Scientist Michael R. Elliott, Ph.D., joins Department of Microbiology and Immunology at Whiddon College of Medicine
MOBILE, Alabama (March 13, 2024) -- Michael R. Elliott, Ph.D., recently joined the faculty of the Frederick P. Whiddon College of Medicine as an associate professor in the Department of Microbiology and Immunology.
“Dr. Elliott is an excellent addition to our faculty, bringing expertise in immunology that will strengthen the research and teaching mission of the University of South Alabama and USA Health,” said Kevin R. Macaluso, Ph.D., professor and Locke Distinguished Chair of Microbiology and Immunology at the Whiddon College of Medicine.
He most recently served as an associate professor of microbiology, immunology, and cancer biology at the University of Virginia School of Medicine. He will continue as an adjunct associate professor there. Elliott has received numerous awards, and his research has been and continues to be funded by federal grants.
With a new lab at the USA Health Mitchell Cancer Institute, his research interests focus on innate immunity, macrophage biology, and cancer immunotherapy.
Macrophages are a phenotypically diverse, multifunctional population of immune cells found in every tissue in the body that play key roles in maintaining normal tissue function and immune defense against pathogens. The goal of Elliott’s work is to understand, at a mechanistic level, the function of tissue-resident macrophages and other myeloid populations as effectors of innate immunity in cancer immunotherapy, acute and chronic inflammation, aging, and microbial infection.
“Our work focuses on several fundamental macrophage effector mechanisms, including motility, phagocytosis, and cytokine/chemokine responses to PAMPs and DAMPs,” he said. “Through our ongoing collaborations with multiple basic and clinical research labs, we ultimately seek to translate our research efforts into new disease therapies that harness the powerful immune-regulating properties of macrophages.”
Elliott received his Baccalaureate degree from Wake Forest University and his Ph.D. from the Wake Forest University School of Medicine.
