Claudia Arevalo
Mentor: Scott Hensley, PhD
Saul Winegrad Award for Outstanding Dissertation

Thesis Title: Of mice, ferrets, and men: from original antigenic sin to a new universal influenza virus vaccine candidate
Research and Lab Description: The Hensley lab primarily studies antibody responses to influenza infection and vaccination. My thesis research focused on how prior exposure to influenza shapes subsequent antibody responses and how to design a vaccine to induce broad immunity to all influenza virus subtypes.
Post PhD Plans: I am currently a senior scientist in the Vaccine Research and Development division at Pfizer.
Mentor Comment: Claudia is an excellent scientist and a super person. Her thesis work has increased our understanding of how early childhood influenza virus infections impact immunity to new antigenically distinct viral strains, and she has worked on a new influenza vaccine that elicits broad immunity. She was critically involved in our lab’s response to SARS-CoV-2 and she helped establish new serological assays to measure antibodies against this new virus. It was so fun working with Claudia over the years and we look forward to seeing her excel in the next stages of her career!

Laura Beth Chopp
Mentor: Remy Bosselut, MD, PhD

Thesis Title: Integration of Single Cell Transcriptomics and Epigenomics to Identify New Regulators of T Cell Development and Function
Research and Lab Description: The Bosselut Lab is an incredible place to train as a scientist, with creative freedom, brilliant and kind colleagues, and perhaps most importantly, a truly outstanding mentor in Dr. Remy Bosselut. My thesis research focused on understanding the development and function of CD4+ helper T cells. 
Post PhD Plans: I am going to the University of Michigan for medical school with the goal of becoming a physician-scientist (slightly out of the usual order of doing things).
Mentor Comment: Laura "resolv[ed] the instructions for ab T cell development" in the thymus, to quote the title of a commentary on her 2020 paper. Impressive legacy of an amazing journey where success prevailed over hardship. Laura, you are a true pioneer, with the generosity to go along. It has been a privilege and a pleasure to have you in the laboratory. I wish you the very best with your future, which I know will be successful. We will all miss you.

Joseph Clark
Mentor: Christopher Hunter, PhD

Thesis Title: Understanding the Role of IL-1 Family Cytokines IL-18 and IL-33 in Protective and Pathological Responses to Toxoplasma Gondii
Mentor Comment: Joe's calm demeanor and thoughtful science were key to his ability to successfully navigate the last two years and bring a difficult project to completion.

Bonnie Douglas
Mentor: De'Broski Herbert, PhD

Thesis Title: Antigen Specific CD4+ T Cell Responses Against a Gastrointestinal Nematode
Research and Lab Description: The Herbert lab seeks to discover new information in the areas of Immunology and Neuroscience through following how parasitic helminths interact with their hosts. My thesis research focused on antigen-specific CD4+ T cell responses to parasitic helminth infection. 
Post PhD Plans: I'm currently working in continuing medical education as a Scientific Affairs Manager with Prime Education LLC.

Emma Lewis
Mentors: Michal Elovitz, MD; Paige Porrett, MD, PhD

Thesis Title: Immune Modulation at the Maternal-Fetal Interface Regulates Perinatal Outcomes
Research and Lab Description: The Elovitz Lab is a multidisciplinary team of both basic scientists and clinical researchers who collaborate to identify the underlying biologic mechanisms of adverse reproductive outcomes and who share the goal of improving reproductive health through translational research. For my thesis, I studied mechanisms by which immune cells at the maternal-fetal interface impact fetal health, specifically interrogating uterine and placental immune cells in the setting of intrauterine fetal demise and fetal brain injury.            
Post PhD Plans: I am entering my final year of medical school and applying to residency programs in Obstetrics and Gynecology.
Mentor Comment: Dr. Lewis is a committed, thoughtful, rigorous and devoted scientist. She is uniquely able to synthesize clinical and fundamental research to pursue relevant experimental approaches to address gaps in knowledge in reproductive health. Her ability to so smoothly integrate her immunology training to reproductive systems enabled her to pursue several important projects in our laboratory—with each project making significant advances in our field. Having Emma in my lab has been one of the highlights of my 20+ year career as a physician-scientist. Undoubtedly, it is individuals like Dr. Lewis who will be the future physician-scientists that advance health of women.