Neal Silverman named head of the Department of Immunobiology
Dr. Silverman is an internationally respected authority in innate immune responses with extensive experience in science education, research administration and team building, and academic leadership.
The University of Arizona College of Medicine – Tucson welcomes Neal Silverman, PhD, as head of the Department of Immunobiology, effective August 31.
Dr. Silverman’s academic work focuses on innate immune responses, particularly how the body’s early-stage immune system recognizes and responds to infection. With continuous NIH funding for nearly 25 years, he has contributed to fundamental insights into innate immunity across multiple model systems and continues to advance translational research through collaborations that bridge basic discovery with human health applications.
His lab deciphers the molecular, cellular and organismal control of innate immune responses by investigating the trafficking of bacterial cell wall fragments — potent immune alarm signals — within cells. His team shows how a family of transport proteins called SLC46s plays a critical role in moving these bacterial immune agonists inside cells. He continues to advance this discovery through focused studies in murine models, human cell cultures and human tissue organoids, as well as ongoing Drosophila research.
He was a standing member of the NIH review panel for Innate Immunity and Inflammation, and currently serves as associate vice president of the Life Sciences Research Foundation and an associate editor for several peer-reviewed journals.
Dr. Silverman earned a bachelor’s degree in molecular biology from the University of California, Berkeley, and a doctorate in biology from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He completed a molecular and cellular biology fellowship at Harvard University, where he probed mechanisms of immune signaling and NF-κB activation in Drosophila and was awarded a prestigious Helen Hay Whitney Foundation Fellowship.
Dr. Silverman comes to us after 25 years at the University of Massachusetts T.H. Chan Medical School, where he currently serves as director of research strategy in the Department of Medicine and director of research in the Division of Infectious Diseases and Immunology. In addition, he is assistant dean of the University of Massachusetts T.H. Chan Morningside Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences.
In these roles, Dr. Silverman has overseen a division that generates over $13 million in annual extramural funding and has established a collaborative research environment characterized by strong fundamental science culture and robust community engagement. He has demonstrated the ability to navigate complex institutional structures, coordinate resources across research units, and advance systemic improvements to support clinical and human-focused research initiatives. As an educator, Dr. Silverman has expertise in programmatic design and implementation, having directed the largest PhD graduate program at the University of Massachusetts.