Ira Blader, Ph.D.
Virginia-Maryland College of Veterinary Medicine
Ira Blader, Ph.D., is a professor at the Virginia-Maryland College of Veterinary Medicine and Head of the Department of Biomedical Sciences and Pathobiology. He received his Ph.D. from the University of Alabama at Birmingham with Anne Theibert, Ph.D., where he used the yeast, Saccharomyces cerevisiae, as model system to study the function of phosphoinositide binding proteins in the human nervous system. For his postdoctoral studies, Blader moved to Stanford University, where he began his studies on the protozoan parasite, Toxoplasma gondii with John Boothroyd, Ph.D.
Blader’s lab studies Toxoplasma pathogenic mechanisms with a focus on 2 key aspects. First, his laboratory studies how the parasite senses and adapts to its environment with a particular focus on oxygen sensing and signaling. Second, his laboratory studies how Toxoplasma impacts the nervous system and causes neurological diseases. Since starting his independent research career in 2003, his laboratory has been continuously funded by multiple grants from the NIH and other organizations. Blader has mentored 9 Ph.D. students, ~15 undergraduates, 11 post-docs and served on 30+ thesis and/or qualifying exam committees. He has served as the director of graduate studies for microbiology and immunology and also directed the master’s degree in microbiology and immunology program.
Starting July 1, 2025, Blader will assume the role of Editor in Chief of ®. Prior to this appointment Blader was Senior Editor for mSphere and a reviewer for ®, ®, ® and Eukaryotic Cell. He also served as an Editorial Board Member for Eukaryotic Cell from 2015-2023.
Blader’s lab studies Toxoplasma pathogenic mechanisms with a focus on 2 key aspects. First, his laboratory studies how the parasite senses and adapts to its environment with a particular focus on oxygen sensing and signaling. Second, his laboratory studies how Toxoplasma impacts the nervous system and causes neurological diseases. Since starting his independent research career in 2003, his laboratory has been continuously funded by multiple grants from the NIH and other organizations. Blader has mentored 9 Ph.D. students, ~15 undergraduates, 11 post-docs and served on 30+ thesis and/or qualifying exam committees. He has served as the director of graduate studies for microbiology and immunology and also directed the master’s degree in microbiology and immunology program.
Starting July 1, 2025, Blader will assume the role of Editor in Chief of ®. Prior to this appointment Blader was Senior Editor for mSphere and a reviewer for ®, ®, ® and Eukaryotic Cell. He also served as an Editorial Board Member for Eukaryotic Cell from 2015-2023.