Carol J. Soroka, PhD, senior research scientist in medicine (digestive diseases); and technical director, Liver Center Morphology Core, has retired, effective July 1, 2022.
“I'm ready [to retire] and move on to something else. Research is very rewarding, but can be tough and stressful, with long hours and hard work that often doesn’t lead to positive results. So, I am ready to make some changes,” said Soroka.
Soroka always loved biology so she pursued a bachelor of science degree in biology from Youngstown State University. “When I was an undergraduate, I worked for a number of professors and helped them do whatever needed done, around the lab or just Xeroxing papers that they wanted to be copied (that was before everything was online),” recalled Soroka.
Fascinated by science and biology, Soroka decided to pursue advanced degrees (M.A. and PhD) in microbiology from the State University of New York at Buffalo.
Soroka came to Yale School of Medicine (YSM) in 1986 to join the lab of Marilyn G. Farquhar, PhD, in the Department of Cell Biology. While working in Cell Biology, she met Fred Gorelick, MD, Henry J. and Joan W. Binder Professor of Medicine (Digestive Diseases) and of Cell Biology. Realizing they had similar outside interests, like gardening and kayaking, and lived only half a mile from each other, the duo became good friends.
She would eventually find her way into the lab of James Boyer, MD, FACEP, ensign professor of medicine (digestive diseases) and emeritus director, Yale Liver Center, where she worked for 29 years.
“What I think the greatness of the section [of Digestive Diseases] and the Department [of Internal Medicine] was in my mind, is that there was a very strong research component with clinical implications. Digestive Diseases had a very strong research program, especially in liver work. It's not that it had to be liver for me, but I wanted a strong research program where I was valued as a researcher,” said Soroka.
Gorelick acknowledges the move to Boyer’s lab was advantageous. “Carol is a very accomplished investigator, and when she started working with Dr. Boyer, certainly from my vantage point, they were, if you will, an ideal scientific marriage. They spearheaded a remarkable group of research investigations, it took the field forward,” said Gorelick. “What was enjoyable and rewarding to watch, was Jim and Carol working together. She brought her expertise as a cell biologist to the research done in that laboratory, and you could really see it reflected in their joint papers. When I'd see their papers and hear her present, I would always remember what she had learned with Marilyn Farquhar, who was regarded as one of the nation's outstanding cell biologists. Seeing how Carol applied the principles and techniques that she learned with Marilyn to the study of liver disease was truly exciting.”
Boyer says that Carol quickly became his “right hand person and lieutenant.” He appreciated her diligence.
“She is a wonderful morphologist and cell culture person. She did a lot of imaging, a lot of immunofluorescent work, a lot of very detailed work. She is a stickler for detail. If you had any doubt about your work being valid, it was Carol that would tell you that in no uncertain terms. I always knew that when she said, ‘This data is good,’ that you could really rely on it,” said Boyer.
Together, the Boyer lab team studied the process of bile formation and cholestasis, or reduction of bile flow. With the discovery of the Organic Solute Transporter alpha-beta as the primary transporter involved in the enterohepatic circulation of bile acids, Soroka’s research shifted to understanding how the intestinal transporter can be regulated in cholestasis. She later focused on how biliary organoids from human bile can provide insight into primary sclerosing cholangitis, a chronic liver disease which can cause extensive liver scarring and damage.
Considered the “mother of the lab,” Soroka was the person who looked after everybody in the Liver Center facilities on the second floor of The Anlyan Center, said Boyer.
“I think we are going to suffer greatly because I don't think anybody else can manage the lab the way she did. She cared for the equipment, assigned seats to new residents, staff, and fellows who came and went from the lab. She was the go-to person. I'm sure some others will pick up where she leaves off, but it's going be a long time coming I'm afraid,” said Boyer.
“What has impressed me about Carol's work, if you were to look at her scientific demeanor over the years, is her solidity as a scientist. She's meticulous, critical, and extraordinarily helpful to others. I think Carol’s willingness to share her knowledge and help others is at the core of what's made her so important to the our Section and the Liver Center. It also distinguishes her as unique and in many ways, an ideal scientific colleague. For those of us who asked her for advice, we invariably found that Carol’s sage responses provided thoughtful and reliable guidance,” said Gorelick.
Andrea Hart, operations manager (digestive diseases), agrees with Gorelick. “For me, besides being an excellent scientist, Carol has been a mentor, teacher, and guide for so many through the decades…a true gem of the Section of Digestive Diseases.”
Soroka is a member of the American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases, and served as treasurer, vice president, and president of the Connecticut Microscopy Society. She has published 76 original articles, along with 72 abstracts.
While Soroka still loves research, she is looking forward to enjoying her life outside the lab. “I like to do a lot of things, I like to garden, I like to kayak. I like to go out and do things that really you don't have time to do when you have a full-time job. I'd like to volunteer at some places, and I want to travel. I think initially, I will relax through the summer and decompress a bit, and then I will assess the situation and see what opportunities are out there,” she said.
“Overall, I'm open to other possibilities and other things that I would like to pursue, just enjoy some other aspects of life,” said Soroka. Gorelick says that they already have a kayaking trip planned.
Since forming one of the nation’s first sections of hepatology and then gastroenterology over 50 years ago, Yale’s Section of Digestive Diseases has had an enduring impact on research and clinical care in gastrointestinal and liver disorders. To learn more about their work, visit Digestive Diseases.