Biomedical Sciences

Scientists at National Laboratories

Ivona Aksentijević, M.D.

• Position: Staff Scientist, Department of Health and Human Services, Genetics and Genomics Branch, National Institutes of Health, USA.
• Research areas: inflammatory biology, complex disease genetics.
• Education: M.D. University of Belgrade, Belgrade.

Dr. Olgica Bakajin

• Position: Staff Scientist, Physical and Life Sciences Directorate, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, USA.
• Research areas: experimental soft condensed matter physics, nanoscience and nanotechnology especially as applied to molecular transport through structures commensurate with molecular size, molecular separation methods, microfluidics, protein folding kinetics, applications of micro and nanotechnology to biosecurity and medicine.
• Education: Ph.D. Princeton University, USA; B.S. University of Chicago, USA.

Dr. Ana Damjanović

• Position: Associate Research Scientist, Department of Biophysics, Johns Hopkins University, Laboratory of Computational Biology and National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute, National Institutes of Health, USA.
• Research areas: computational biophysics, ligand-driven conformational rearrangements in proteins, protein-water interactions, light-harvesting in purple bacteria, dinoflagellates, and cyanobacteria.
• Education: Ph.D. University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, USA; B.S. University of Belgrade, Serbia.

Dr. Siniša Pajević

• Position: Staff Scientists at the Natioanal Institute of Health, USA.
• Research areas: neuronal avalanches, diffusion tensor imaging, statistical estimation of linkage and association from allele transmission data.
• Education: Ph.D. Boston University, USA; B.S. University of Belgrade, Serbia.

Dr. Danica M. Stanimirović

• Position: Associate Research Officer and Director of Neurobiology Program, Institute for Biological Sciences, National Research Council, Canada.
• Research areas: blood-brain barrier, brain drug delivery, stroke, brain angiogenesis, and molecular imaging.
• Education: Ph.D. University of Belgrade, Serbia; B.S. University of Belgrade, Serbia.

University Professors

Dr. Branko Aleksić

• Position: Assistant Professor, Department of Psychiatry, Nagoya University Graduate School of Medicine, Japan.
• Research areas: schizoprenia, genetics, biological psychiatry.
• Education: Ph.D. Nagoya University, Japan; B.S. University of Belgrade, Serbia.

Srđan D. Antić, M.D.

• Position: Assistant Professor, Department of Neuroscience, University of Connecticut Health Center, USA.
• Research areas: rapid processing of electrical and chemical signals in individual neuronscellular and molecular mechanisms of synaptic integration, synaptic plasticity, neuronal excitability and dopamine.
• Education: M.D. University of Belgrade, Serbia.

Dr. Marica Baković

• Position: Associate Professor, College of Biological Science, Department of Human Health and Nutritional Science, University of Guelph, Canada.
• Research areas: regulation of genes involved in choline transport and phospholipid metabolism, nutrient transporters and kinetics of membrane transport, molecular and cell biology of lipids, the effect of nutrients on protein synthesis and gene expression, nutritional genomics (nutrigenomics) of risk factors for cardiovascular disease and insulin resistance.
• Education: Ph.D. University of Alberta, Canada; B.S. University of Belgrade, Serbia.

Dr. Maja Bucan

• Position: Full Professor, Department of Genetics, School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, USA.
• Research areas: genetic dissection of complex behaviors in mice and human, functional genomics, bipolar disorder, autism, genomics and complex trait analysis, analysis of rodent behavior, bioinformatics.
• Education: Ph.D. University of Belgrade, Serbia; B.S. University of Belgrade, Serbia.

Dr. Stanislav Vukmanović

• Position: Full Professor, School of Medicine and Health Sciences, George Washington University, USA.
• Research areas: development and function of T-lymphocytes.
• Education: Ph.D. University of Belgrade, Serbia; B.S. University of Belgrade, Serbia.

Dr. Danica Galonić-Fujimori

• Position: Assistant Professor, Departments of Cellular and Molecular Pharmacology and Pharmaceutical Chemistry, University of California San Francisco, USA.
• Research areas: biochemistry, molecular biology, microbiology techniques, chemical approaches to investigate enzymatic function.
• Education: Ph.D. University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, USA; B.S. University of Belgrade, Serbia.

Dr. Zoey Durmić

• Position: Research Assistant Professor, School of Animal Biology, University of Western Australia, Australia.
• Research areas: animal microbiology, manipulating rumen, plant secondary compounds.
• Education: Ph.D. Murdoch University, Australia; B.S. University of Belgrade, Serbia.

Dr. Berislav Zloković

• Position: Full Professor, Center for Neurodegenerative and Vascular Brain Disorders, University of Rochester, USA.
• Research areas: Alzheimer's disease and neurodegenerative disorders, brain ischemia and stroke, activated protein C system in brain, blood-brain barrier.
• Education: Ph.D. University of Belgrade, Serbia; B.S. University of Belgrade, Serbia.

Dr. Aleksandar Ivetić

• Position: Senior Lecturer, School of Biomedical and Health Sciences, Cardiovascular Division, King's College London, UK.
• Research areas: leukocyte trafficking in cardiovascular disease, membrane/cytoskeleton signalling group,
• Education: Ph.D. University of London, UK; B.S. Imperial College, UK.

Dr. Duško Ilić

• Position: Full Professor, School of Biomedical and Health Sciences, Division of Reproduction & Endocrinology, King's College London, UK.
• Research areas: human embryonic stem cells, cancer stem cells, induced pluripotent stem cells, regenerative medicine.
• Education: Ph.D. University of Tokyo, Japan; B.S. University of Belgrade, Serbia.

Dr. Aleksandar Jeremić

• Position: Assistant Professor, Department of Biological Science, George Washington University, USA.
• Research areas: molecular neuroendocrinology, nanobiology, brain and islet amyloidosis.
• Education: Ph.D. Iowa State University, USA; B.S. University of Belgrade, Serbia.

Dr. Milorad Kojić

• Position: Assistant Research Professor, Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Weill Cornell Medical College, USA.
• Research areas: cell biology and genetics.
• Education: Ph.D. University of Belgrade, Serbia; B.S. University of Belgrade, Serbia.

Dr. Olga S. Latinović

• Position: Assistant Professor, Department for Microbiology and Immunology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, USA.
• Research areas: biological physics, HIV-1 entry inhibition.
• Education: Ph.D. Lehigh University, USA; B.S. University of Belgrade, Serbia.

Dr. Petar Lenert

• Position: Assistant Professor, Department of Internal Medicine, University of Iowa, USA.
• Research areas: systemic autoimmune diseases, mechanisms of CpG-induced receptor binding and downstream signal transduction evens in human and mouse B cells.
• Education: Ph.D. University of Novi Sad, Serbia; B.S. University of Novi Sad, Serbia.

Dr. Vladimir Likić

• Position: Senior Research Fellow, Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of Melbourne, Australia.
• Research areas: analytical chemistry, biochemistry and cell biology, microbiology, genetics, medical biochemistry and clinical chemistry, biotechnology.
• Education: Ph.D. Mayo Medical School, USA; B.S. University of Belgrade, Serbia.

Dr. Olivera Nešić

• Position: Assistant Professor, Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of Texas Medical Branch, USA.
• Research areas: chronic neuropathic pain (CNP), osmoregulation of astrocytes and neurons to attenuate CNP after spinal cord injury.
• Education: Ph.D. University of Belgrade, Serbia; B.S. University of Belgrade, Serbia.

Dr. Janko Nikolić-Žugić

• Position: Full Professor, Department of Immunobiology, University of Arizona Tucson, USA.
• Research areas: biology of cytotoxic T lymphocytes (CTL) in health, infection and aging.
• Education: Ph.D. University of Belgrade, Serbia; B.S. University of Belgrade, Serbia.

Dr. Margareta Nikolić

• Position: Lecturer, Wolfson Neuroscience Laboratories, Division of Experimental Medicine, Imperial College School of Medicine, UK.
• Research areas: developmental neuroscience, molecular mechanisms of neuronal migration, neuronal polarity and morphology.
• Education: Ph.D. University of Glasgow, UK; B.S. University of Nottingham, UK.

Dr. Ana Nikčević

• Position: Senior Lecturer, Kingston University London, UK.
• Research areas: clinical psychology, behavioral medicine, cognitive therapy approaches.
• Education: Ph.D. King's College London, UK; B.S. University of Belgrade, Serbia.

Dr. Paško Rakić

• Position: Duberg Professor of Neurobiology and Neurology; Chairman, Department of Neurobiology; Director, Kavli Institute of Neuroscience, Yale University, USA.
• Research areas: neuroscience, cellular events and molecular mechanisms that govern development of the mammalian central nervous system, molecular mechanisms involved in neuronal migration, regulation cell proliferation and death that determine the number of neurons allocated to the building of the cerebral cortex.
• Education: Ph.D. University of Belgrade, Serbia; B.S. University of Belgrade, Serbia.

Dr. Mirjana Maletić-Savatić

• Position: Assistant Professor, Program in Developmental Biology, Baylor College of Medicine, USA.
• Research areas: imaging and metabolomics and neurogenesis.
• Education: Ph.D. University of Belgrade, Serbia; B.S. University of Belgrade, Serbia.

Dr. Ljuba Stojiljković

• Position: Associate Professor, Department of Anesthesiology, Northwestern University, USA.
• Research areas: regional and general anesthesia, nerve sprouting responsible for phantom sensation.
• Education: Ph.D. University of Belgrade, Serbia; B.S. University of Belgrade, Serbia.

Dr. Tatjana Paunesku

• Position: Associate Professor for Research, Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University, USA.
• Research areas: mechanisms of radiation-induced gene responses, radiation-induced mutations in radiation-induced cancers, DNA-TiO2 nanoparticles.
• Education: Ph.D. Illinois Institute of Technology, USA; B.S. University of Belgrade, Serbia.

Dr. Zsolt Szabo

• Position: Associate Professor, Division of Nuclear Medicine, Department of Radiology and Radiological Sciences, Johns Hopkins Medical Institutions, USA.
• Research areas: brain imaging.
• Education: Ph.D. University of Dusseldorf, Germany; B.S. University of Belgrade, Serbia.

Dr. Sandor Szabo

• Position: Full Professor, Departments of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine and of Pharmacology, University of California Irvine, USA.
• Research areas: pathology and pharmacology of the gastrointestinal (GI) and neuroendocrine systems, mechanisms and molecular biology of GI ulceration and inflammation, growth factors, steroids, angiogenesis, gene expression and transcription factors.
• Education: Ph.D. University of Montreal, Canada; B.S. University of Belgrade, Serbia.

Dr. Goran Strkalj

• Position: Associate Professor, Department of Chiropractic, University of Macquarie, Australia.
• Research areas: human variation, history of biological anthropology, science education.
• Education: Ph.D. University of the Witwatersrand Johannesburg, South Africa; B.S. University of Belgrade, Serbia.

Dr. Nenad Švrakić

• Position: Research Assistant Professor, Department of Psychiatry, Washington University in St. Louis, USA.
• Research areas: statistical genetics, self-organized dynamical systems, psychiatric genetics, bioinformatics, genomics, statistical physics, mathematical physics.
• Education: Ph.D. University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, USA; B.S. University of Belgrade, Serbia.

Postdoctoral Fellows

Dr. Slavica Đonović

• Position: Research Fellow, Center for Computational and Integrative Biology, Harvard Medical School, USA.
• Research areas: host-pathogen interactions.
• Education: Ph.D. Texas A & M University, USA; B.S. University of Belgrade, Serbia.

Dr. Jelena Zinnanti

• Position: Postdoctoral Scholar, Biological Imaging Center, Beckman Institute, California Institute of Technology, USA.
• Research areas: imaging brain injuries, application of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) techniques in medicine.
• Education: Ph.D. Pennsylvania State University, USA; B.S. University of Belgrade, Serbia.

Dr. Sanja Pavlica

• Position: Postdoctoral Fellow, Department of Cell Techniques and Applied Stem Cell Biology, University of Leipzing, Germany.
• Research areas: effect of erythropoietin on neuronal protection and regeneration, effect of EPO on expansion of neuronal and liver progenitor cells, effect of early cytokines on neuronal differentiation.
• Education: Ph.D. University of Leipzig, Germany; B.S. University of Belgrade, Serbia.

Dr. Ivan Topisirović

• Position: Research Fellow, Department of Biochemistry, McGill University, Canada.
• Research areas: molecular and cell biology, cancer research.
• Science outreach: weekly magazin "Vreme" interviews Dr. Ivan Topisirović for their serial on "Presenting Serbian scientists abroad".
• Education: B.S. University of Belgrade, Serbia; B.S. University of Belgrade, Serbia.