The Department of Medicine is thrilled and honored to announce the promotion of faculty member Weiqin Lu, Ph.D, to Associate Professor of Medicine with tenure in the Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology.
Dr. Weiqin Lu received her Ph.D. degree from The University of Texas, Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences in Houston in 2008. After completing her postdoctoral training at MD Anderson Cancer Center in 2011, she was promoted to Instructor.
In 2016, Dr. Lu was recruited to the Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Department of Medicine at Stony Brook University as a Tenure-track Assistant Professor. Her research aims to develop a deep understanding of the molecular mechanisms underlying pancreatitis and pancreatic cancer. Her current research focuses on unraveling the mechanisms underlying how obesity and inflammation promote oncogenic KRAS-mediated pancreatic cancer initiation and development. Specifically, she is investigating: (1) why mice harboring oncogenic Kras mutations in the pancreas are vulnerable to the development of pancreatic cancer upon high-fat diet challenge. (2) the role of ROS in the synergistic interaction between inflammation and oncogenic KRAS in promoting pancreatic cancer initiation and development. (3) the metabolic alterations that occur in the progression from pancreatitis to pancreatic cancer.
Dr. Lu has developed a frontier research program to understand how pancreatic cancer risk factors promote the development of pancreatic cancer. She has published a number of papers in top peer-reviewed journals and her innovative and impactful research projects have been well recognized by national top funding agencies. As a principal investigator, she not only received several intramural pilot grants from the Department of Medicine at Stony Brook University, but also successfully secured several extramural funds, including a high-priority R56 grant and two R01 grants from the National Institutes of Health, as well as an Idea Award from the Department of Defense.
Dr. Lu has successfully trained many highly productive students and postdoctoral fellows. She has taught several research-orientated classes and provided her students with valuable hands-on opportunities. In addition, Dr. Lu was invited to present her work in international and national meetings, review grants for several NIH study sections, review manuscripts for numerous prestigious journals, and serve in professional societies.
It is with a great sense of pride and enthusiasm that we make this important announcement. Please join us in congratulating Dr. Lu on her outstanding contributions to her division, our department and our institution. We are honored to have her as a faculty member in the Department of Medicine.
