Pamela Rosato, PhD
Principal Investigator
Pam grew up in Massachusetts and received her B.S. from The College of William & Mary in 2008. There, her time in the lab of Dr. Patty Zwollo studying B cells in rainbow trout sparked her interest in immunology. She then spent a year at the Ragon Institute in Boston as a technician before joining the Molecular & Cellular Biology graduate program at Dartmouth. Pam earned her Ph.D. from the lab of Dr. David Leib where she studied neuronal immunity to herpes simplex virus, and her curiosity in immune control of viral infections took off. Excited by the discovery of tissue resident memory T cells and their implication in viral immunity, she went on to train as a postdoc with Dr. David Masopust at the University of Minnesota. Pam returned to Dartmouth as an Assistant Professor in 2020 where her labs studies T cell immunity to viruses in the brain and tumors. Outside of the lab Pam loves to run, camp and hike with her husband, Alex, and dogs.
Shawn Musial
PhD Graduate Student
I grew up in a small town in Connecticut and received my B.S. in Microbiology from The University of Vermont in 2018. During that time, I worked in the lab of Dr. Jonathan Boyson, primarily studying the role of SLAM receptors in gdT cell development and function. It was there that I became immersed in the world of immunology. Following graduation, I continued my research in the Boyson lab as a technician, where I branched into working with NKT cells and ILCs. I later entered the Molecular and Cellular Biology program at Dartmouth in 2019, where I then joined the Rosato lab. My interests lie in unpacking the tissue resident memory T cell response network within the brain and associated tumors. When I’m not in lab, I enjoy hiking and playing frisbee with friends. When there’s snow on the ground, there’s a very good chance you’ll find me skiing.
Sierra Kleist
PhD Graduate Student
Sierra grew up in Wisconsin and received her B.S. in Microbiology from the University of Wisconsin - Eau Claire in 2019. During undergrad, she worked in the lab of Dr. Daniel Herman, where she studied soil-derived antibiotic-producing bacteria. Following graduation, Sierra’s interest in immunology grew through a research internship at the Mayo Clinic. There, in Dr. Kathryn Knoop’s lab, she studied the role of gut-residing bacteria on the development of the immune system. Sierra started her graduate studies at Dartmouth in the fall of 2020, and joined the Rosato lab for her thesis. She is interested in studying the role of resident memory T cells in brain tumors, and how they may be utilized as an immunotherapy. Outside of the lab, Sierra loves to spend time outdoors hiking, skiing, and exploring New England. She is currently trying to hike all of New Hampshire’s 4000 footers!
Hanna Degefu
PhD Graduate Student
Jordan Isaacs
PhD Graduate Student
Jordan received her B.A in Neuroscience and Economics from Smith College, where she played soccer and spent a semester abroad at the University of Oxford. Before starting graduate school, she worked in the laboratory of Dr. John Babich identifying affinity of radiolabeled drugs against prostate cancer antigens. The following summer, she interned in the Quantitative Biology Group at Eli Lilly assessing binding interactions of Alzheimer’s associated proteins and potency of bispecific T cell engagers in cancer. Jordan started her graduate work at Dartmouth in 2018, where she initially studied the anti-tumor effects of a novel nuclear hormone receptor agonist in glioblastoma. In Dr. Rosato’s laboratory, her project focuses on understanding the role of CD39 in T cell immunity to brain tumors. Jordan is president of the Dartmouth Biotechnology Club but has no clue what she plans to do after graduation. When not in lab, Jordan loves to spend time with her family, cook, play soccer, and travel.
Tiffany Chen
PhD graduate student
Originally from Florida, Tiffany graduated from Princeton University in 2020, receiving her BA in Molecular Biology and minor in Neuroscience. During her time there, her thesis work focused on autism, the cerebellum, and mouse learning behaviors in the Wang Lab. After graduating, her interest in neuroimmunology grew upon joining the Okada Lab at UCSF as a research technician, focusing on CAR-T cell immunotherapies for glioblastoma. In the Rosato Lab, her work seeks to understand how resident memory T cells in the brain impact the progression of Alzheimer's disease. Outside the lab, Tiffany enjoys dog-spotting (in the hopes of one day having one of her own), baking, taekwondo, and drawing.
Myles Ford
Research Assistant I
Myles grew up in Lansdowne, Pennsylvania and is a recent graduate from the Freddye T. Davy Honors College at Hampton University, in Hampton Virginia where he received his B.S. in Biology. Prior to working in this lab, he did some microbiology, genomic and oncological research and he intends to later become a physician-scientist. When not in lab or studying, Myles occasionally enjoys: soccer, running, playing video games, picking up odd hobbies, nerd things and making art. "Myles is one of the coolest people I know and just a gift to the lab"-Everyone but Shawn
Arielle Sclar
PhD Graduate Student
Joint with Skorput Lab
Arielle grew up in Massachusetts and received her B.S. in Neuroscience and minor in Religious Studies from Lafayette College in 2022. There, she worked in the lab of Dr. Tamara Stawicki studying the roles of cilia genes in sensory hair cell regeneration in zebrafish. During her undergraduate studies she also spent time in the lab of Dr. Rosalind Segal at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute studying the pediatric brain tumor microenvironment. Arielle entered the IND program at Dartmouth in 2022, and joined the Skorput and Rosato labs for her thesis. She is interested in studying neuro-immune interactions in ocular chronic pain. Outside of lab, Arielle loves to run, hike, surf, and spend time with her family.
Alex Stanford
Undergraduate Researcher and E.E. Just Fellow
Alex is from Cary, North Carolina, and is a rising junior at Dartmouth. He is an EE Just Fellow double majoring in Biology and AAAS and plans to pursue a Ph.D. after graduation. His interest in immunology grew from a broader interest in preventing viral diseases and virally induced cancers. His research focuses on phenotyping microglial cells and profiling their interactions with resident memory T cells in the brain. In his free time, he enjoys repurposing clothing, writing poetry/music, and drawing.
Sarah Berman
Undergraduate Researcher
Sarah is from San Francisco, California, and is a freshman at Dartmouth. She is a biology major on the pre-med/pre-PhD path. Her interest in immunology started with an internship at Sutro Biopharma, an immuno-oncology startup in South San Francisco. Her work in the laboratory is focused on phenotyping viral T cells localized to brain tumors. Outside of the lab, you can find her reading, drawing, and going on runs.
Gemma Mora
Undergraduate Researcher
ASURE program
Brady and Finn
Lab morale
