Catherine received her PhD in Molecular Oncology and Immunology from New York University School of Medicine and completed her postdoctoral training in Elaine Fuchs’ laboratory at The Rockefeller University. There, she made a landmark discovery identifying sweat gland stem cells and demonstrated their critical roles in wound repair and regeneration. She also defined the signaling environment that directs progenitor cell fate between the hair follicle and sweat gland lineages, establishing a molecular framework for how the skin diversifies its appendages during development.

She is currently an Assistant Professor in the Hansjörg Wyss Department of Plastic Surgery and the Department of Cell Biology at New York University School of Medicine. She has received Edward Mallinckrodt Jr. Foundation Research Award, Irma T. Hirschl Trust Career Scientist Award, and Sanofi Innovation Award. Supported by multiple NIH grants, she built a research program centering on the biology of the sweat gland – development, regeneration, and diseases. Beyond basic science, Catherine works closely with clinicians to investigate the molecular mechanisms underlying human inflammatory skin conditions such as hidradenitis suppurativa, alopecia areata, and immune rejection in face transplantation, and conducts preclinical studies to evaluate emerging immunotherapeutic strategies.