Lauren O. Bakaletz, Ph.D.
Scientific Advisory Board Co-chair
Lauren O. Bakaletz, Ph.D. is a Professor of both Pediatrics and Otolaryngology and serves as Director of the Center for Microbial Pathogenesis within The Abigail Wexner Research Institute at Nationwide Children’s Hospital. She and her team study the molecular mechanisms that underlie polymicrobial infections of the respiratory tract, including otitis media (ear infections), chronic rhinosinusitis and exacerbations of both COPD and cystic fibrosis. Dr. Bakaletz was named an Ohio State University College of Medicine Distinguished Professor in 2013, a lifelong honorific distinction. Dr. Bakaletz was named a Fellow of the American Academy of Microbiology in 2020. She received her doctorate degree in microbiology from The Ohio State University.