Tamara J. Laskowski PhD

Dr. Tamara J. Laskowski received her doctorate degree in Human Molecular Genetics and Immunology from the University of Texas Health Science Center where her work focused on genome editing of patient-derived stem cells to correct genetic mutations causative of Wiskott-Aldrich Syndrome, an immunodeficiency disorder that results in severe impairments to the immune system. Through her work, she demonstrated the ability to repair the underlying defects and restore normal immune function.

Subsequently, Tamara joined Dr. Laurence J.N. Cooper’s laboratory at MD Anderson Cancer Center as a fellow. Her work focuses on engineering stem cells with the goal of generating off-the-shelf NK and T-cell immunotherapies for targeting solid tumor malignancies. Dr. Laskowski also shares an interest in technology innovation and has developed novel multi-plex assays for testing therapies against solid tumors.

In 2017, this work led to an invitation to participate in the National Science Foundation (NSF) Innovation Corps, an exclusive program through which she was trained on strategies for expanding the economic and societal benefits of innovative ideas that have commercialization potential. She was the sole recipient of an award for outstanding performance upon completion of the program. In addition to her research work, Dr. Laskowski also serves as a scientific communications coach and peer editor at MD Anderson, helping to promote effective communication between scientists and the public.