People
Justin P. Kline, MD
Professor of Medicine. Director, Lymphoma Program.
Dr. Kline is a medical oncologist who specializes in the treatment of patients with Hodgkin and non-Hodgkin lymphoma, including stem cell transplantation and CAR T cell therapy. He has expertise in the development and use of immunotherapy, and his lab research is focused on overcoming immune evasion pathways activated in blood cancers and on improving the effectiveness of immune-based treatments for people with lymphoma.
Xiufen Chen, PhD
Dr. Chen received her PhD degree at China Agricultural University. She joined Kline lab@Uchicago since 2010 as postdoc and is now a Staff Scientist. Dr. Chen generated the first murine leukemia native antigen specific TCR transgenic mice called Tg101. She is currently investigating the leukemia specific T cell (TCRtg101) fate in the disease bearing mice and the mechanism beyond. Dr. Chen is also actively involved projects improving the effect human lymphoma immunotherapies in the lab.
Lishi Xie, PhD
Dr. Xie received his PhD in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology from the Institute of Biophysics, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences in 2011. He joined Kline lab as a Research Professional in 2021. He is currently investigating the mechanisms of resistance to cellular therapy, specifically focusing on improving the effectiveness of CD19 targeting CAR-T cell therapy for lymphoma patients. With his background in molecular biology and stem cell, Lishi is passionate about building the ultimate antitumor T cells through cellular engineering toward stemness.
Alexandra Rojek, MD
Alexandra is a senior clinical fellow in hematology/oncology, focusing on lymphoma and cellular therapies. She is interested in the application of cellular therapies for patients with aggressive lymphoma clinically, and is working in the lab on CAR T-cell optimization and translational studies in collaboration with ongoing clinical work. Outside of lab, she enjoys running by the lake, exploring the city with friends, and traveling to visit friends in new places when time allows!
Joanna Chorazeczewski, MHS
Joanna is a PhD student in the Committee on Immunology. She received her B.S. from Loyola University Chicago before getting a Master of Health Science from Johns Hopkins University. Currently, Joanna is interested in improving diffuse large B cell lymphoma therapies including CAR T cell therapy by studying immunological mechanisms such as cytotoxic killing. Outside of the lab, Joanna enjoys martial arts, traveling, and picking up random hobbies.
Sidney Wang, PharmD, MS
Sidney is a PhD student in the Committee on Cancer Biology. Her passion in improving lives of patients through better healthcare started from her clinical work as a pharmacist. She further pursued a master’s degree at the University of Pennsylvania, where she joined Dr. Carl June’s Lab to develop CAR T cell therapy. Now, she is studying T cell dysfunction and exhaustion in cancers with a focus on improving immunotherapies for patients with diffuse large B cell lymphoma. Outside of lab, she enjoys reading, cooking and working out.
Nick Zolnerowich, BS
Nick is a PhD student in the Committee on Cancer Biology. He received his B.S. from the University of Maryland: Baltimore County before working as a post-bacc fellow at the NCI. Currently, he is interested in understanding how diffuse large B cell lymphomas enforce a cold immune environment, enabling their resistance to immunotherapy. Outside of the lab, he enjoys cooking, hiking, and traveling.
Aditi Aryal, BA
Aditi Aryal is a PhD student in the Committee on Immunology. She got her undergraduate degree in Biochemistry from Smith College. Her project in the lab intends to better understand the mechanism of STING activation in dendritic cells by necrotic tumor DNA. Outside the lab, she likes to cook good meals, be near the lake and play mario kart with smart steering always on.
Alan Cooper, BS
Alan is a research technician and recent UChicago graduate, where he pursued a major in biology and a minor in data science. He is currently using computational techniques to better understand the degree of immune infiltration in DLBCL. Separately, he is interested in using transcriptional data to identify subsets of DLBCLs likely to respond to targeted therapies. Outside of the lab, he enjoys rock climbing and volunteering in the hospital.
Alumni
Sravya Tumuluru, PhD — Postdoc, Weill Cornell (Ari Melnick lab)
Jovian Yu, MD, MS — Associate Medical Director, Abbvie
Brendan MacNabb, PhD — Postdoc, Caltech (Ellen Rothenberg lab)
James Godfrey, MD — Assistant Professor, City of Hope
Michael Leukam, MD — Instructor, Beth Israel Deaconess
Anne Albright, BS – Medical Student, Emory School of Medicine
Doug Kline, PhD — Senior Scientist, Abbvie
Emily Curran, MD — Assistant Professor, University of Cincinnati
Nicole Sunseri, MD, PhD — FDA
