Lionakis Research Group

Opportunistic fungal infections represent major causes of morbidity and mortality despite the administration of antifungal therapy. A better mechanistic understanding of host-fungal interactions will inform the development of improved immune-based strategies for the prevention, risk stratification, prognostication, vaccination, and treatment of vulnerable patient populations. In the Fungal Pathogenesis Section (FPS), we use an integrated bench-to-bedside multidisciplinary approach encompassing immunology, mycology, and genetics to investigate protection against and susceptibility to pathogenic fungi. We evaluate large cohorts of patients with inherited or acquired susceptibility to fungal disease and study antifungal immune responses in vitro and in vivo in a variety of clinically relevant mouse models of fungal disease. Thus, we employ various immunological, biological, and imaging approaches to measure biological determinants of disease outcomes in humans and mice. Our research directly informs clinically actionable interventions, including developing targeted preventive and therapeutic interventions in at-risk patients.

Michail Lionakis, M.D., Sc.D.

Chief, Laboratory of Clinical Immunology and Microbiology
Chief, Fungal Pathogenesis Section

Specialty(s): Infectious Disease, Internal Medicine
Provides direct clinical care to patients at NIH Clinical Center

Education:

M.D., Sc.D., University of Crete, Heraklion, Greece

Dr. Lionakis obtained his M.D. and Sc.D. from the University of Crete in Greece. In 2002, he came to the United States and worked as a research fellow at the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center (MDACC) under the mentorship of Dimitrios Kontoyiannis. At MDACC, Dr. Lionakis did clinical research on risk factors, diagnosis, and management of opportunistic fungal infections in cancer patients and bench research focusing on pharmacology and microbial factors in mouse and Drosophila models of invasive aspergillosis, fusariosis, and candidiasis.

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Michail S. Lionakis, M.D., Sc.D., poses for a photo

Princess Barber, M.S.N.

Case Manager

Education:

M.S.N., Walden University
B.S., Nursing, Columbia Union College

Princess comes to FPS with a clinical background working in cardiology, oncology, infectious diseases, and management. As a case manager in FPS, she provides care coordination and protocol implementation on the section’s natural history and interventional studies on human fungal infections and autoimmunity.

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Lucas Dos Santos Dias, Ph.D.

Staff Scientist

Education:

Postdoctoral Fellow, 2022, University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI
Ph.D., Microbiology, 2017, Universidade de São Paulo, São Paulo, SP, Brazil
M.Sc., Biology and Biotecnology of Microorganisms, 2012, Universidade Estadual de Santa Cruz, Ilhéus, BA, Brazil
Bachelor, Biomedicine, 2010, Universidade Estadual de Santa Cruz, Ilhéus, BA, Brazil

Languages Spoken: Brazilian Portuguese, Spanish

Lucas did his postdoctoral research fellowship with Bruce Klein, where he focused on the development of fungal vaccines and mechanisms of T-cell-mediated antifungal immunity. He has accumulated more than 10 years of research experience in fungal immunology, as evidenced by 20 manuscripts and more than 300 citations. At NIAID, he is focused on various projects related to AIRE-dependent mechanisms...

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Eliezer Heller, B.S.

Postbaccalaureate IRTA Fellow

Education:

B.S., 2023, Yeshiva University

Eliezer obtained a bachelor’s degree in biology from Yeshiva University. In his undergraduate studies, he researched IPLA2-6A-associated neurodegeneration in Drosophila melanogaster and gained experience in confocal microscopy and image analysis, and fruit fly-associated assays. He joined FPS as a postbaccalaureate research fellow, where his work will focus on translational research aspects of the...

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Iivo Hetemäki, M.D., Ph.D.

Visiting Fellow

Education:

M.D., Ph.D., University of Helsinki, Finland

Iivo completed his Ph.D. under the mentorship of Petteri Arstila and Eliisa Kekäläinen, focusing on adaptive immune responses in inborn errors of immunity, including autoimmune polyendocrinopathy-candidiasis-ectodermal dystrophy (APECED). At FPS, Iivo's research centers on uncovering the mechanisms underlying immune dysregulation in APECED and how they can be remedied with immunomodulatory drugs.

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Shen-Huan Liang, Ph.D.

Visiting Fellow

Education:

Ph.D., Pathobiology, Brown University

Shen-Huang (Stacy) completed her Ph.D. under the mentorship of Richard Bennett, specializing in fungal genetics and pathogenesis in Candida albicans. In the FPS, Stacy will be investigating the regulatory roles of lipid mediators during systemic candidiasis.

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Ashira Lubkin, M.D., Ph.D.

Postdoctoral Fellow

Education:

M.D., Ph.D., New York University
B.S., Columbia University

Ashira worked as a research associate at Rockefeller University in the lab of Ralph Steinman. She obtained her Ph.D. and M.D. from NYU, where she studied the pathogenesis of pore forming leukocidins from Staphylococcus aureus in the lab of Dr. Victor Torres. Her research at FPS focuses on the relationship between excessive type 1 inflammation and mucosal candidiasis. She is interested in defining...

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Jessie MacAlpine, Ph.D.

Visiting Fellow

Education:

Ph.D., University of Toronto

Jessie completed her Ph.D. in the lab of Dr. Leah Cowen at the University of Toronto, where she identified a small molecule secreted by commensal bacteria that inhibits fungal pathogenesis. In FPS, her work is focused on characterizing vaginal immune response in the context of both health and fungal disease in the setting of diabetes mellitus.

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Heather Moorman, M.S.P.H., B.S.N., R.N., C.C.R.P.

Clinical Research Coordinator

Education:

M.S.P.H., Johns Hopkins University
B.S.N., Georgetown University

Heather comes to FPS with a clinical, research, and public health systems background and was previously a study coordinator with the Laboratory of Immune System Biology. She manages and coordinates our natural history and interventional studies on human fungal infections and autoimmunity.

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Joe Pechacek, M.S., M.D.

Clinical Fellow, Infectious Diseases

Education:

Residency, Internal Medicine and Pediatrics, University of Pittsburg Medical Center
M.D., Virginia Tech Carilion School of Medicine
M.S., Georgetown University
B.S., Biology, The George Washington University

Joe joins FPS with an interest in clinical research and in elucidating host factors driving susceptibility to fungal infection to learn how to better manage patients with complex fungal infections, especially in the context of immune dysregulation.

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Brendan Snarr, Ph.D.

Postdoctoral Visiting Fellow

Education:

Ph.D., McGill University
B.S., Biochemistry, University of Victoria

Brendan studied the immune response to pulmonary Aspergillus infections and evaluating novel therapeutics against microbial biofilms during his doctoral research. At FPS, Brendan will be investigating the neuroinflammatory responses against fungal meningoencephalitis.

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Brendan Snarr, Ph.D.

Taura Webb, C.R.N.P.

Nurse

Education:

M.S., Nursing, Family Nurse Practitioner Certificate, Bellarmine University

Taura comes to FPS with a clinical background, working with genitourinary cancers and, more recently, nephrology consultation service with the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases, focusing on nephrological complications from varying underlying disorders. Her work will focus on the clinical care of patients with inherited and acquired susceptibilities to fungal disease...

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Andrew Wishart, M.Sc.

Contractor

Education:

B.Sc. (Honors), M.Sc., Medical Biochemistry, University of Cape Town

Andrew focused his educational studies on secreted biomarkers in cancer. He then moved to the United States, where he worked as a research technician in the Oudin Lab at Tufts University, investigating drivers of breast cancer metastasis. During the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic, Andrew worked as a clinical genomic technologist at the Jackson Laboratory for Genomic Medicine, where he...

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Andrew Wishart, M.Sc.

Yan Xin, Ph.D.

Visiting Fellow

Education:

Ph.D., Chinese Academy of Sciences

Yan Xin obtained his Ph.D. from the Chinese Academy of Sciences. He then performed postdoctoral research on fungal immunology at Tsinghua University under the mentorship of Dr. Xin Lin. In the FPS, Yan Xin will study the molecular mechanisms of host susceptibility to invasive candidiasis and chromoblastomycosis.

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Huihui Zhang, Ph.D.

Visiting Fellow

Education:

Ph.D., Shanghai Jiao Tong University

Huihui Zhang completed her Ph.D. at Shanghai Jiao Tong University under the supervision of Dr. Qian Feng at the School of Pharmacy. During her Ph.D., her research focused on delineating the immune regulatory mechanisms of macrophages in asthma. In FPS, Huihui is studying the molecular mechanisms of phagocyte-dependent defense against Aspergillus during pulmonary infection.

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Lu Zhang, M.D.

Visiting Fellow

Education:

M.D., Clinical Medicine, Peking University

Lu Zhang received her M.D. from Peking University under the supervision of Dr. Ruoyu Li, where she focused her research on investigating the host immune mechanisms underlying susceptibility to phaeohyphomycosis in CARD9 deficiency. At FPS, she will study the CARD9-dependent mechanisms of protection against fungal infection in the skin including against refractory chromoblastomycosis.

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Former Research Group Members

  • Michael Abers, M.D., Assistant Clinical Investigator, Chief, Opportunistic Bacterial Pathogenesis Unit, LCIM, NIAID, NIH
  • Timothy Break, Scientist I, Meso Scale Diagnostics, Rockville, Maryland
  • Amanda Collar, M.D.-Ph.D. Candidate, Department of Molecular Genetics and Microbiology, University of New Mexico School of Medicine, New Mexico
  • Gregory Constantine, M.D., Staff Clinician, Laboratory of Parasitic Diseases (LPD), NIAID, NIH
  • Shiva Deljookorani, B.S., Medical School, University of Maryland
  • Jigar Desai, M.S., Ph.D., Assistant Professor, Center for Discovery and Innovation, Hackensack University Medical Center, New Jersey
  • Tom DiMaggio, Clinical Project Manager, Division of Microbiology and Infectious Diseases, NIAID, Bethesda, Maryland
  • Rebecca Drummond, Birmingham Fellow, Institute of Immunology and Immunotherapy / Institute of Microbiology and Infection, College of Medical and Dental Sciences, University of Birmingham, UK
  • Elise Ferré, MPH, PA-C, Clinical Analyst, Center for Drug Evaluation and Research (CDER), FDA, Maryland
  • Yannis Hadjiyannis, B.Sc., Medical School, The Ohio State University College of Medicine
  • Ahnika Kline, M.D., Ph.D., Assistant Professor, Department of Pathology; Associate Director, Clinical Microbiology Laboratory, UCSD, California
  • Mukil Natarajan, Medical Officer, Office of Antimicrobial Products, Center for Drug Evaluation, U.S. Food and Drug Administration, Silver Spring, Maryland
  • Sebastian Ochoa, Assistant Professor, Pediatrics, Allergy and Immunology, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas
  • Vasileios Oikonomou, Ph.D., Assistant Professor, Department of Medicine and Surgery, University of Perugia, Italy
  • Stacey Rose, Assistant Professor, Department of Infectious Diseases, Associate Director, Internal Medicine Residency Program, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas
  • Monica Schmitt, C.R.N.P., Clinical Analyst, Center for Drug Evaluation and Research (CDER), FDA, Maryland
  • Daisuke Yamanaka, Ph.D., Assistant Professor, Tokyo University of Pharmacy and Life Sciences, Japan
  • Marissa Zarakas, D.D.S., M.D., Internal Medicine Resident, University of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
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