Carlos A. Casiano

Dr. Carlos A. Casiano was born in Mayaguez, Puerto Rico, and completed his undergraduate education in biology at the University of Puerto Rico-Rio Piedras before receiving his Ph.D. in Microbiology from the University of California at Davis. He is currently a Professor of Microbiology, Molecular Genetics, and Medicine at Loma Linda University (LLU) School of Medicine. Prior to joining LLU in 1997, Dr. Casiano completed postdoctoral training on autoimmunity and cancer at the Scripps Research Institute in San Diego, California. Over the past 25 years, he has led at LLU a biomedical research program primarily funded by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) that is focused on the interplay between autoimmunity and cancer, with emphasis on prostate cancer-associated autoantibodies and autoantigens, chemotherapy resistance, and health disparities. An area of particular research interest has been the biology of the DFS70/LEDGFp75 autoantigen in autoimmunity and cancer. Dr. Casiano is a Founding Member of the LLU Center for Health Disparities and Molecular Medicine, where he has served as Associate Director since 2006. Over the years, he has been an academic mentor to over 70 research trainees from diverse backgrounds and educational levels. Most of his graduate students have transitioned to postdoctoral and faculty positions at comprehensive cancer centers and other academic institutions. He also has a long history of teaching immunology and cellular biology and participating in numerous service activities at LLU and its surrounding communities. Dr. Casiano has published over 100 papers in peer-reviewed biomedical research journals and books and has been an invited speaker at numerous national and international scientific conferences and universities within North America, South America, the Caribbean region, and Europe. He is a member of the International Advisory Committee of the Dresden Symposium on Autoantibodies in Germany, where he has been invited speaker since 1998. Dr. Casiano currently serves as a reviewer of grant applications and scientific manuscripts for multiple national and international organizations, including the NIH, the Department of Defense, as well as dozens of international biomedical research journals. He is also an active member of the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR), where he has served in various leadership capacities. Dr. Casiano has received several awards, including the LLU Carroll Small Faculty Development Award, the LLU Hispanic Alumni Community Service Award, the AACR Minorities in Cancer Research Award, the LLU School of Medicine Distinguished Service Award, and the LLU School of Medicine Mentor of the Year Award.