Our current ProSTAR/PSTP community hosts a vibrant mix of trainees at all levels, and a continuum of graduates who are currently STAR fellows. Our graduates continue subspecialty training in all medicine subspecialties, and continue in a successful and validated pipeline known to produce successful physician investigators in the areas of basic, translational, and clinical/health services research.
Nicholas Hornstein, MD, PhD
Dr. Nicholas Hornstein obtained his MD and PhD from Columbia University where he developed next generation sequencing technologies. He holds particular interests in oncology and in utilizing genomic data as a driver of improved outcomes. Outside of medicine he enjoys rock climbing.
Melissa Abel, MD
Dr. Melissa Abel is interested in pursuing a career in oncology that incorporates basic science research. She started her research career at Oregon Health Science University studying small molecule targeted therapies for leukemia, before heading to Duke University for medical school. At Duke, she was able to spend a year studying CAR T-cell therapy for glioblastoma through funding from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute Med Fellows program. She is interested in cancer genetics and immunology, and is excited to be at a program known for its support of physician-scientists.
Sriram Anbil, MD
Dr. Anbil completed his MD at The University of Texas School of Medicine in San Antonio, and spent four years in the laboratory of Dr. Tayyaba Hasan and Massachusetts General Hospital, two as a research associate prior to medical school, and two as an HHMI Medical Research Fellow between his MS2 and MS3 years. To date, his research has focused on the development of 3D organoid models for ovarian and pancreas cancer, mechanism-informed combination regimens to treat late stage cancers, and targeting the tumor-stroma interactions that drive pancreas cancer progression. His research interests include understanding how evolutionary stresses impact the composition of the tumor microenvironment of pancreas cancer, and how this landscape is affected by treatment. In addition, Dr. Anbil is interested in assay development for the early detection of disease.
Aleksandr Gorin, MD, PhD
Dr. Aleksandr Gorin received his MD/PhD from UCLA. His thesis work focused on HIV "elite controllers", individuals who control HIV infection without antiretroviral medications. During his PhD he investigated mechanisms by which cytotoxic T-cells control HIV replication in such individuals with a broad focus on developing HIV vaccines to elicit a successful T-cell response against the virus. Dr. Gorin's research interests are mainly focused on understanding the interplay between adaptive immunity and viral pathogens as well as vaccine design.
Kathleen Fenerty, MD
Dr. Kathleen Fenerty is an aspiring academic oncologist. She began her research career at the National Institutes of Health, where she was part of the Medical Research Scholars Program. There she had the opportunity to spend a year studying multimodal immunotherapies for prostate cancer. She then graduated from medical school at Indiana University before heading to UCLA, where she is excited continue her training as a clinician scientist.
Rui Li, MD, PhD
Dr. Li graduated from Zhejiang University School of Medicine and came to UCLA for his PhD study in Molecular and Medical Pharmacology. His research focused on the interactions between tumor microenvironment and progression. He developed a new combination therapywhich can effectively stimulate anti-tumor T cell responses in otherwise immunoresistant non-small cell lung cancer. He was also involved in a clinical trial that utilizes gene-editing dendritic cells to treat advanced-stage lung cancer with failures of prior therapies. His future interest is to translate laboratory findings to clinical practice.
Sarina Lowe, MD
Dr. Sarina Lowe received her MD from New York University School of Medicine. She was a HHMI Medical Research Fellow in the laboratory of Dr. Michel Nussenzweigat Rockefeller University, working on HIV-neutralizing antibodies and vaccine development. Her current interest is in inflammatory bowel disease, focusing on the underlying biology of the disease and translational studies of disease phenotype and management.
Giuliana Repetti, MD
Dr. Giuliana Repetti began her research career in the lab of Dr. Lee Rubin at Harvard University studying the molecular and cellular basis of neurodegenerative diseases. As a University of Arizona medical student, she worked with Dr. Steven Goldman exploring the mechanisms behind a cardiac patch to treat heart failure. Between her third and fourth years of medical school she completed a Sarnoff Cardiovascular Research Fellowship at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in the lab of Dr. Christine Seidman and Dr. Jonathan Seidman. She spent the year examining the biomechanics and calcium handling properties of various forms of hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, particularly those caused by genetic variants affecting the thin filament. She also conducted a twin study to investigate he relativecontribution of genes and environment to the clinical outcomes of patients with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy.
To see featured ProSTAR graduates and STAR fellows, follow this link: Featured Current STAR Awardees
