Vanessa Nomellini

Vanessa Nomellini, MD, PhD is an Associate Professor in the Division of Burn, Trauma, Acute and Critical Care Surgery at UT Southwestern Medical Center. She joined UT Southwestern in 2023 as the director of research for her division and leader in the Critical Care Outcomes Research Translation (CORT) group.

Education: Dr. Nomellini earned her MD and PhD in Cellular and Molecular Biochemistry from Loyola University. She completed her general surgery residency at the University of Wisconsin and Surgical Critical Care fellowship at the University of Pennsylvania.

Research Interests: Her work focuses on immune dysfunction in critically ill patients, particularly sepsis and trauma-induced immunosuppression. She leads studies on immune recovery mechanisms and develops the ICU Recovery Program for long-term patient management. Her NIH-funded research (R35 NIGMS) investigates immune suppression through both animal models and human observational studies.

Publications Trends: Her recent work emphasizes sepsis pathophysiology, coagulopathy management, and clinical improvements in critical care. Key areas include immunomodulatory therapies, biomarker utility, and optimizing ICU protocols.

• Scientific Awards: Recipient of NIGMS R35 grant (2019-current)

Advising & Grants: Leads a multi-institutional research team and holds leadership roles in CORT. Her grants focus on translational immunology and critical care outcomes.

Labs & Teams: Directs research at UT Southwestern's Critical Care Division, collaborating with Drs. Levi and Carlson in CORT initiatives.