Daughter of Louis Siminovitch. Dr. Katherine Siminovitch is a geneticist who studies the molecular mechanisms underpinning development of immunologic dis- ease. As a Senior Investigator at the Lunenfeld-Tanenbaum Research Institute of Mount Sinai Hospital, Dr. Siminovitch aims to provide new knowledge and technolo- gies enabling more efficacious and "individualized" therapies for major immunologi- cal diseases. Dr. Siminovitch's research program is directed at identifying the mole- cular factors which regulate normal immune responses and which, when disrupted, result in immune deficiencyo r autoimmune diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis and inflammatory bowel disease. Using both basic research tools and clinical sample sets, Dr. Siminovitch focuses on defining the genetic lesions predisposing to these diseases and the molecular pathways which couple these lesions to cell disfunction and disease. Dr. Siminovitch was awarded a Canada Research Chair in Immunogenomics (2005) and has received a CIHR Senior Scientist Award (2000-2005), an Arthritis Society of Canada Research Scientist Award (1992-2001), an Ontario Ministry of Health Cancer Scientist Award (1986-1996) and the Canadian Life and Health Association Medical Scholarship (1986-1992). In 2005, Dr. Siminovitch was awar- ded the Canadian Society for Clinical Investigation/Royal College of Physicians and Surgeon of Canada Henry Friesen Research Award.