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 
and LinkedIn profile .
Layla Esposito, Ph.D.
Dr. Esposito’s original goal for her future was to become an Air Force fighter jet pilot. However, she felt discouraged by those outside her family for wanting to pursue a traditionally male career. Thanks to a high school guidance counselor’s mentoring, she found a new goal in mental and emotional health.
Anna Dorothea Senft, M.Sc., Ph.D.
Dr. Senft credits teachers who were “kind, fun, and encouraging,” for fostering her love of biology, particularly genetics and evolution, and for providing the experiences that led her to research as a career.
Adriana Golding, Ph.D.
Dr. Golding pursued both cell biology and dance during her undergraduate studies, noting the many parallels between science and the arts. “You need to be a creative person to think outside of the box and discover something new.” She also credits her family and strong examples of female leadership throughout her childhood for helping her recognize her capabilities.
Elizabeth DeVilbiss, Ph.D., M.P.H., M.S.
Dr. DeVilbiss studies dietary and lifestyle factors that affect fertility and pregnancy complications. She’s also interested in identifying and using appropriate machine-learning methods to address big-picture research questions.
Kathy Mann Koepke, Ph.D.
Dr. Kathy Mann Koepke’s lifelong interest in the brain and encouragement from a great uncle when she was a child led her to pursue studies in psychology, computer science, and neurobiology.
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.
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