Principal Investigator

Patrick Brunner, MD, MSc

Director of the Cutaneous Lymphoma Clinic | Associate Professor of Dermatology | The Kimberly and Eric J. Waldman Department of Dermatology at Mount Sinai

Faculty Profile

Dr. Brunner obtained his MD degree from the Medical University of Vienna, Austria. He completed his residency in Dermatology at the Department of Dermatology at the Medical University of Vienna (General Hospital Vienna), under the mentorship of Dr. Georg Stingl. Afterwards, Dr. Brunner joined the Laboratory for Investigative Dermatology at The Rockefeller University in New York, obtaining a Master’s Degree in Clinical and Translational Sciences, and performed research on atopic dermatitis under the mentorship of Drs. Emma Guttman and James G. Krueger. In 2018, he started his own research group at the Medical University of Vienna, Austria, focusing on cutaneous immunobiology of chronic inflammatory skin diseases and primary cutaneous lymphomas, to better understand how individual immune cells orchestrate skin inflammation in benign and malignant conditions. In 2021, he joined the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai as Associate Professor of Dermatology and Director of the Cutaneous Lymphoma Clinic at the The Kimberly and Eric J. Waldman Department of Dermatology.

As a clinician scientist with a strong interest in skin immunology, he is seeing patients suffering from primary cutaneous immune cell malignancies, and also has a general interest in chronic inflammatory skin diseases such as vitiligo, atopic dermatitis, hidradenitis as well as scarring and non-scarring alopecias. His research is aimed at a better understanding of the tumor immunobiology in cutaneous lymphomas, and to develop better treatment modalities for this patient population.

Lab Members

Emry Cohenour, MS

Associate Researcher

Emry Cohenour is a research associate. She obtained a BS in Biochemistry and a MS in Biological Sciences. After graduating with an MS, Emry joined the Department of Immunobiology at Yale University as a Postgraduate Research Fellow to investigate the function of the post-transcriptional modification, N6-methyladenosine (m6A), in immune system functions. When not in the lab, Emry enjoys spending time with friends and family, Pilates, and cooking. 

Sumanth Chennareddy

Medical Student

Sumanth is a MD/MSCR candidate at the Icahn School of Medicine who is currently pursuing his MS in clinical research in the Brunner Lab. Prior to Mount Sinai, Sumanth majored in Neuroscience and minored in Spanish at Vanderbilt University, where he graduated first in his class and received the prestigious Founder’s Medal. Sumanth’s research interests include the application of next generation sequencing methods to explore the immune microenvironment of chronic inflammatory skin diseases as well as cutaneous T-cell lymphomas (CTCLs). Outside of the lab, Sumanth enjoys playing tennis, swimming, listening to Bollywood music, and exploring new rooftops in the city.

Lisa Szmolyan

Visiting Researcher

Lisa graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Medical Sciences from Sigmund Freud Private University in Vienna and is currently pursuing her MD there. In parallel Lisa is studying mathematics at the University of Vienna. Her vision is to do research at the interface of medicine, mathematics and data science. At the Brunner lab, she is working on her master’s thesis on differences in the immune microenvironment of primary cutaneous T-cell and B-cell lymphomas. Outside of work, Lisa enjoys climbing, painting, reading and spending time with her friends and family.

Lauren Port

Medical Student

Lauren is an MD candidate at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai. She graduated in 2023 with a Bachelor of Arts in Hispanic Studies with Honors from Brown University and is very passionate about the intersection of Spanish language and culture and Medicine. Lauren has worked as a Spanish Interpreter in both Rhode Island and New York and has spent the past summers working in the Dominican Republic running day camps and workshops for children and adults with diabetes. Outside of school, Lauren loves to exercise, travel, and to explore New York City and spend time with family and friends. 

Shiv Patel

Medical Student

Shiv is an MD candidate at the Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine conducting bioinformatics research in the Brunner Lab. Originally from North Carolina, Shiv completed his undergraduate studies at Northwestern University, where he studied psychology and data science as part of the Honors Program in Medical Education. Leveraging his prior background in data science, he is interested in the applications of technology in clinical practice. In his free time, Shiv also enjoys taking part in pickleball, honing new skills as a budding photographer, and exploring novel culinary experiences.

Shannon Meledathu

Medical Student

Shannon is an MD candidate at the Hackensack Meridian School of Medicine conducting clinical and basic science research in the Brunner Lab. She graduated in 2020 with a Bachelor of Science in Exercise Science from the School of Arts and Sciences Honors Program at Rutgers University. Her current interests lie in providing multidiscinplinary care to patients through research in cutaneous lymphomas and pigmentation disorders. Outside of the lab, Shannon enjoys following track and field, dancing, and spending time with family and friends.

Grace Christensen, MS

Associate Researcher

Grace Christensen has a background in molecular biology and marine ecology. She obtained her MS in Biology using environmental DNA to investigate the seasonality of manta rays. During her undergraduate years, she worked as a researcher in a genetics laboratory. Outside of work, Grace enjoys spending time in/around the ocean, hiking, playing with her dog, and spending time with her friends and family. 

Malini Naidu

Associate Researcher

Malini graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in Contemplative Studies and English Nonfiction Writing from Brown University in 2021. She is a prospective medical student interested in dermatology. In her free time, she enjoys yoga, cooking, and spending time with family and friends. 

Nicole Golob Schwarzl

Visiting Researcher

Nicole did her Master’s in Biochemistry and Molecular Biomedicine at the Technical University of Graz, Austria. After staying abroad at the Erasmus Hogeschool, Brussels, Belgium, and the National Institute of Health, Washington, USA, she started her PhD in Molecular Medicine and Inflammation at the Medical University Graz, Austria. During her PhD, she investigated the role of PI3K/AKT/mTOR pathway members and eIFs in hepatocellular carcinoma and colorectal cancer at the Department of Pathology at the Medical University Graz, Austria. Since December 2018, she has been working at the Department of Dermatology and Venerology at the Medical University of Graz, Austria, studying the potential role of eukaryotic translation initiation factors (eIFs) as therapeutic targets in psoriasis. Outside of the lab, she enjoys running, yoga, cooking, and spending time with family and friends.

Alumni

John Ruggiero

Associate Researcher

John graduated from Elon University in the spring of 2023 with a BS in Biology and a minor in statistics. A future goal of his is to obtain a PhD in cancer biology. He is interested in furthering our understanding of cellular signaling pathways in cancer, and how we can use spatial transcriptomics to do so. He is also interested in the use of single cell genomics, specifically the use of single cell RNA sequencing to provide a detailed look at what is going on in a tumor microenvironment at a single cell level. Hobbies outside of research include exercise, spending time with nature, trying new foods and reading.

Sarah Packer

Clinical Research Coordinator

Sarah graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Neuroscience with Honors from Brown University in 2023. She also completed a premedical curriculum and significant coursework in Hispanic Studies. She is a prospective medical student hoping to matriculate in 2024. She has previously worked in several Neuroscience labs considering addiction and neurodegenerative disorders respectively. She is excited to begin more clinical research in the realm of dermatology — a specialty she has always had a strong interest in. Outside of the lab, Sarah enjoys weightlifting, running, hot yoga, documentaries, volunteering and skincare.

Sophia Tran

Clinical Research Coordinator

Sophia graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Biomedical Engineering from the New Jersey Institute of Technology in 2022. She is a prospective medical student interested in learning more about clinical dermatology, after being an esthetician for the past year. Outside of work, Sophia like cooking, traveling, and learning how to surf.