Jabbari named chair of UI Department of Dermatology
Ali Jabbari, MD, PhD, has been appointed chair and departmental executive officer (DEO) of the Department of Dermatology in the University of Iowa Roy J. and Lucille A. Carver College of Medicine, effective Aug. 15.
Jabbari, a UI alumnus and a faculty member in the department since 2017, is an associate professor and member of Holden Comprehensive Cancer Center at the UI. He will assume leadership responsibilities from Janet Fairley, MD, who has led the Department of Dermatology since January 2007. Fairley will continue as a faculty member in the department.
“Dr. Jabbari is an outstanding clinician, researcher, and teacher, so I’m pleased that he will assume this key leadership role,” says Brooks Jackson, MD, MBA, UI vice president for medical affairs and the Tyrone D. Artz Dean of the Carver College of Medicine. “He’s a great collaborator, and I’m certain he will help advance the department’s tradition of excellence."
Jabbari’s research focuses on the cellular and molecular mechanisms involved in autoimmune diseases affecting the skin and other organs, with the aim of identifying potential targets for treatment and assessing the efficacy of new therapies.
One area of research in Jabbari’s lab is alopecia areata, an autoimmune condition characterized by episodic hair loss that can progress to more severe forms affecting the skin and body. Jabbari and his research team also study cutaneous T-cell lymphoma (CTCL), a type of skin cancer that starts in the immune system’s white blood cells (T-cells).
As an educator and mentor, Jabbari is affiliated with the Medical Scientist Training Program (MSTP), a combined MD/PhD degree program, the Biomedical Science Program–Cancer Biology, and the Interdisciplinary Graduate Program in Immunology.
Jabbari earned MD and PhD (immunology) degrees through the MSTP in 2007. He completed residency training in dermatology at New York University and a research fellowship in immunodermatology at Rockefeller University in New York City. He served as a faculty member in dermatology department at Columbia University in New York before coming to Iowa.
Jabbari is a fellow of the American Academy of Dermatology and member of several other professional organizations dedicated to dermatology, immunology, and cutaneous lymphoma. He has received numerous awards for his work, including the Donald D. Dorfman Award from UI Holden Comprehensive Cancer Center (2019), and the Young Investigator Award from the American Academy of Dermatology.
Jackson praised Fairley for her leadership over the past 16 years.
“During Dr. Fairley’s time as chair, the department experienced increases in patient visits, external research funding, residency training opportunities, and philanthropic support,” Jackson says. “Her efforts, along with Dr. Jabbari’s appointment, put the department in a great position moving forward.”
Jackson also expressed appreciation to the search committee, led by co-chairs Patricia Winokur, MD, and Jeffrey Quinlan, MD.
“The Department of Dermatology is well-known for its patient care, research, and education programs, so it was important to select an outstanding candidate to lead the department,” Jackson says. “The search committee, along with our college’s administrative team, did great work that resulted in Dr. Jabbari’s appointment.”