Newswise — October 3, 2024 — The 2025 recipient of the American Society for Investigative Pathology (ASIP) Outstanding Investigator Award is Dr. Pilar Alcaide, Kenneth and Jo Ann G. Wellner Professor, Director of Tufts Immunology Graduate Program, and Assistant Dean for Faculty Development in the Department of Immunology at the Tufts University School of Medicine (Boston, MA).
The ASIP Outstanding Investigator Award recognizes mid-career investigators with demonstrated excellence in experimental pathology research, including impactful achievements related to research, teaching, mentorship, leadership in the field of pathology, and contributions to the Society.
Dr. Alcaide completed her MS in molecular biology and immunology from Universidad Autonoma in Madrid, Spain in 2000. She continued at the Universidad Autonoma to complete a PhD in molecular biology and immunology (Cum Laude) in 2003. As a recipient of a Fulbright postdoctoral fellowship, Dr. Alcaide trained in vascular biology at the Brigham and Women’s Hospital (Boston, MA), where she studied the mechanisms regulating immune cell trafficking to sites of inflammation. After completion of her postdoctoral research training, Dr. Alcaide was appointed to Instructor of Pathology at Harvard Medical School (Boston, MA) in 2008, where she successfully competed for a Pathway to Independence NIH K99/R00 Award. In 2011, Dr. Alcaide relocated to the Tufts University School of Medicine (Boston, MA).
Dr. Alcaide’s lab combines the areas of immunology, vascular biology, and cardiac physiology to study the adaptive immune response in diverse inflammatory settings, with a particular focus on the heart in the context of heart failure. The over-arching goal of her research program is to better understand the molecular and cellular mechanisms taking place during T lymphocyte trafficking and how those can potentially be targeted in therapeutically useful ways. Her research has been continuously funded by grants from the American Heart Association (AHA), the National Heart Lung and Blood Institute (NHLBI), and other private foundations.
In his nomination letter, Dr. Michael A. Gimbrone (Elsie T. Friedman Professor of Pathology at Harvard Medical School and Director of the Center for Excellence in Vascular Biology, Department of Pathology at Brigham and Women’s Hospital) recalls her earlier eagerness to succeed: “[Dr. Alcaide’s] doctoral studies on host immunity in Trypanosoma cruzi infection had been quite productive and provided her with a solid footing in cellular immunology, as she began her journey into the world of vascular biology under the mentorship of Dr. Bill Luscinsks. From her first work-in-progress talk at our Tuesday morning group meetings, it was clear that she was destined (and determined) to make her mark in the world of investigative pathology!” He continues, “Notably, she provided the first demonstration that Th17 and Th1 cells use different adhesion mechanisms to engage counter-ligands and chemoattractants displayed on activated endothelium in different inflammatory disease settings.”
In addition to research, Dr. Alcaide is committed to teaching and mentoring. Most of her trainees have received awards from the AHA, the NIH, FASEB, and the ASIP. Dr. Alcaide serves on NIH study sections, including the study section focused on Mentored Transition to Independence (MTI), which discusses scientific applications of the new and upcoming independent research scientists.
Dr. Alcaide is a current member of the ASIP Council as President-Elect and serves as a Co-Leader for Women in Pathology. She will advance to President of the ASIP in July 2025. She received the ASIP Cotran Early Career Investigator Award in 2018 which recognizes early career investigators with demonstrated excellence in research.
In her nomination letter, Dr. Patricia A. D’Amore (Professor of Ophthalmology, Professor of Pathology, Vice Chair of Basic and Translational Research, Department of Ophthalmology, Harvard Medical School) described Dr. Alcaide’s enthusiasm for mentoring: “[Her] dedication to the next generation of scientists merits significant attention. She has continued to participate in thesis committees (currently nine at the Tufts Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences), serves as a journal club moderator, interviews for Tufts University School of Medicine graduate admissions, is a member of the Immunology Graduate Program Admissions Committee for the Sackler School of Graduate Biomedical Sciences, is a member of the Tufts University COVID 19 Research Group Steering Committee, a student advisor of the Tufts PREP program, Conflict of Interest Committee, and the Research Enterprise Director Committee.” In addition, Dr. D’Amore notes, “Dr. Alcaide’s lab currently consists of one postdoctoral fellow, five PhD students, and one undergraduate student. This is in addition to two short rotation mentees in 2022, both which were graduate students. She has had 27 other short-term mentees and seven graduate students or postdoctoral mentees and seven undergraduate students; of these, several have continued in the field of immunity and cardiovascular research.”
In his nomination letter, Dr. Bill Luscinskas (Professor of Pathology, Emeritus, Harvard Medical School) writes “Dr. Alcaide is a bona fide star in her field of research and she is deeply involved in the key core activities and leadership of Tufts School of Medicine including experimental pathology research, training/mentoring, teaching, and service to ASIP.” He adds, “To be succinct, [Dr. Alcaide] is the finest student I have encountered at the PhD postdoctoral level in my more than 30 years in the Pathology Department at the Brigham and Women’s Hospital… and has enormous creative energy with an outstanding record of innovation and accomplishments in the field of non-ischemic heart failure.”
Dr. Alcaide will receive the 2025 ASIP Outstanding Investigator Award during the of the ASIP in Portland, OR (April 2025).
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About ASIP
The American Society for Investigative Pathology is comprised of biomedical scientists who investigate mechanisms of disease. Investigative pathology is an integrative discipline that links the presentation of disease in the whole organism to its fundamental cellular and molecular mechanisms. It uses a variety of structural, functional, and genetic techniques and ultimately applies research findings to the diagnosis and treatment of diseases. ASIP advocates for the practice of investigative pathology and fosters the professional career development and education of its members.
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