Melody Nguyen

Program: Molecular Genetics and Genomics

Current advisor: Jonathan R. Brestoff, MD, PhD, MPH

Undergraduate university: Johns Hopkins University, 2020

Enrollment year: 2023

Research summary
I study how obesity disrupts protective marginal zone B cell function and whether mitochondrial uptake restores their activation and survival.

Obesity promotes chronic inflammation and immune dysfunction that contribute to cardiovascular and metabolic disease. Marginal zone B (MZB) cells are a specialized population of splenic B cells that rapidly respond to blood-borne pathogens. MZBs also help protect against atherosclerosis by supporting the production of natural IgM antibodies against oxidation-specific epitopes. These antibodies recognize oxidized lipids, promoting their clearance and limiting inflammatory signaling. My research investigates how obesity alters MZB-cell abundance and function, with a particular focus on how mitochondrial uptake regulates MZB-cell activation. This work may uncover new mechanisms linking immune-cell metabolism to cardiovascular disease and identify strategies for preserving protective B-cell responses during obesity.

Graduate publications
Shchukina I, Rodriguez-Hernandez CJ, Ruiz HS, Kleverov M, Mintz RL, Mineura K, Gunawardana SC, Hsiung S, Bhattarai B, Vachova V, Kossl J, Mogilenko DA, Field RL, Nguyen TH, Alayo QA, Huckstep CG, Vander Wielen B, Brestoff JR, Stewart SA, Piston DW, Egawa T, Kreisel D, Randolph GJ, Artyomov MN. 2026 Inflammaging in aged tissues drives remodeling of the CD8+ T cell compartment. Cell Rep, 45(5):117303. PMCID:

Masood MF, Rahimi M, Mikami R, Freyaldenhoven MK, Waken RJ, Fischer I, Braasch M, Weerasooriya M, Haynes J, Tran Nguyen NH, Kotkar K, Damiano RJ Jr, Kaneko T, Pawale A. 2026 Impact of prolonged microaxial flow pump support on outcomes in heart transplantation: A single-center experience. JTCVS Open, 30():101616. PMCID: PMC13131136

Nguyen TH, Weerasooiya M, Zayed M, Freyaldenhoven MK, Haynes JB, Pawale A, Fischer I, Kotkar K, Masood MF. 2025 Prevalence of Ascending Aortic Dilation in Patients with Heart Failure. , ():