Danielle Chisolm, Ph.D., graduated with a degree in biology from Bethune-Cookman University in 2012. After graduating, she participated in a Post-Baccalaureate program at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, working under the direction of Dr. Nathaniel Moorman to study the molecular pathogenesis of human cytomegalovirus. Dr. Chisolm performed her graduate training at the University of Alabama at Birmingham under the leadership of Dr. Amy Weinmann. Her doctoral research defined a novel role for the metabolite alpha-ketoglutarate in promoting the IL-2-sensitive program in T cells. This was done in part through influencing changes in genome organization.

In 2018, Dr. Chisolm began her postdoctoral research with Dr. John O’Shea to expand her knowledge of the interconnections between transcription and metabolism and how this translates at the epigenetic level. Her current work aims to define the role a novel transcription factor plays in regulating T cell differentiation. In 2020, she was awarded a Postdoctoral Research Associate Training grant from the National Institute of General Medical Sciences. In 2021, Dr. Chisolm was named an Independent Research Scholar. Through this appointment, she will serve as a junior faculty member in the NIAMS, leading an independent team of researchers.