Monica Cappelletti, PhD

Monica Cappelletti, PhD

Contact Information
Monica Cappelletti, PhD
Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine
UCLA Immunogenetics Center
Rehab Bldg, Rm 1-345
1000 Veteran Ave
Office: 310-206-5796 | Email

Academic Title
Assistant Professor, Pathology and Laboratory Medicine
Director, Immune Assessment Core

Education 
PhD, University of Milan
MS (Medical Biotechnology), University of Milan

Bio

Dr. Cappelletti is the Director of the Immune Assessment Core and Assistant Professor with the Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine. In this role, she oversees the scientific direction and management of the Immune Assessment Core operations. The Immune Assessment Core provides testing services to monitor and quantify human immune responses including cell-mediated immune function assays, multiparameter flow cytometry immunophenotyping, cytokine measurements by Luminex and ELISA and measurements of humoral immunity.

Dr. Cappelletti earned her MS in Medical Biotechnology and her PhD in Molecular Medicine/Immunology at the University of Milan, Italy. During her graduate training in Dr. Della Bella’s lab, Dr. Cappelletti focused on uncovering the immunological processes associated with the alteration of immune cell populations in pregnancy disorders. For her postdoctoral training, she moved to Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center in Dr. Divanovic’s lab, where she focused on understanding the molecular mechanisms underlying the regulation of innate immune signaling and inflammation in infection and immune-associated induction of preterm birth. Specifically, the aim was to uncover the cellular and molecular pathways underlying the role of inflammation and type I IFN/IFNAR axis in induction of preterm birth. In August 2017, she was recruited to UCLA in Dr. Kallapur’s lab and her project was focused on preclinical evaluation of promising drugs to prevent inflammation associated preterm labor and investigating mechanisms of intrauterine inflammation and fetal inflammation in both Rhesus and mouse models of pregnancy complications.