2026 Grand Seminar to explore tissue stem cells in health, inflammation, and cancer
The trailblazing cell and stem cell biologist Elaine Fuchs, Ph.D., will present the 2026 Grand Seminar lecture on Thursday, Nov. 12, at 6 p.m. in McGuire Hall. Dr. Fuchs is the Rebecca C. Lancefield Professor, Mammalian Cell Biology and Development, at the Rockefeller University in New York, as well as a Howard Hughes Medical Institute Investigator.
Titled “Between Our Bodies and the World,” Dr. Fuchs’s keynote presentation will explore tissue stem cells in health, inflammation, and cancer. She will draw on her groundbreaking research in skin biology, tissue regeneration, and the genetic basis of human disease to discuss how stem cells balance self-renewal, differentiation, and microenvironments.
Dr. Fuchs, who is an expert in mammalian cell biology and development, will also discuss new paths for therapeutics, high-throughput technologies, and in vivo cells purified from normal or malignant tissues.
Now in its 15th year, the Grand Seminar is hosted by Loyola’s academic division of natural and applied sciences. The event is free and open to the public, but advance registration is recommended.
“As educators and scientists, we strive to inspire students through direct engagement with individuals who have expanded the boundaries of human knowledge,” said Bahram Roughani, Ph.D., associate dean of natural and applied sciences. “Dr. Elaine Fuchs' pioneering discoveries in stem cell biology and tissue regeneration have reshaped our understanding of health and disease. We are delighted to welcome her to Loyola and look forward to the insight and inspiration she will bring to our community.”
Dr. Fuchs earned a B.S. in Chemistry from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign and a Ph.D. in Biochemistry from Princeton University, while also completing a postdoctoral fellowship in Cell Biology at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. She has more than 45 years of profound professional experience, including NIH-funded research and more than 380 publications. Her contributions to science include developing “reverse genetics”; discovering roles for signaling pathways in skin morphogenesis; and elucidating how skin stem cells cope with their inflammatory and mechanical stress.
Before joining the Rockefeller University in 2002, Dr. Fuchs served as the Amgen Professor of Basic Sciences at the University of Chicago. During her career, she has been recognized with several honors, including the Benjamin Franklin Medal in the Life Sciences from the Franklin Institute; the Gairdner Foundation’s International Award, the highest scientific award in Canada; and the E.B. Wilson Medal from the American Society for Cell Biology.
Since 2011, Loyola’s Grand Seminar has engaged the Loyola community and visitors to campus in the natural and applied sciences. Learn more about past Grand Seminars.