Graduate School of Medical Sciences
A partnership with the Sloan Kettering Institute

Thesis Defenses

A Method for Expressing Circular mRNA in Mammalian Cells and its Use as A Therapeutic and Research Tool
Mildred J. Unti
Date: Monday, March 25, 2024 - 1:00pm

Mildred J. Unti
Pharmacology

Chairperson: Dr. Lorraine Gudas
Major Sponsor: Dr. Samie Jaffrey
Minor Sponsors: Dr. Ronald Crystal and Dr. David Scheinberg

Additional Member: Dr. Benjamin Kleaveland (Weill Cornell Medicine)

Epigenetic Regulation of Chromosomal Instability in Triple-Negative Breast Cancer
Yang (Shelley) Bai
Date: Wednesday, April 3, 2024 - 10:00am

Yang (Shelley) Bai
Pharmacology

Chairperson: Dr. Charles Rudin
Major Sponsor: Dr. Vivek Mittal
Minor Sponsors: Dr. Samuel Bakhoum and Dr. Ari Melnick

Additional Member: Dr. Lukas Dow (Weill Cornell Medicine)

Modeling Glioma-Associated Macrophages Using Human Embryonic Stem Cell-Derived Microglia
Kelsey L. Hopland
Date: Monday, April 22, 2024 - 3:00pm

Kelsey L. Hopland
Neuroscience

Chairperson: Dr. Li Gan
Major Sponsor: Dr. Viviane Tabar
Minor Sponsors: Dr. Josef Anrather and Dr. Lorenz Studer

Development and Mechanism of Autophagy Modulators for Treatment of Neurodegenerative Diseases
Jessica R. Falci
Date: Thursday, April 25, 2024 - 12:00pm

Jessica R. Falci
Pharmacology

Chairperson: Dr. Lonny Levin
Major Sponsor: Dr. Yueming Li
Minor Sponsors: Dr. John Blenis and Dr. Xuejun Jiang

Additional Member: Dr. David Scheinberg (Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center)

Elucidating the Complexin C-Terminal Domain Function in Neurosynaptic Regulation
Justine A. Lottermoser
Date: Wednesday, May 1, 2024 - 10:30am

Justine A. Lottermoser
Physiology, Biophysics and Systems Biology

Chairperson: Dr. David Eliezer
Major Sponsor: Dr. Jeremy Dittman
Minor Sponsors: Dr. Jacqueline Burre and Dr. Timothy Ryan

In Vivo Characterization of Keratinocytes in the Melanoma Microenvironment
Yilun Ma
Date: Thursday, June 27, 2024 - 10:00am

Yilun Ma, M.D.-Ph.D. Student
Cell and Developmental Biology

Chairperson: Dr. Tuomas Tammela
Major Sponsor: Dr. Richard White
Minor Sponsors: Dr. Barbara Hempstead and Jedd Wolchok

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