

Primary Thematic Area: 
Vascular & Cardiac Biology
Secondary Thematic Area: 
Immunology
Research Summary: 
We are molecularly modifying pluripotent stem cell lines to create non-immunogenic cells that are protected from post-transplant rejection without affecting the general immune system.

Bjoern Schwer, MD, PhD

Primary Thematic Area: 
Cancer Biology & Cell Signaling
Secondary Thematic Area: 
Developmental & Stem Cell Biology
Research Summary: 
Genomic instability and DNA repair in neural cells
Mentorship Development: 

4/11/19    Acknowleding and Negotiating the Mentee-Mentor Tensions Inherent in the Research Lab (Mission Bay)
12/19/19    ACRA: Setting Training Expectations for Trainees on the Academic Career Track (1.5 hours)
3/10/20    Promoting Student Mental Health:A Presentation and Discussion (Staff and Faculty)
4/30/20    Mental Health in a Pandemic: Q&A for Faculty
10/20/20    Gathering in Community: a Training for Faculty and Staff

Licia Selleri, PhD, MD

Primary Thematic Area: 
Developmental & Stem Cell Biology
Secondary Thematic Area: 
Human Genetics
Research Summary: 
Genetic and regulatory control of morphogenesis in embryonic development, evolution, and disease
Mentorship Development: 

5/2021 Sharpening Your Mentoring Skills
6/2021 Promoting Learner Mental Health
10/2021 Sharpening Your Mentoring Skills

Neil Pravin Shah, MD, PhD

Primary Thematic Area: 
Cancer Biology & Cell Signaling
Secondary Thematic Area: 
None
Research Summary: 
Improving targeted therapeutics for hematologic malignancies
Mentorship Development: 

9/11/20   Mentoring Across Differences

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