Michelle Matter, PhD

Dr. Matter received a PhD in cell biology from the University of Virginia Medical School. After completing her postdoctoral research with Lasker award winner Dr. Erkki Ruoshlati at The Sanford Burnham Institute, Dr. Matter joined the University of Hawaii School of Medicine, as an assistant professor. She obtained tenure as associate professor at the University of Hawaii Cancer Center before joining Tulane School of Medicine as a tenured professor in 2022. Professor Matter’s laboratory is focused on cell adhesion signaling and engages diverse interdisciplinary approaches including bioengineering to rigorously interrogate complex biological questions related to mechanisms of disease. Her team identified a gene mutation that causes infantile-onset multisystem neurologic, endocrine and pancreatic disease (IMNEPD). Her group is actively developing targeted therapies for this disease and continues to identify new therapeutic targets for blocking vascular leak in sepsis. Her research has resulted in high-quality publications in scientific journals, including Cell, PNAS, JCB, JBC, and Cell Death & Discovery. Professor Matter had two patents from her research, is an Associate Editor for Frontiers in Oncology, and an Editorial Board Member for Journal of Personalized Medicine, a Board Member for Strykagen, LLC, and serves on study sections at the National Institutes of Health and the American Heart Association.