Department of Pathology

The Department of Pathology at Yale, one of the first departments organized at Yale School of Medicine, is dedicated to continuing its long and distinguished tradition of world-renowned clinical care, cutting-edge scientific research, and rigorous training of the next generation of pathologists to be leaders in their field. With robust research investigations, teaching programs and exceptional clinical patient care, we are able to bring new knowledge and innovative therapeutic approaches to our patients and to medicine. Our dedication to excellence in both the clinical and the academic arenas is paramount to our mission as a Department and to our goal of advancing patient care through expert diagnostics and novel therapeutics.

After a months-long struggle, Yale researchers and New Haven officials are implementing a saliva testing program within some community spaces around the city, though not within New Haven’s public schools as researchers originally hoped. The Yale Pathology Lab will process the samples.

The testing program uses SalivaDx, an affordable and streamlined method of using saliva to test for the coronavirus that has gained national acclaim since its development at Yale. Yale researchers have secured grants and coordinated with the city to fund a testing program for adults working in some of the city’s learning hubs — spaces inside some city churches and recreation centers where small groups of students can take classes if they do not have internet, a safe and quiet environment or adequate nutrition at home.

The researchers developed SalivaDx to be an open-source, uncommercialized protocol, with no kit required, in an effort to make it accessible to labs across the country. They have extended the emergency use authorization to more than 96 labs in 35 different states.

read the full article in the Yale Daily

The Class of 1961 Cancer Research Awards were presented to Ranjit Bindra, MD, PhD, Professor Therapeutic Radiology and Don Nguyen, PhD, Associate Professor of Pathology and Medicine (Medical Oncology). They were honored for their significant accomplishments in cancer research at Yale University as members of the faculty, coupled with the expectation for future outstanding contributions to the cause of cancer and the development of novel cancer treatments.

Dr. Harold Sanchez, Assistant Professor in the Department of Pathology at Yale School of Medicine and a Pathologist for Yale Medicine, appeared on WTNH News 8 to tell about autopsies and what can be learned from them during the COVID-19 pandemic. He discusses how autopsies have changed during the pandemic and what role autopsies have had in giving doctors a better understanding of the damage that the virus can do.

View the video on WTNH.com [3:45 minutes]

The National Women’s Hockey League (NWHL) is working with Yale to provide saliva-based COVID-19 testing for players and staff during the upcoming season and Isobel Cup playoffs in Lake Placid, New York. The PCR viral RNA testing method — known as SalivaDirect — was developed by researchers at the Yale School of Public Health (YSPH). It was granted an emergency use authorization by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration after researchers performed clinical validation in collaboration with YSPH, Yale New Haven Hospital, and Yale Pathology Labs (YPL).

read Yale News article here

The National Women’s Hockey League (NWHL) is working with Yale to provide saliva-based COVID-19 testing for players and staff during the upcoming season and Isobel Cup Playoffs in Lake Placid.

“Yale Pathology Labs (YPL) was the first to offer SalivaDirect™ to the public and the National Women’s Hockey League is the first women’s professional sports league to implement SalivaDirect™ testing,” said Stephanie Weirsman, physician liaison for YPL. “The NWHL is proud to be working with Yale Pathology Labs,” said NWHL Commissioner Tyler Tumminia.

Additionally, NWHL and YPL are working jointly on a quality improvement initiative which involves obtaining paired saliva and nasal samples for NWHL players and staff for dual testing purposes. This dual testing is beneficial both to the NWHL players and staff who receive two concurrent results, as well as to the clinical lab which can provide additional data for the COVID-19 diagnostic molecular testing program.

read full press release here

In the article, “Genome-wide CRISPR Screens Reveal Host Factors Critical for SARS-CoV-2 Infection”, Yale Pathology research members Qin Yan, Katerina Politi, Wesley Cai, Shang-Min Zhang, Fernando de Minguel, and Huacui Chen participated in characterization of the epigenetic regulators identified from a genome-wide CRISPR screens in Vero-E6 cells with SARS-CoV-2, MERS-CoV, bat coronavirus HKU5 expressing SARS-CoV-1 spike protein, or VSV expressing SARS-CoV-2 spike protein.

The research team has identified pro-viral host factors including epigenetic regulators (HMGB1, SWI/SNF, KDM6A, and JMJD6), and receptor ACE2 and protease Cathepsin L. They have demonstrated that HMGB1 regulates ACE2 expression, which is critical for the entry of coronaviruses SARS-CoV-2, SARS-CoV-1, and NL63. The team has also shown that “small molecule antagonists of identified gene” can inhibit the SARS-CoV-2 infection of both human and monkey cells.

In conclusion, the research teams’ above findings are critical for further understanding of the pathogenesis of SARS-CoV-2 and treatment of COVID-19.

access journal article here