Research
The Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathology has both strong basic and clinical research components. It has consistently been ranked among the top pathology departments in the United States in National Institutes of Health (NIH) grant funding.
The department has been very effective in promoting these efforts by working in partnership with Medical School-wide centers. Through these partnerships, the department has strengthened its own research base while making major contributions to the research enterprise of the institution as a whole. We are fundamentally committed to building on these productive interactions and promoting the research opportunities they afford.
*University of Minnesota graduate students who are hired as Graduate Assistants in the Department of Laboratory Medicine & Pathology are paid a minimum hourly rate of $27.95.*
Cancer Biology
The department has a close working relationship with the University of Minnesota's Masonic Cancer Center, an NCI-designated Comprehensive Cancer Center. Many of the department's faculty play major leadership roles in the Cancer Center: Kaylee Schwertfeger, PhD – Cellular Mechanisms Program Co-Leader, Yoji Shimizu, PhD – Immunology Program co-leader, Chris Pennell – Associate Director, Training and Education and Director of the Flow Cytometry Shared Resource, Michael Farrar, PhD – Co-Leader Hematologic Malignancy Translational Working Group, Scott Dehm, PhD – Co-Leader Prostate and Urologic Cancer Translational Working Group and Betsy Hirsch, PhD - Cytogenomics Shared Resource director.
Cardiovascular, Renal Disease & Diabetes
The department’s research in cardiovascular disease and diabetes is conducted mainly through the Advanced Research and Diagnostic Laboratory (ARDL). ARDL is a distinguished central biochemical laboratory that manages routine and specialized clinical testing requests including specimen procurement and sample storage for more than a hundred active projects worldwide. ARDL has served as the central lab for some of the National Institute of Health's largest multi-center, longitudinal studies of cardiovascular disease and diabetes.
Immunology
The department has a long history of immunology research. In 1995, department faculty established the Medical School-wide Center for Immunology. The Center has over eighty members across the Medical School, College of Veterinary Medicine, and the Department of Biomedical Engineering. Of this multi-departmental group, nine are members of Laboratory Medicine and Pathology. Kristin Hogquist, PhD and National Academy of Science Member is associate director of the center.
Neuroscience
The neuroscience group within the department utilizes a variety of cellular and genetic approaches, including the genomic engineering of laboratory animals, to examine mechanisms of neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease, and ataxias. Department faculty members also work in the Medical School-wide Institute for Translational Neuroscience (ITN), a presidential initiative to promote the transfer of discoveries in the basic neurosciences to clinical practice. Harry Orr, PhD and Regents Professor, serves as Director of ITN.
Commitment to Research Ethics
We are committed to protecting research participants, upholding ethical standards, and improving our practice at every step of our work.