Opportunities for
Prospective Students
— Thriving, not only surviving —
Students joining the Loughran Lab will reap numerous benefits such as co-authorship opportunities on multiple publications, support for travel to scientific meetings, enriching translational research, grant writing opportunities, and much more.
Loughran Lab Accolades at UVA
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Legend: Loughran Lab PhD and MD/PhD students bolded and underlined
Sabzevari A, Ung J, Craig JW, Jayappa KD, Pal I, Feith DJ, Loughran TP Jr, O'Connor OA. Management of T-cell malignancies: Bench-to-bedside targeting of epigenetic biology. CA Cancer J Clin. 2025 Apr 15. doi: 10.3322/caac.70001. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 40232267.
Moosic KB, Olson TL, Freijat M, Khalique S, Hamele CE, Shemo B, Boodoo J, Baker W, Khurana G, Schmachtenberg M, Duffy T, Ratan A, Darrah E, Andrade F, Jones M, Olson KC, Feith DJ, Kimpel DL, Loughran TP Jr. Activating STAT3 mutations in CD8+ T-cells correlate to serological positivity in rheumatoid arthritis. Front Immunol. 2024 Oct 21;15:1466276. doi: 10.3389/fimmu.2024.1466276. PMID: 39497832; PMCID: PMC11532115.
Ung J, Kassai M, Tan SF, Loughran TP Jr, Feith DJ, Cabot MC. The Drug Transporter P-Glycoprotein and Its Impact on Ceramide Metabolism-An Unconventional Ally in Cancer Treatment. Int J Mol Sci. 2024 Sep 11;25(18):9825. doi: 10.3390/ijms25189825. PMID: 39337312; PMCID: PMC11432138.
Casasampere M, Ung J*, Iñáñez A, Duffau C, Tsuboi K, Casas J, Tan SF, Feith DJ, Andrieu-Abadie N, Segui B, Loughran TP Jr, Abad JL, Fabrias G. A fluorogenic substrate for the detection of lipid amidases in intact cells. J Lipid Res. 2024 Feb 16:100520. doi: 10.1016/j.jlr.2024.100520. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 38369184. (*equal first author)
Paudel BB, Tan SF, Fox TE, Ung J, Golla U, Shaw JJP, Dunton W, Lee IS, Fares W, Patel S, Sharma A, Viny AD, Barth BM, Tallman MS, Cabot MC, Garrett-Bakelman FE, Levine RL, Kester M, Feith DJ, Claxton DF, Janes KA, Loughran TP. Acute myeloid leukemia stratifies as two clinically relevant sphingolipidomic subtypes. Blood Adv. 2024 Jan 3:bloodadvances.2023010535. doi: 10.1182/bloodadvances.2023010535. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 38170742.
Ung J, Tan SF*, Fox TE, Shaw JJP, Taori M, Horton BJ, Golla U, Sharma A, Szulc ZM, Wang HG, Chalfant CE, Cabot MC, Claxton DF, Loughran TP Jr, Feith DJ. Acid Ceramidase Inhibitor LCL-805 Antagonizes Akt Signaling and Promotes Iron-Dependent Cell Death in Acute Myeloid Leukemia. Cancers (Basel). 2023 Dec 15;15(24):5866. doi: 10.3390/cancers15245866. PMID: 38136410; PMCID: PMC10742122. (*equal first author)
Fisher-Wellman KH, Kassai M, Hagen JT, Neufer PD, Kester M, Loughran TP Jr, Chalfant CE, Feith DJ, Tan SF, Fox TE, Ung J, Fabrias G, Abad JL, Sharma A, Golla U, Claxton DF, Shaw JJP, Bhowmick D, Cabot MC. Simultaneous Inhibition of Ceramide Hydrolysis and Glycosylation Synergizes to Corrupt Mitochondrial Respiration and Signal Caspase Driven Cell Death in Drug-Resistant Acute Myeloid Leukemia. Cancers (Basel). 2023 Mar 21;15(6):1883. doi: 10.3390/cancers15061883. PMID: 36980769; PMCID: PMC10046858.
Feith DJ, Ung J, Elghawy O, Yue P, Turkson J. and Loughran TP Jr (2023). Strategies for Targeting the JAK - STAT Pathway in Lymphoid Malignancies. In Precision Cancer Therapies, Volume 1 - Targeting Oncogenic Drivers and Signaling Pathways in Lymphoid Malignancies (eds O.A. O'Connor, S.M. Ansell and J.F. Seymour). https://doi.org/10.1002/9781119819950.ch27
Khokhlatchev AV, Sharma A, Deering TG, Shaw JJP, Costa-Pinheiro P, Golla U, Annageldiyev C, Cabot MC, Conaway MR, Tan SF, Ung J, Feith DJ, Loughran TP Jr, Claxton DF, Fox TE, Kester M. Ceramide nanoliposomes augment the efficacy of venetoclax and cytarabine in models of acute myeloid leukemia. FASEB J. 2022 Oct;36(10):e22514. doi: 10.1096/fj.202200765R. PMID: 36106439; PMCID: PMC9544744.
Cheon H, Elghawy O, Shemo BC, Feith DJ, Loughran TP Jr. LGL leukemia patients exhibit substantial protective humoral responses following SARS-CoV-2 vaccination. EJHaem. 2022 May 31;3(3):919-923. doi: 10.1002/jha2.472. PMID: 35941882; PMCID: PMC9348025.
Fries C, Evans AG, Cheon H, Korones DN, Loughran TP Jr, Andolina JR. Allogeneic Bone Marrow Transplant as a Cure for Refractory T-Cell Large Granular Lymphocytic Leukemia in an Adolescent. J Pediatr Hematol Oncol. 2022 Aug 1;44(6):e960-e963. doi: 10.1097/MPH.0000000000002390. Epub 2021 Dec 29. PMID: 35895317.
Moosic KB, Ananth K, Andrade F, Feith DJ, Darrah E, Loughran TP Jr. Intersection Between Large Granular Lymphocyte Leukemia and Rheumatoid Arthritis. Front Oncol. 2022 May 13;12:869205. doi: 10.3389/fonc.2022.869205. PMID: 35646651; PMCID: PMC9136414.
Baer C, Kimura S, Rana MS, Kleist AB, Flerlage T, Feith DJ, Chockley P, Walter W, Meggendorfer M, Olson TL, Cheon H, Olson KC, Ratan A, Mueller ML, Foran JM, Janke LJ, Qu C, Porter SN, Pruett-Miller SM, Kalathur RC, Haferlach C, Kern W, Paietta E, Thomas PG, Babu MM, Loughran TP Jr, Iacobucci I, Haferlach T, Mullighan CG. CCL22 mutations drive natural killer cell lymphoproliferative disease by deregulating microenvironmental crosstalk. Nat Genet. 2022 May;54(5):637-648. doi: 10.1038/s41588-022-01059-2. Epub 2022 May 5. PMID: 35513723; PMCID: PMC9117519.
Ung J, Tan SF, Fox TE, Shaw JJP, Vass LR, Costa-Pinheiro P, Garrett-Bakelman FE, Keng MK, Sharma A, Claxton DF, Levine RL, Tallman MS, Cabot MC, Kester M, Feith DJ, Loughran TP Jr. Harnessing the power of sphingolipids: Prospects for acute myeloid leukemia. Blood Rev. 2022 Sep;55:100950. doi: 10.1016/j.blre.2022.100950. Epub 2022 Apr 9. PMID: 35487785.
Cheon H, Xing JC, Moosic KB, Ung J, Chan VW, Chung DS, Toro MF, Elghawy O, Wang JS, Hamele CE, Hardison RC, Olson TL, Tan SF, Feith DJ, Ratan A, Loughran TP. Genomic landscape of TCRαβ and TCRγδ T-large granular lymphocyte leukemia. Blood. 2022 May 19;139(20):3058-3072. doi: 10.1182/blood.2021013164. PMID: 35015834; PMCID: PMC9121841.
Olson TL, Cheon H, Xing JC, Olson KC, Paila U, Hamele CE, Neelamraju Y, Shemo BC, Schmachtenberg M, Sundararaman SK, Toro MF, Keller CA, Farber EA, Onengut-Gumuscu S, Garrett-Bakelman FE, Hardison RC, Feith DJ, Ratan A, Loughran TP. Frequent somatic TET2 mutations in chronic NK-LGL leukemia with distinct patterns of cytopenias. Blood. 2021 Aug 26;138(8):662-673. doi: 10.1182/blood.2020005831. PMID: 33786584; PMCID: PMC8394905.
Olson KC, Moosic KB, Jones MK, Larkin PMK, Olson TL, Toro MF, Fox TE, Feith DJ, Loughran TP Jr. Large granular lymphocyte leukemia serum and corresponding hematological parameters reveal unique cytokine and sphingolipid biomarkers and associations with STAT3 mutations. Cancer Med. 2020 Sep;9(18):6533-6549. doi: 10.1002/cam4.3246. Epub 2020 Jul 25. PMID: 32710512; PMCID: PMC7520360.
LeBlanc FR, Pearson JM, Tan SF, Cheon H, Xing JC, Dunton W, Feith DJ, Loughran TP Jr. Sphingosine kinase-2 is overexpressed in large granular lymphocyte leukaemia and promotes survival through Mcl-1. Br J Haematol. 2020 Aug;190(3):405-417. doi: 10.1111/bjh.16530. Epub 2020 Mar 2. PMID: 32124438; PMCID: PMC7415522.
Cheon H, Dziewulska KH, Moosic KB, Olson KC, Gru AA, Feith DJ, Loughran TP Jr. Advances in the Diagnosis and Treatment of Large Granular Lymphocytic Leukemia. Curr Hematol Malig Rep. 2020 Apr;15(2):103-112. doi: 10.1007/s11899-020-00565-6. PMID: 32062772; PMCID: PMC7234906.
Wang TT, Yang J, Dighe S, Schmachtenberg MW, Leigh NT, Farber E, Onengut-Gumuscu S, Feith DJ, Ratan A, Loughran TP Jr, Olson TL. Whole Genome Sequencing of Spontaneously Occurring Rat Natural Killer Large Granular Lymphocyte Leukemia Identifies JAK1 Somatic Activating Mutation. Cancers (Basel). 2020 Jan 3;12(1):126. doi: 10.3390/cancers12010126. PMID: 31947841; PMCID: PMC7017127.
Pearson JM, Tan SF, Sharma A, Annageldiyev C, Fox TE, Abad JL, Fabrias G, Desai D, Amin S, Wang HG, Cabot MC, Claxton DF, Kester M, Feith DJ, Loughran TP. Ceramide Analogue SACLAC Modulates Sphingolipid Levels and MCL-1 Splicing to Induce Apoptosis in Acute Myeloid Leukemia. Mol Cancer Res. 2020 Mar;18(3):352-363. doi: 10.1158/1541-7786.MCR-19-0619. Epub 2019 Nov 19. PMID: 31744877; PMCID: PMC7056541.
Moosic KB, Paila U, Olson KC, Dziewulska K, Wang TT, Xing JC, Ratan A, Feith DJ, Loughran TP Jr, Olson TL. Genomics of LGL leukemia and select other rare leukemia/lymphomas. Best Pract Res Clin Haematol. 2019 Sep;32(3):196-206. doi: 10.1016/j.beha.2019.06.003. Epub 2019 Jun 6. PMID: 31585620; PMCID: PMC6779335.
Olson KC, Kulling Larkin PM, Signorelli R, Hamele CE, Olson TL, Conaway MR, Feith DJ, Loughran TP Jr. Vitamin D pathway activation selectively deactivates signal transducer and activator of transcription (STAT) proteins and inflammatory cytokine production in natural killer leukemic large granular lymphocytes. Cytokine. 2018 Nov;111:551-562. doi: 10.1016/j.cyto.2018.09.016. Epub 2018 Nov 17. PMID: 30455079; PMCID: PMC6289695.
Wang TT, Yang J, Zhang Y, Zhang M, Dubois S, Conlon KC, Tagaya Y, Hamele CE, Dighe S, Olson TL, Feith DJ, Azimi N, Waldmann TA, Loughran TP Jr. IL-2 and IL-15 blockade by BNZ-1, an inhibitor of selective γ-chain cytokines, decreases leukemic T-cell viability. Leukemia. 2019 May;33(5):1243-1255. doi: 10.1038/s41375-018-0290-y. Epub 2018 Oct 23. PMID: 30353031; PMCID: PMC6478569.
Kulling PM, Olson KC, Hamele CE, Toro MF, Tan SF, Feith DJ, Loughran TP Jr. Dysregulation of the IFN-γ-STAT1 signaling pathway in a cell line model of large granular lymphocyte leukemia. PLoS One. 2018 Feb 23;13(2):e0193429. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0193429. PMID: 29474442; PMCID: PMC5825082.
Kulling PM, Olson KC, Olson TL, Hamele CE, Carter KN, Feith DJ, Loughran TP Jr. Calcitriol-mediated reduction in IFN-γ output in T cell large granular lymphocytic leukemia requires vitamin D receptor upregulation. J Steroid Biochem Mol Biol. 2018 Mar;177:140-148. doi: 10.1016/j.jsbmb.2017.07.009. Epub 2017 Jul 20. PMID: 28736298; PMCID: PMC5775933.
Tan SF, Pearson JM, Feith DJ, Loughran TP Jr. The emergence of acid ceramidase as a therapeutic target for acute myeloid leukemia. Expert Opin Ther Targets. 2017 Jun;21(6):583-590. doi: 10.1080/14728222.2017.1322065. Epub 2017 May 2. PMID: 28434262; PMCID: PMC5738025.
Kulling PM, Olson KC, Olson TL, Feith DJ, Loughran TP Jr. Vitamin D in hematological disorders and malignancies. Eur J Haematol. 2017 Mar;98(3):187-197. doi: 10.1111/ejh.12818. Epub 2016 Nov 21. PMID: 27743385; PMCID: PMC5303117.
Olson KC, Kulling PM, Olson TL, Tan SF, Rainbow RJ, Feith DJ, Loughran TP Jr. Vitamin D decreases STAT phosphorylation and inflammatory cytokine output in T-LGL leukemia. Cancer Biol Ther. 2017 May 4;18(5):290-303. doi: 10.1080/15384047.2016.1235669. Epub 2016 Oct 7. PMID: 27715403; PMCID: PMC5499847.
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Travel Awards:
2026 UVA Cancer Center Travel Award (to Madison Turner)
2024 UVA Cancer Center Travel Award (to Johnson Ung, Ariana Sabzevari, and Jisu Shin)
2023 European Alliance of Associations for Rheumatology Travel Award (to Katherine Moosic)
2023 Outstanding Oral Presentation 12th International Ceramide Conference Travel Award (to Johnson Ung and Luke Vass)
2022 NCI GMaP Region 1 North Travel Scholarship for CABTRAC Annual Retreat (to Johnson Ung)
2022 Society of Hematologic Oncology Young Investigator Program Travel Grant (to Johnson Ung)
2017 AACR Scholar-in-Training Travel Award (to Jennifer Pearson Head)
2017 ICPI Trainee Travel Award for AMP Annual Meeting (to Paige Kulling Larkin)
2017 Trainee Travel Award for 2nd International Conference on Cytokine Signaling in Cancer (to Paige Kulling Larkin)
Graduate Grants and Fellowships:
American Society for Hematology Graduate Award (to Zeguela Kamagate)
2026 Cancer Center Trainee Fellowship (to Magda Bujnowska)
NIH/NCI F31 (to Madison Turner)
“Profiling the tissue microenvironment of Large Granular Lymphocyte Leukemia through cellular dynamics and genetic signatures”
2024 Cancer Center Trainee Fellowship (to Ariana Sabzevari)
2023 Cancer Center Spatial Biology Award (to Madison Turner)
NIH/NCI F99/K00 (to Luke Vass)
"Ceramide and Cell Metabolism: Defining the Role of Sphingolipids in Modulating Mitochondrial Bioenergetics of Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia"
NIH/NCI F99/K00 (to Johnson Ung)
“Mechanisms and In Vivo Efficacy of Synergistic Acid Ceramidase and Bcl-2 Inhibition in Acute Myeloid Leukemia”
NIH/NCI F31 (to Johnson Ung)
“Targeting Acid Ceramidase and Bcl-2 in Acute Myeloid Leukemia”
NIH/NCI F30 (to Jeffrey Xing)
“Integrative network modeling of regulatory modules in Large Granular Lymphocyte Leukemia”
NIH/NCI T32 Training Grant Recipients:
Ryan Kemper
Danielle Hughes
Jayda Cavanaugh
Zeguela Kamagate
Madison Turner
Johnson Ung
Katherine Moosic
Heejin Cheon
Jeffrey Xing
Jennifer Pearson Head
Paige Kulling Larkin
Robert R. Wagner Fellowship Awardees:
Luke Vass
Johnson Ung
Heejin Cheon
Paige Kulling Larkin
Undergraduate Grants and Fellowships:
2026 Harrison Undergraduate Research Grant (to Bryan Balle)
2026 UVA College of Arts and Sciences Travel Award (to Bryan Balle)
2025 Harrison Undergraduate Research Grant (to Daniel Nguyen)
2025 Ingrassia Family Research Grant (to Daniel Nguyen)
2024 Deans’ Scholarship: Herbert Epes Fitzgerald, Jr. and Harvie W. Fitzgerald Scholarship (to Maansi Taori)
2024 Small Research and Travel Grant (to Maansi Taori)
2024 Harrison Undergraduate Research Grant (to Maansi Taori)
2024 Double Hoo Award (joint awards to Ariana Sabzevari and Daniel Nguyen)
2024 Ingrassia Family Research Grant (to Maansi Taori)
2023 Deans’ Scholarship: Randolph Preston Pillow Fund (to Maansi Taori)
2023 Ingrassia Family Research Grant (to Maansi Taori)
2023 Double Hoo Award (joint awards to Maansi Taori and Johnson Ung)
2023 College Council Spring Grant (to Maansi Taori)
Awards:
2026 Graduate Biosciences Society Student Leadership Award (to Ariana Sabzevari)
2026 Outstanding Student Award, Department of Experimental Pathology (to Luke Vass)
2025 3rd Place Flash Talk, Biochemistry and Molecular Genetics Department Retreat (to Jayda Cavanaugh)
2025 Research Computing Exhibition Third Prize (to Jisu Shin)
2025 Michael J. Peach Outstanding Graduate Student Award (to Johnson Ung)
2025 Graduate Biosciences Society Leadership Award (to Johnson Ung)
2025 Raven Award (to Johnson Ung)
2025 Outstanding Student Award, Department of Microbiology, Immunology, and Cancer Biology (to Johnson Ung)
2023 Popular Short Talk Award, Commonwealth of Virginia Cancer Research Conference (to Ariana Sabzevari and Zeguela Kamagate)
2023 Outstanding Student Award, Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Genetics (to Heejin Cheon)
2022 3rd Place Poster, Graduate Biosciences Society Symposium (to Johnson Ung)
2021 Abstract Achievement Award, American Society of Hematology Annual Meeting (to Heejin Cheon)
2021 Popular Short Talk Award, Commonwealth of Virginia Cancer Research Conference (to Johnson Ung)
2021 Avanti Award for Short Talk Presentation, 11th International Ceramide Conference (to Johnson Ung)
2020 Abstract Achievement Award, American Society of Hematology Annual Meeting (to Heejin Cheon)
2017 Best Basic Science Podium Talk, UVA Pathology Research Day (to Paige Kulling Larkin)
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2022 UVA Office of Sustainability “Shut the Sash” Winner (to Loughran Lab)
2022 Department of Medicine Excellence Award, Excellence in Research (to David J Feith, PhD)
2021 UVA Cancer Center earns “comprehensive” status under the direction of Center Director Dr. Thomas P Loughran Jr, MD
2020 Dean’s Award for Excellence in Research, Team Science Award (to Su-Fern Tan, PhD; David J Feith, PhD; Thomas P Loughran Jr, MD)
2018 American Cancer Society Clinical Research Professor Grant (to Owen A O’Connor)
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American Society of Hematology Annual Meeting
American Association for Cancer Research Annual Meeting
American Association for Cancer Research Hematologic Malignancies Conference
Society of Hematologic Oncology Annual Meeting
International Ceramide Conference
Gordon Research Conferences on Glycolipid and Sphingolipid Biology
Annual T-Cell Lymphoma Forum
Commonwealth of Virginia Cancer Research Conference
European Alliance of Associations for Rheumatology Annual European Congress of Rheumatology
Translational Research Cancer Centers Consortium Annual Meeting
Mid-Atlantic Regional Conference for Undergraduate Scholarship
FAQs
What is the Loughran Lab track record for training students?
A strong mentoring track record is an important factor when choosing a research lab for your undergraduate studies and graduate career. Over the past fifteen years, the Loughran Lab has trained sixteen PhD and MD/PhD students who have all obtained successful positions as medical practitioners, industry scientists, scientific writers, or academic researchers. In addition, the Loughran Lab has hosted over fifty undergraduates (volunteer and for-credit researchers) over the last ten years.
What are the opportunities for publishing?
We understand that co-authoring manuscripts is paramount for undergraduate and graduate trainees. Students will have numerous opportunities to co-author review articles and primary manuscripts. To this end, we believe that contributions to a manuscript’s publication warrant co-authorship for undergraduate and graduate students. In addition, graduate trainees are encouraged to write first-author reviews. Most PhD and MD/PhD students will have at least one first author review and primary article during their tenure in the lab.
Do students attend conferences?
Presenting research and networking are critical for personal and scientific growth as students. Graduate students are highly encouraged and expected to present at regional and/or national scientific conferences that are relevant to an individual’s research. The lab covers travel, lodging, and meals for trainees presenting at these conferences. For more information, check out the above list of conferences that are frequented by the lab!
What is the Loughran Lab culture like?
Choosing your research lab for your dissertation is a daunting task. We understand that choosing the most appropriate lab for you is paramount for your success as a PhD or MD/PhD student. As such, we strive to create a welcoming, fun, and enriching environment for our students, staff, and faculty members. At the benchtop, we pursue scientific research that excites us in an objective, rigorous manner without cutting corners. When we aren’t “walking our cells”, analyzing RNA-seq data, or imaging western blots, we like to go out for the occasional lab lunch, coffee, or adventure.
What are the opportunities for translational research or exposure?
Numerous research initiatives in the Loughran Lab have a strong translational focus. We have many projects that utilize primary LGL leukemia or AML patient sample genomics and/or transcriptomics data for prospective trainees interested in bioinformatics and systems biology. Similarly, many ongoing projects evaluating novel therapeutics utilize LGL leukemia or AML patient samples. Primary patient samples are especially important for our LGL leukemia work because there are only a few NK/T LGL leukemia cell lines. Indeed, many recent first-author publications from Loughran Lab trainees utilized LGL leukemia or AML patient samples. These samples are made available through the LGL Leukemia Program, UVA’s Orien Program, and collaborations through our Program Grant “Targeting Sphingolipid Metabolism for Treatment of AML.” In addition to the translational research, students may choose to shadow Dr. Loughran in the clinic as he sees patients with LGL leukemia.