Rate My Professor Monika Schmelz

Monika Schmelz is a Professor in the Department of Pathology on the Research Scholar Track, as well as Professor in the BIO5 Institute and Applied BioSciences Graduate Interdisciplinary Program at the University of Arizona College of Medicine - Tucson. She earned her MS in Biology from Karl Ruprecht University of Heidelberg, Germany, in 1982, followed by a PhD in Cell and Tumor Biology from the German Cancer Research Center in Heidelberg in 1989, where she worked on desmosomal glycoproteins. She completed postdoctoral training with Gareth Griffith at the European Molecular Biology Laboratory in Heidelberg, studying vaccinia virus-host interactions. Prior positions include roles at Karl-Ruprecht University College of Medicine Anatomy (1982-1985), German Cancer Research Center (1989-1991), European Molecular Biology Laboratory (1991-1993), and Martin Luther University (1995-1998). In 1998, she joined the University of Arizona Department of Pathology, working with Ray Nagle on prostate cancer research, and was promoted to Research Assistant Professor in 2000 and Associate Professor in 2015. She directs the Comparative Pathology Core Laboratory, manages the Arizona Lymphoid Tissue and Blood Repository as part of the University of Arizona Cancer Center’s TACMASR core, and hosts the ANCHOR-Arizona Biorepository for the National Cancer Institute-sponsored Anal Cancer/HSIL Outcomes Research study, handling approximately 320,000 specimens for NCI-approved correlative studies. She is a member of the Cancer Biology Program at the Arizona Cancer Center.

Dr. Schmelz's research specializes in mechanisms enabling tumor cells to evade immunosurveillance, a hallmark of cancer, with a focus on aggressive diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL). Her lab investigates Major Histocompatibility Complex class II (MHCII) deregulation, where loss of MHCII expression is associated with poorer outcomes in DLBCL patients, alongside antigen processing, presentation, and adaptive immune responses. Expertise encompasses cell and molecular biology, confocal microscopy, immunohistochemistry, histology, morphology, and imaging in collaborative projects, including those with the Lymphoma Research Consortium. Notable publications include "Assembly of vaccinia virus: the second wrapping cisterna is derived from the trans Golgi network" (1994, 501 citations), "Identification of desmoglein, a constitutive desmosomal glycoprotein, as a member of the cadherin family of cell adhesion molecules" (1990, 456 citations), "In vitro dorsal root ganglia and human prostate cell line interaction: redefining perineural invasion in prostate cancer" (2001, 320 citations), "Pak2 regulates myeloid-derived suppressor cell development in mice" (2017), "The AIDS and Cancer Specimen Resource (ACSR): HIV malignancy specimens and data available at no cost" (2023), and "Validation of Biorepository Quality: Accreditation" (2023). Her contributions to cell adhesion molecules, virology, prostate cancer, and lymphoma research demonstrate significant impact in pathology and oncology.