Anjali Jacob Panicker, PhD, MS

Anjali J. Panicker earned her bachelor of engineering in biotechnology from the University of Mumbai. Pursuing her interest in medical sciences, she earned her master's degree in medical biotechnology from the University of Illinois Chicago. There, she investigated antigen-specific tolerance in autoimmunity and was first exposed to the complexities of human immunology. Realizing there was more to uncover, she went on to earn her PhD in immunology from the Mayo Clinic. Her thesis project uncovered novel protein antigens in heart transplant patients with different rejection pathologies. Furthermore, she showed how antibodies to some of these antigens might damage the graft endothelium and mediate rejection pathologies. To further understand the mechanism of antibody-mediated tissue damage, Anjali joined the O'Connor Lab, where she is focused on defining the immunopathology of human autoantibody-mediated demyelinating diseases driven by pathogenic B cells and the antibodies they produce.

A biotechnology engineer turned translational immunologist, Anjali's training and research have focused on applying protein biochemistry, cellular biology, and molecular biology to investigate immune mechanisms to human diseases. This aligns with her career goal of developing translational technologies to study the immune system and improve autoimmune neurological disease management in the clinic.