In 2019, the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD) launched its Women in Science series to highlight the exceptional contributions of its female researchers.
Veronica Gomez-Lobo, M.D.
Dr. Gomez-Lobo is director of Pediatric and Adolescent Gynecology in NICHD’s Division of Intramural Research.
Judith Kassis, Ph.D.
Dr. Kassis leads the Section on Gene Expression and is Head of the Genetics and Epigenetics of Development Affinity Group in NICHD’s Division of Intramural Research.
Claire Le Pichon, Ph.D.
Dr. Le Pichon leads the Unit on the Development of Neurodegeneration in NICHD’s Division of Intramural Research.
Una Grewal, Ph.D., M.P.H.
Dr. Grewal is the Director of the Division of Population Health Research within NICHD’s Division of Intramural Research.
Alison Cernich, Ph.D.
Dr. Cernich is the Deputy Director of NICHD.
Diana Bianchi, M.D.
Dr. Bianchi is the Director of NICHD.
Mary Dasso, Ph.D.
Dr. Dasso leads NICHD’s Section on Cell Cycle Regulation and serves as an associate scientific director in the Division of Intramural Research (DIR).
Gisela Storz, Ph.D.
Dr. Storz is a senior investigator in NICHD’s Section on Environmental Gene Regulation and an associate scientific director in DIR.
Keiko Ozato, Ph.D.
Dr. Ozato is a senior investigator in the Section on Molecular Genetics of Immunity.
In addition to these full profiles, we also post regularly to our #WomenInScience series on our Instagram feed 
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Katherine Grantz, M.D., M.S.
Dr. Katherine Grantz was the first in her family to express an interest in medicine, and her parents instilled confidence in her at a young age.
Rachel Cosby, Ph.D.
Dr. Rachel Cosby is an evolutionary biologist who studies how “jumping genes” called transposons generate regulatory networks across different species.
Jessica Gleason, Ph.D., M.P.H.
Dr. Jessica Gleason always had an affinity for science but did not always know what she wanted to do. After finding inspiration in a book she had read in high school about “disease detectives,” she initially decided to pursue pre-med studies. However, she realized later that she was really interested in epidemiology.
Diana Elizondo, Ph.D.
Dr. Diana Elizondo’s original plans to attend medical school changed when she started her undergraduate studies in biology and learned she loved research even more than the idea of a medical career.
Joyce Thompson, Ph.D., M.Sc.
Dr. Joyce Thompson’s pathway to research began with studying for her bachelor’s degree in life sciences, which led her to doing bench work, like cloning, in a cancer lab and realizing how much she enjoyed the research. After that, she knew she one day wanted to lead her own laboratory.
Jenny Panlilio, Ph.D., M.A.
Dr. Jenny Panlilio found her way to research via a path that began during her childhood in the Philippines, where she fell in love with the ocean and coral reef ecosystems. This led to a deeper understanding of how human health and diseases have a connection to environmental conditions.
Sarah Sheppard, M.D., Ph.D., MSTR
Dr. Sarah Sheppard learned from her grandparents’ examples that she wanted to be a doctor and was inspired by her grandfather’s participation in a clinical trial that she wanted to pursue research.
Triesta Fowler, M.D.
Dr. Triesta Fowler is the director of communications and outreach for the Office of Education within NICHD’s Division of Intramural Research. She has been committed to addressing health disparities and workforce diversity throughout her career.
Erin Walsh, Ph.D.
Dr. Erin Walsh is the director of the Office of Education within NICHD’s Division of Intramural Research.
Katherine W. Rogers, Ph.D.
Dr. Katherine Rogers, a tenure-track investigator who leads the Unit on Developmental Signaling at NICHD, credits a casual comment to an undergraduate advisor for getting her foot in the door of a scientific career.
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