2024 Year in Review
Reflecting on an Incredible Year of Growth & Achievement
There were many milestones and beautiful moments with all of you in 2024. From scientific breakthroughs to unforgettable social gatherings, it was a year of connection, collaboration, and celebration.
27th Annual Research Day
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One of the major highlights of the year was the 27th Annual Research Day. With over 60 abstracts submitted, trainees had the opportunity to showcase their hard work through presentations and posters. This year’s research day marked one of the largest, and as always, we got to recognize trainees with awards for best poster, presentation, and service.
Congratulations to our outstanding winners!
Oral Presentations Outstanding Posters Service Awards
1. Cosimo Lobello 1. Adria Hasan 1. Adria Hasan
2. Madeline Bono 2. Lauren Strathearn 2. Silvia Valdes Rives
3. Henkel Valentine 3. Anna Lilly 3. Wei-Ting Yueh
4. Jhon Pasamonte 4. Madison Honer
Fox Chase Trainee Seminar Series
The Fox Chase Trainee Seminar Series (FTSS) played a valuable role in fostering communication skills and highlighting the daily commitment of scientific discovery of our trainees. Every two weeks, a trainee presented their ongoing research, sparking discussion and creating a place to feel acknowledged for their progress. In 2024, FTSS was organized by postdocs Adria Hasan and Elham Ahanin, and the 2024 speakers included postdoctoral fellows Takahiko Murayama, Lauren Strathearn, Wei-Ting Yueh, Boris Yang, Henkel Valentine, and Manna Ahmed, and graduate student Madison Lineberger. Congratulations to all for their impressive contributions!
Thank you also to the faculty mentors, Drs. Yu "Sunny" Liu, Mitchell Fane, and Khadijah Mitchell who provided valuable feedback and support.
Mentoring the Next Generation
The Office of Academic Affairs continues to support trainees in developing leadership skills through various initiatives. The Empower Fellowship in partnership with the University of Delaware and the Summer Cancer Research Institute (SCRI) in collaboration with Hunter College and Temple University gave many of our trainees the chance to mentor undergraduates over the summer. Others contributed to the educational experience of visiting students during Discovery Days. Thank you to all for your selfless efforts!
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2024 Empower Fellowship Mentors: Ariane Rocha Bartolomeu, Xinpei Jiang, Abhinav Illendula, Jason Wasserman, Alex Dolskii, Michele Rhodes, Yingying Geng, Kelly Coutant, Jhon Steven Pasamonte, Wei-Ting Yueh, Elham Ahanin, and Rebecca Smith.
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2024 Discovery Day Mentors: Leire Arrizabalaga, Dorothy Benton, Carson Cohen, Kelly Coutant, Philip Czyzewicz III, Esmeralda Garcia-Torralba, Yingying Geng, Adria Hasan, Abhinav Illendula, Kasturee Jagirdar, Xinpei Jiang, Cosimo Lobello, Pin Lu, Nick Maskalenko, Christopher Merlo, Floriana Mulas, Takahiko Murayama, Jhon Pasamonte, Shabnam Pirestani, Chris Price, Ariane Rocha Bartolomeu, Maria Ruiz, Kathleen Schiela, Rebecca Smith, Silvia Valdes Rives, Martin Walsh, Hannah Wilson, and Delia Zumpano.
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2024 SCRI Mentors: Lucia Borriello, Carolyn Fang, Jayashri Ghosh, Xavier Grana, Ana Gamero, Seonhee Kim, Sergey Karakashev, Grace Ma, Lilian Shin-Cho, Pedro Torres-Ayuso, Kelly Whelan, and Raza Zaidi.
Key Publications of 2024
Avishekh Gautam
Postdoc Associate
Balachandran Laboratory
Gautam A., et al.
Necroptosis blockade prevents lung injury in severe influenza. Nature, 2024 https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/38600381
Nick Maskalenko
Postdoc Associate
Campbell Laboratory
Maskalenko N.A., et al. antibody-dependent cellular cytotoxicity by promoting serial killing. Cancer Immunol Res, 2024 https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/39666369
Takahiko Murayama
Postdoc Associate
Canadas Laboratory
Takahiko was recently promoted to Assistant Research Professor!
Murayama T., et al.
Targeting dhx9 triggers tumor-intrinsic interferon response and replication stress in small cell lung cancer. Cancer Discov, 2024 https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/38189443
Tesla DuBois
Graduate Student
Shannon Laboratory
DuBois T.D., et al.
Data-driven insights into neighborhood adherence to cancer prevention guidelines in Philadelphia. PLoS One, 2024 https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/39565787
Trainee Appreciation Week
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In September 2024, we kicked off our very first Trainee Appreciation Week at Fox Chase Cancer Center. Held in conjunction with the National Postdoc Association’s Postdoc Appreciation Week, we expanded the celebration to honor ALL trainees. The week featured a variety of fun and engaging events, starting with our Annual Trainee Information Meeting, followed by a scavenger hunt, raffle, and a happy hour at Gaul & Co Malt House.
Applefest
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Welcome Autumn! We celebrated the start of the fall season with a beautiful Saturday morning at Fox Chase Farm’s Applefest. Activities included painting pumpkins, melting candles, petting farm animals, and, of course, enjoying the plentiful sunshine!
Friendsgiving
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And… Friendsgiving was awesome. Many of us gathered for a potluck, Thanksgiving-themed trivia, and shared messages of gratitude.
The next events are...
Bowling Event
Saturday, March 22nd
More details coming soon!