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ReachMD Faculty

Public Profile

Joan Nichols, PhD
Joan Nichols, PhD

    Dr. Joan Nichols is the associate director of research at the Galveston National Biocontainment Laboratory, the United States' first national biocontainment facility, based in Galveston, Texas. She is also an associate professor of microbiology & immunology at the University of Texas Medical Branch (UTMB) at Galveston.

    The interest of her laboratory is the etiology and pathogenesis of viral infections caused by RNA viruses. Her research mixes aspects of both virology and immunology, in order to assess the impact of virus and/or host factors on the development of clinical disease, generation of the immune response and development of immune memory. To delineate the role of influenza determinants of virulence, we are currently evaluating viral components that influence virulence using natural reassortants of attenuated and wild-type viruses, as well as manipulation of the virus genome using reverse genetics. We are interested in the role of pro-inflammatory cytokines, expression of cell surface mediators and the processes of cellular signaling on the development of clinical disease. Currently, she is developing human respiratory and immune system models using tissue engineering practices to study pathogens such as human immunodeficiency virus, severe acute respiratory syndrome, avian-influenza virus and others. These engineered tissue constructs allow us to study human responses to pathogens as replacements for animal models. Dr. Nichols received her doctoral degree from UTMB at Galveston.

    Schedule29 Mar 2024