Biography: Dr. Caroline Johnson is an Assistant Professor of Epidemiology and Metabolomics in the Department of Environmental Health Sciences at Yale School of Public Health (YSPH). In 2009, she graduated from Imperial College London with a PhD in Analytical Chemistry under the mentorship of Profs. Jeremy Nicholson, John Lindon and Ian Wilson. She then held a postdoctoral appointment at the National Cancer Institute, NIH, in Dr. Frank Gonzalez’s lab and examined the biological effects of ionizing radiation and dietary exposures on human health using metabolomics. From 2012-2016 she directed the cancer metabolism efforts at the Scripps Research Center for Metabolomics with Prof. Gary Siuzdak’s lab where she was involved in the optimization of XCMS Online and METLIN technologies.
Since joining YSPH in 2016, her lab’s primary focus has been to investigate the sex-specific differences in metabolism that effect disease development and trajectory using metabolomics, specifically in the area of colorectal cancer. More recently she has incorporated an immunometabolism focus into her research in both cancer and COVID-19, to identify sex-specific metabolic indicators of immune response. Within her research, she is also continuously developing metabolomics technology and methodologies, including mass spectrometry imaging, to provide innovative tools for investigating metabolism. In addition to her research experience, she has been involved in the organization and chairing of multiple conferences, as well as training and teaching YSPH students and staff in metabolomics. Dr. Johnson also serves on the Editorial Boards for Metabolites and Toxicological Sciences.
Statement of Purpose: I am currently a member of the Metabolomics Society Board of Directors, running for a second term. Over the past two years I have actively participated in both the Conference and Membership Committees, and contributed to the development of our Society. I have actively helped to organize two Annual Metabolomics Society conferences, as well as organize bids for future conferences. I also recently initiated a set of guidelines for a Code of Conduct which will be implemented at our upcoming conferences, to help ensure a respectful and safe environment for our attendees and vendors. I volunteered to Chair the Membership Committee in 2019 to implement recommendations from the Society’s 2020-2025 Strategic Plan for Membership Retention and Expansion. I first populated our Committee with individuals from various regions to ensure geographical representation within the Committee. Then, as a Committee, we designed a list of questions to enable the collection and monitoring of demographic data during the membership registration process. This data will help us design initiatives that best serve the membership and allow us to track trends over time. In my second term, I will continue to contribute to the running of The Society, including my membership within the Conference Committee and Chair of the Membership Committee. I will work on increasing membership in geographical areas which are currently underrepresented such as Latin America and Africa. I will also identify initiatives to increase membership retention within our Society, and identify procedures to improve networking across the membership.