Neil Alexis, PhD, has been named director of the Center for Environmental Medicine, Asthma and Lung Biology (CEMALB). He will take over the role on Monday, Jan. 13, from Ilona Jaspers, PhD, who has accepted a senior investigator role with the National Institutes of Health.
Dr. Alexis first joined CEMALB in 1997 and did his post-doctoral training at the EPA Human Studies Facility in Chapel Hill. He is a professor of pediatrics and has most recently served as associate director of CEMALB.
His research focuses on examining the health effects of air pollution in individuals with pre-existing airways disease and examining underlying pathophysiologic mechanisms of airways diseases such as asthma, COPD and CF. He will continue to serve as director of the Applied Immunobiology Laboratory and PI of the Human Sample Biorepository at the UNC CEMALB.
As center director, Dr. Alexis will have oversight on the Center’s extensive clinical research infrastructure as well as facilitate collaboration with researchers and clinicians throughout the UNC School of Medicine as well as investigators across the entire UNC campus.
The Center for Environmental Medicine, Asthma, and Lung Biology was launched at UNC in 1979 and is focused on researching environmental impacts on human health, particularly respiratory health. The Center’s work is closely aligned with other environmental research units on campus, including the Center for Environmental Health and Susceptibility, the Institute for the Environment and the U.S. EPA’s Public Health and Integrated Toxicology Division co-located with the Center in the Human Studies Facility located on UNC’s campus.
Thank you to Dr. Jaspers for her time leading the center. And please join us in congratulating Dr. Alexis on this exciting new leadership role.