Dr. Cheryl A. Winkler SAIC-Frederick, Frederick National Laboratory for Cancer Research, USA

Dr. Cheryl Winkler investigates the genetic correlates of complex human diseases, with a focus on HIV and AIDS, cancers caused by viral infections, and chronic kidney disease. She was a member of the research team that discovered the CCR5 32 base pair deletion and its strong affect on restricting HIV... read moreacquisition and delaying progression to AIDS.
Dr. Winkler and her colleagues also identified the Chromosome 22 region association with kidney disease in people of African ancestry. This was a breakthrough discovery in understanding the genetic basis of a major health disparity and in opening new avenues of research for chronic kidney disease affecting 13% of the USA population. Dr. Winkler received her undergraduate degree in English and Biology at the University of New York, Albany and her graduate degrees at the University of Maryland, College Park for her research conducted at the National Cancer Institute.