Dr. Nicole DeSouza | Cancer Biology | Research Excellence Award

Dr. Nicole DeSouza is a microbiologist and immunologist specializing in cancer biology, functional genomics, and virology-based vaccine research. She earned her Ph.D. in Microbiology and Immunology from New York Medical College and previously completed her undergraduate studies in Biology with honors at the College of Mount Saint Vincent. Her research has focused on uncovering the role of long non-coding RNAs in anaplastic thyroid cancer, identifying key molecular mechanisms that influence tumor progression, metastasis, and biomarker development. She has authored several peer-reviewed publications exploring transcriptomic regulation, circular RNAs, and cancer-related gene networks. In addition to her research, Dr. DeSouza has extensive teaching experience in microbiology, immunology, anatomy, and physiology, mentoring undergraduate and medical students. Currently, her work in virology and influenza reassortant virus development contributes to advancing translational vaccine research and strengthening future strategies for infectious disease prevention.