One of the world’s most admired trailblazers, Dr. Glimcher is celebrated for her research discoveries in the fields of transcriptional regulation, lymphocyte differentiation, immunology, and osteobiology. She has been influential in defining the molecular factors, including c-Maf and T-bet transcription factors, that govern immune cell fate and differentiation, particularly with regards to lymphocyte maturation and function. Her work has demonstrated that T-bet is able to function as a master regulator of cell fate and cytokine production by modulating TH1 differentiation and interferon-gamma gene expression, independent of other factors. This finding has since led to the establishment of various mouse models and subsequent discoveries that mutations associated with the T-bet gene are linked to the pathogenesis of asthma as well as the long-term inflammatory condition, ulcerative colitis, which has been shown to possess the potential to progress to colorectal cancer.
Dr. Glimcher is also credited with defining that Schnurri-3 can transcriptionally regulate osteoblast function, for discovering the natural killer cell-associated marker Nk1.1, and for discovering the transcription factor XBP1 (X-Box Binding Protein 1), which is required for plasma cell differentiation and cellular stress responses. She has since demonstrated in mouse models of ovarian cancer that XBP1 plays an important role as a regulator of anti-tumor immune responses, which has implications for the development of novel immunotherapies.
Aside from her research efforts, Dr. Glimcher has been a staunch proponent of improved access to care, health policy, and medical education, while simultaneously serving as a pioneering mentor and role model for cancer research trainees and for all women in science. Notably, she was the first female to be appointed as dean of Weill Cornell Medical College in New York and is the first female President and Chief Executive Officer of Dana-Farber Cancer Institute in Boston.
Career Highlights
2017: Award for Distinguished Research in the Biomedical Sciences, Association of American Medical Colleges, Washington, D.C.
2017 Marion Spencer Fay Award, Drexel University College of Medicine, Institute for Women’s Health and Leadership, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
2017 George M. Kober Medal Award, Association of American Physicians, Belleville, Michigan
2014 L’Oréal-UNESCO Award for Women in Science
2014 Margaret Kripke Legend Award, University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas
2013 Advancing Women in Science and Medicine Award for Excellence, Feinstein Institute for Medical Research, Manhasset, New York
2012 Dr. Luis Federico Leloir Prize of International Cooperation in Science, Technology and Innovation, Argentina Ministry of Science, Technology and Productive Innovation, Buenos Aires, Argentina
2012 William B. Coley Award for Distinguished Research in Basic and Tumor Immunology, Cancer Research Institute, New York, New York
2008 Excellence in Mentoring Award, American Association of Immunologists, Minneapolis, Minnesota
2006 Huang Meritorious Career Award, American Association of Immunologists, Minneapolis, Minnesota
2006 Senior Scholar Award, American Association of University Women, Washington, D.C.
2006 Dean’s Award for Leadership in the Advancement of Women Faculty, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts
2002 Elected Member, National Academy of Sciences, Washington, D.C.
1998 Elected Member, National Academy of Medicine, Washington, D.C.
1996 Elected Fellow, American Academy of Arts and Sciences, Cambridge, Massachusetts