— College of Medicine — Admissions — Academic Programs — MD-PhD Program — MD-PhD Program Alumni

MD-PhD Program Alumni

Class of 2024

Saihari (Shaker) Dukkipati, MD, PhD
Dissertation: Linking spinal cord circuits with upper limb sensorimotor control in adults with cerebral palsy
Residency: Child Neurology at Columbia University/New York Presbyterian Hospital, Basic Neuroscience Research Pathway

Safwan Elkhatib, MD, PhD
Dissertation: Psychological Trauma Alters T-lymphocyte Inflammation and Redox through Sympathetic Mechanisms
Residency: Anesthesiology/Research at Brigham & Women’s Hospital/Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts

Laura Flores, MD, PhD
Dissertation: Feasibility and Efficacy of Bisphosphonate Use for the Prevention of Bone and Muscle Loss
Residency: Radiation Oncology at University of Nebraska Medical Center UNMC

Stephen Haller, MD, PhD
Dissertation: Extracellular Mechanotransduction in Marfan Syndrome: An Equivalence Principle
Residency: Internal Medicine at The Ohio State University

Cassie Liu, MD, PhD
Dissertation: Characterization of 1,1-diarylethylene FOXM1 inhibitors against high-grade serous ovarian carcinoma cells
Residency: Internal Medicine at Stony Brook University Hospital, New York

Maranda Thompson, MD, PhD
Dissertation: Glad To Be Out. I Was Running Out of Womb: A Study of Omega-6 and Omega-3 Fatty Acid Metabolites at Delivery and their Relationship to Infant Growth, Prematurity, and Admission to the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit
Residency: Anesthesiology at University of Nebraska Medical Center

Pauline Xu, MD, PhD
Dissertation: Visceral Adipose Tissue Remodeling in Pancreatic Ductal Adenocarcinoma Cachexia: The Role of Activin A Signaling.
Residency: Pathology at University of Nebraska Medical Center

Class of 2023

Brandon Lew, MD, PhD
Dissertation: Multimodal Neuroimaging of HIV and Aging
Residency: Psychiatry at Brown University

Yoni Herskovitz, MD, PhD
Dissertation: Multistrain HIV-1 Elimination: A CRISPR-Cas9 and Theranostics-based Approach
Residency: UNMC’s Internal Medicine Residency

Marissa Lobl, MD, PhD
Dissertation: Insights into Cutaneous Squamous Cell Carcinoma Pathogenesis and Metastasis Using a Bedside-to-Bench Approach
Residency: Dermatology at University of Pittsburgh Medical Center

Andrew Phillips, MD, PhD
Dissertation: FGFR4 glycosylation and processing in cholangiocarcinoma promote cancer signaling
Residency: Radiation Oncology at University of Nebraska Medical Center

Class of 2022

Andrew Cannon, MD, PhD
Dissertation: CXCR3 axis in pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma
Residency: Pathology at the Mayo Clinic School of Graduate Medical Education, Minnesota

Joseph Carmicheal, MD, PhD
Dissertation: Novel detection and treatment strategies for pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma
Residency: Radiation Oncology at the University of Nebraska Medical Center, Nebraska

Simon Shin, MD, PhD
Dissertation: Investigating mitochondrial metabolism as a target for pancreatic cancer
Residency: General Surgery at University of Rochester, New York

Class of 2021

Justin Grassmeyer, MD, PhD
Dissertation: Mechanisms of Ca²⁺-dependent neurotransmission in photoreceptors
Residency: Ophthalmology at Oregon Health & Science University, Oregon

Constance Mietus, MD, PhD
Dissertation: Evaluation of the Role of Microvascular Pathology in Peripheral Artery Disease
Residency: Neurosurgery at the University of Massachusetts, Massachusetts

Richard (Lee) Sleightholm, MD, PhD, MPH
Dissertation: Chloroquine Revisited: A Novel Approach to Multi-Functional Drug Delivery Systems
Residency: Pediatric Physician Scientist Training Program (PSTP) the University of California at Los Angeles, California

Kelsey Yamada, MD, PhD
Dissertation: Monocyte anti-inflammatory activity is dictated by metabolic status during staphylococcus aureus biofilm infection
Residency: Internal Medicine/Pediatrics at Penn State, Pennsylvania

Class of 2020

Joseph Aloi, MD, PhD
Dissertation: Neural correlates of polysubstance use: differential and interactive effects of alcohol and cannabis on the adolescent brain
Residency: Psychiatry at Indiana University, Indiana

Songita Choudhury, MD, PhD
Dissertation: A study of acoustically activated nanodroplets
Residency: Pediatrics at the University of Nebraska Medical Center, Nebraska

Bret Gardner, MD, PhD
Dissertation: An evaluation of the use of a clinical research data warehouse and i2b2 infrastructure to facilitate replication of research
Residency: Child Neurology at the University of New Mexico, New Mexico

Beth Neilsen, MD, PhD
Dissertation: Functional signature ontology-based identification and validation of novel therapeutic targets and natural products for the treatment of cancer
Residency: Radiation Oncology at the University of California at Los Angeles, California

Michael Price, MD, PhD
Dissertation: Alcohol drives oxidation-dependent desensitization of airway cilia motility responsiveness
Residency: Otolaryngology at the University of Kansas School of Medicine, Kansas

Bangchen Wang, MD, PhD
Dissertation: Mechanisms for the potassium-sparing effects of furosemide in mice adapted to high potassium diets
Residency: Pathology at Duke University, North Carolina

Class of 2019

Nicholas DeKorver, MD, PhD
Dissertation: Pattern recognition receptors, immune proteins, and NF-kB signaling regular behaviors associated with aging phenotypes
Residency: Child Neurology at St. Louis Children's Hospital, Missouri

Duy Minh Ha, MD, PhD
Dissertation: The development of Transforming Growth Factor-Beta 1 associated fibrosis in the gastrocnemius of peripheral artery disease patients and response to revacularization and supervised exercise therapies
Residency: Pathology at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Texas

Krishna Sarma, MD, PhD
Dissertation: Understanding the chondrogenic potential of articular chondrocytes
Residency: Surgery at Donald and Barbara Zucker School of Medicine at Hofstra/Northwell, New York

Garland (Michael) Upchurch, MD, PhD
Dissertation: DNMT3A haploinsufficiency provokes hematologic malignancy of B-lymphoid, T-lymphoid, and myeloid lineage in mice
Residency: Pathology at Barnes-Jewish Hospital, Missouri

Class of 2018

Brian W. Coburn, MD, PhD
Dissertation: Modifiable barriers to optimal outcomes in gout management
Residency: Internal Medicine/Pediatrics at the University of Pennsylvania and the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Luke R. Cypher, MD, PhD
Dissertation: EHD1 as a positive regulator of CSF1R presentation on the macrophage cell surface
Residency: Pathology at the Medical University of South Carolina, South Carolina

Matthew A. Dale, MD, PhD
Dissertation: M1 macrophage polarization by elastin-derived peptides drives abdominal aortic aneurysm formation
Residency: Surgery at Creighton University, Nebraska

Peter Pellegrino, MD, PhD
Dissertation: Central Rho-kinase inhibition and Ang II-induced sympatho-excitation
Residency: Anesthesia at University of Nebraska Medical Center, Nebraska

Joseph M. Rohr, MD, PhD
Dissertation: Recurrent mutations of T-cell receptor and co-stimulatory signaling proteins in peripheral T-cell lymphomas
Residency: Pathology at University of Nebraska Medical Center, Nebraska

David I. Taylor, MD, PhD
Dissertation: Behavioral care for children in urban and rural integrated primary care: parent and provider perspectives
Residency: Psychiatry at Mount Sinai/Beth Israel, New York

Class of 2017

Shinnyi (Cindy) Chou, MD, PhD
Dissertation: Effects of maternal immune activation and repeated maternal separation on postpartum behaviors in the female rat offspring
Residency: Psychiatry at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, Pennsylvania

Derek Passer, MD, PhD
Dissertation: Atypical protein kinase C dependent polarized cell division is required for myocardial trabeculation.
Residency: Anesthesiology at New York Presbyterian-Columbia University Medical Center, New York

James Reinecke, MD, PhD
Dissertation: Regulatory roles of MICAL-L1 and EHD1 in cell signaling and mitosis
Residency: Pediatrics at the University of Iowa, Iowa

Class of 2016

Adrian Epstein, MD, PhD
Dissertation: Metabolomics of HIV-associated neurocognitive dysfunction
Residency: Pediatrics at the University of Nebraska Medical Center, Nebraska

Katherine Maliszewski, MD, PhD
Dissertation: Conditions stimulating the development of competence in Staphylococcus aureus
Residency: Internal Medicine at the University of Nebraska Medical Center, Nebraska

Phillip Purnell, MD, PhD
Dissertation: The roles of autophagy and USP in mitochondrial function
Residency: Otolaryngology at West Virginia University, West Virginia

Jakeb Riggle, MD, PhD
Dissertation: The indirect route to quality healthcare and patient safety
Residency: Internal Medicine at the University of Nebraska Medical Center, Nebraska

Krupa Savalia, MD, PhD
Dissertation: Utilizing nanoformulated superoxide dismutase complexes to attenuate angiotensin II-dependent hypertension
Residency: Neurology at Georgetown University, Washington D.C.

Class of 2015

Gautam Malhotra, MD, PhD
Dissertation: Role of Sox9 in mammary gland development and stem cell maintenance
Residency: Surgery at the University of Nebraska Medical Center, Nebraska

Class of 2014

Michael Baine, MD, PhD
Dissertation: Immune-based novel diagnostic mechanisms for pancreatic cancer
Residency: Radiation Oncology at the University of Nebraska Medical Center, Nebraska

Jesse Cox, MD, PhD
Dissertation: SOX2 associated proteins are essential for cell fate
Residency: Anatomic and Clinical Pathology at the University of Nebraska Medical Center, Nebraska

John Morrison, MD, PhD
Dissertation: Characterization of a small stable regulatory RNA molecule in community-associated methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus
Residency: Pediatrics at Johns Hopkins All Children's Hospital, Florida

Peter Simone, MD, PhD
Dissertation: Structural and biophysical analysis of a human inosine triphosphate pyrophosphatase polymorphism
Residency:
Internal Medicine at Florida Atlantic University, Florida
Ophthalmology at Palmetto Health, South Carolina

David Stone, MD, PhD
Dissertation: Neuroimmune regulation in models of neurodegenerative diseases
Residency: Neurology at the University of Florida College of Medicine, Florida

Class of 2013

Kurt Fisher, MD, PhD
Dissertation: Coordinate detection of new targets and small molecules for cancer therapy
Residency: Pathology at Indiana University School of Medicine, Indiana
Fellowship: Gastrointestinal and Transplant Pathology, University of Nebraska Medical Center, Nebraska

Joel Michalski, MD, PhD
Dissertation: Prostaglandin E2 signaling in human lung fibroblasts: mechanisms of signal attenuation and implications in chronic lung diseases
Residency: Internal medicine at the University of Nebraska Medical Center, Nebraska
Fellowship: Hematology/Oncology at the University of Nebraska Medical Center, Nebraska

Ari Nowacek, MD, PhD
Dissertation: Development of a macrophage-mediated delivery system for crystalline antiretroviral nanoparticles
Residency: Pathology at the University of Chicago Medical Center, Illinois
Post-doctoral Fellowship:
University of Chicago, Illinois
Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH), Massachusetts

Class of 2011

David Claassen, MD, PhD
Dissertation: Advances in the in vitro study of Huntington's disease mutagenesis and pathogenesis
Residency: Pediatrics at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical School, Texas
Fellowship: Pediatric Hematology/Oncology, St. Jude's Children's Research Hospital, Tennessee

John Eggers, MD, PhD
Dissertation: Cyclin dependent kinase 5 contributes to the progression of pancreatic cancer
Residency: Orthopedic Surgery at the University of Missouri at Kansas City, Missouri
Fellowship: Adult Reconstruction at Cleveland Clinic, Ohio

Class of 2010

Nathaniel Erdmann, MD, PhD
Dissertation: Brain inflammation and glutaminase-mediated excitotoxicity in HIV-1-associated dementia
Residency: Internal Medicine at the University of Alabama Medical Center, Alabama
Fellowship: Infectious Diseases at the University of Alabama Medical Center, Alabama

Michael Mulhern, MD, PhD
Dissertation: The role of endoplasmic reticulum stress in ocular disease
Residency: Ophthalmology at the University of Wisconsin, Wisconsin

Class of 2009

Brian Boer, MD, PhD
Dissertation: Transcriptional regulation of the SOX2:OCT-3/4 gene regulatory network in embryonal carcinoma and embryonic stem cells
Residency: Internal Medicine at the University of Nebraska Medical Center, Nebraska
Fellowship: Critical Care at the University of Nebraska Medical Center, Nebraska

Jeffrey Boyle, MD, PhD
Dissertation: The NMDA receptor subunit 2D carboxy terminal tail: a molecular scaffold for intracellular signaling proteins
Residency: Neurology at the University of Iowa Hospital & Clinics, Iowa
Fellowship: Sleep Medicine at the University of Iowa Hospital & Clinics, Iowa

Scott Stoeger, MD, PhD
Dissertation: Role of the ERKI/2 map kinase pathway of the cellular response to anticancer chemotherapy
Residency: Surgery at the University of Kansas School of Medicine, Kansas

Class of 2008

Brian Farrell, MD, PhD
Dissertation: Mechanistic insights into CAG-CTG contractions in cultured human and simian cells
Residency: Neurosurgery at Oregon Health & Science University, Oregon

Jill Murphy, MD, PhD
Dissertation: Role of Tip30 in mammary gland development and tumorigenesis
Residency: Plastic Surgery at the University of Kansas School of Medicine, Missouri

Benjamin Swanson, MD, PhD
Dissertation: The role of MUC1 and its ligand Myelin-Associated Glycoprotein in pancreatic cancer perineural invasion
Residency: Pathology at the University of Nebraska Medical Center, Nebraska
Fellowship: Pathology at Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center, Ohio

Class of 2007

John Dickinson, MD, PhD
Dissertation: Influence of somatic genomic aberrations on gene expression in human chronic lymphocytic leukemia
Residency: Internal Medicine at Washington University in St. Louis (Barnes-Jewish Hospital), Missouri
Fellowship: Pulmonary Medicine at Washington University in St. Louis, Missouri

Scott Koepsell, MD, PhD
Dissertation: Biochemical investigation of the Staphylococcus aureus primase
Residency: Anatomic and Clinical Pathology at the University of Nebraska Medical Center, Nebraska
Fellowship: Transfusion Medicine and Blood Banking at the University of Minnesota, Minnesota

Class of 2006

Eric James Benner, MD, PhD
Dissertation: Adaptive immunity in dopaminergic neurodegeneration
Residency: Pediatrics at the University of North Carolina, North Carolina
Fellowship: Neonatology at Duke University School of Medicine

Cory Bernadt, MD, PhD
Dissertation: Mechanisms involved in the differential expression of the Fibroblast Growth Factor-4 gene and the type II Transforming Growth Factor-Beta receptor gene in embryonal carcinoma cells and their differentiated counterparts
Residency: Pathology at the University of Iowa, Iowa
Fellowship: University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics

Robert L. Kortum, MD, PhD
Dissertation: The molecular scaffold KSR1 regulates proliferative, oncogenic, and adipogenic potential
Post-doctoral Fellowship: National Institutes of Health (NIH), Maryland

Jeff D. Sanders, MD, PhD
Dissertation: Noradrenergic regulation of the developing brain
Residency: Psychiatry at the University of California San Diego medical Center, California

Class of 2004

Allison Cushman-Vokoun, MD, PhD
Residency: Pathology at the University of Nebraska Medical Center, Nebraska
Fellowship: Molecular Genetic Pathology at Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Tennessee

Lisa Ryan, MD, PhD, FAAP
Residency: Pediatrics at St. Louis Children's Hospital, Missouri

Class of 2003

Tracy Ediger, MD, PhD
Current Position:
Assistant Professor of Biology, Georgia Gwinnett College, Georgia

Randall Olsen, MD, PhD
Residency: Pathology at the Baylor College of Medicine, Texas
Fellowship:
The Methodist Hospital (Clinical), Texas
Houston Methodist Hospital (Research), Texas

Walter E. Zink III, MD, PhD
Residency: Surgery at Lenox Hill Hospital (transitional year); Neuroradiology at New York Presbyterian Hospital (fellowship); Radiology at New York Presbyterian Hospital, New York
Fellowship: Cornell University, New York

Class of 2002

James Byrd, MD, PhD
Residency: Internal Medicine at Barnes-Jewish Hospital, Missouri
Fellowship: Rheumatology at Washington University in St. Louis, Missouri

Kimberly Chapman-Dean, MD, PhD, FABMG
Residency: Internal Medicine/Pediatrics at the University of Pittsburgh Health Sciences Center, Pennsylvania

Rodney Miles, MD, PhD
Residency: Pathology at the University of Utah Affiliated Hospital, Utah

Class of 2001

Lynn Helseth, MD, PhD
Residency: Family Medicine at Lehigh Valley Hospital, Pennsylvania

Jack Lionberger, MD, PhD
Residency: Internal Medicine at University of Wisconsin Medical School, Wisconsin
Fellowship: Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center - Seattle, Seattle
University of Washington Medical Center, Seattle

Alisa Nollendorfs, MD, PhD, ABFP
Residency: Family Medicine at Lincoln Family Practice Program, Nebraska

Monte S. Willis, MD, PhD, FCAP, FAHA, MBA
Residency: Pathology at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical School, Texas

Class of 2000

Valerie Davis, MD, PhD
Residency: Pediatrics at the University of Tennessee Medical Center, Tennessee

Richard Tempero, MD, PhD
Residency: Surgery at University of Washington; Otolaryngology - Head and Neck Surgery at University of Washington, Washington
Post-Doctoral Fellowship: Virginia Mason Research Center, Washington

Colin Weekes, MD, PhD
Residency: Internal Medicine at University of Alabama Birmingham
Fellowship: Medical Oncology at Johns Hopkins Hospital, Maryland

Class of 1998

Daniel R. Anderson, MD, PhD
Residency: Internal Medicine at University of Nebraska Medical Center, Nebraska
Fellowship:
Cardiology at University of Nebraska Medical Center, Nebraska
Cardiac Electrophysiology at University of Nebraska Medical Center, Nebraska

Class of 1997

Keith Miller, MD, PhD, FACC
Residency: Internal Medicine at University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics, Iowa
Fellowship: Cardiovascular Disease at the University of Chicago, Illinois

Sheldon Thieszen, MD, PhD
Residency: LDS Hospital (transitional year); Diagnostic Radiology at the University of Utah Medical Center, Utah
Fellowship: Musculoskeletal Radiology at University of Utah Medical Center, Utah

Class of 1992

Susan Speaks, MD, PhD
Residency: Anatomic and Clinical Pathology at University of Nebraska Medical Center, Nebraska

Class of 1988

Thomas Gross, MD, PhD
Residency: Pediatrics at the University of Nebraska Medical Center, Nebraska
Fellowship: Pediatric Hematology/Oncology at University of Minnesota, Minnesota