Jennifer Gommerman

Jen received her Ph.D. (Immunology) at the University of Toronto in 1998. She went on to do a post-doctoral fellowship at Harvard Medical School studying the complement pathway and then joined Biogen Inc. as a Staff Scientist in 2000. During her tenure at Biogen, she became interested in B cells, Multiple Sclerosis and the TNF superfamily of molecules. After 3 years in Industry, she returned to Academia as an Assistant Professor (Immunology) at the University of Toronto in 2003, in 2015 was promoted to full Professor, in 2020 was awarded a Tier I Canada Research Chair in Tissue Specific Immunity, and in 2023 she assumed the position of Department Chair.

Jen's basic research continues to focus on how members of the TNF superfamily of molecules regulate immunity and autoimmunity. Her team has uncovered a novel gut-brain axis that regulates neuroinflammation. With respect to translational work, Dr. Gommerman has been examining the role of B lymphocytes in Multiple Sclerosis patients and in animal models of MS. Her contributions to understanding the mucosal antibody response to SARS-CoV-2 resulted in her co-leading a biomanufacturing and pandemic preparedness efforts for a hub of 8 Ontario Universities (HI3). Jen has won multiple mentorship awards from the Temerty Faculty of Medicine and holds a Canada Research Chair in Tissue-specific Immunity.