You may have seen some fresh faces around the department over the last few months. We are pleased to welcome these new faculty, who joined the department in January and February 2018.

Asma Al-Zougbi, MD – Associate
Division of Endocrinology & Metabolism

Asma Al-Zougbi joined the Division of Endocrinology as an Associate on January 4 after completing her fellowship here in 2017. Dr. Al-Zougbi earned her MD from the American University of Beirut, followed by an Internal Medicine residency at St. Louis University Hospital. She is currently completing her Master’s in Medical Education at the Carver College of Medicine. Dr. Al-Zougbi studies the molecular mechanism underlying skeletal muscle atrophy, as well as the links between muscle atrophy, diabetes, and osteoporosis. Her clinical interests focus on obesity and diabetes. In her spare time, she enjoys traveling and spending time with her family, including a cat named Professor Spencer.

Robert Blount, MD, MAS – Assistant Professor
Division of Pulmonary, Critical Care & Occupational Medicine

Dr. Robert Blount joined the Division of Pulmonary, Critical Care & Occupational Medicine as an Assistant Professor on January 2. Dr. Blount received his MD from Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, followed by a residency in Internal Medicine and Pediatrics at the Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center and fellowships in Pediatric Pulmonology and Pulmonary Critical Care Medicine at the University of California, San Francisco. Dr. Blount’s clinical interests include asthma, pulmonary infections, and chronic lung conditions. His research examines air pollution effects on immunity and pulmonary infection. Outside of work, Dr. Blount enjoys hanging out with his family, backpacking, gardening, and beekeeping.

Kan Liu, MD, PhD – Clinical Associate Professor
Division of Cardiovascular Medicine

Dr. Kan Liu joined the Division of Cardiovascular Medicine as a Clinical Associate Professor on February 5, when he assumed the dual role of Director of Echocardiography and Director of the Richard E. Kerber Echocardiography Laboratory. Dr. Liu graduated from the Sun Yat-Sen University of Medical Sciences in China, followed by a residency at the First University Hospital there. He completed a Fellowship in the Division of Cardiology at the Fukuoka University School of Medicine in Japan, after which he relocated to the United States where he completed a PhD in Molecular and Cellular Biology at the University of Alabama at Birmingham. Dr. Liu completed a residency in Internal Medicine at the University of Texas Medical Branch in Galveston, and a Cardiology Fellowship at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, Missouri. He joined the Division of Cardiology at SUNY Upstate Medical University in Syracuse, NY as an Assistant Professor in 2009, and was most recently an Associate Professor in Internal Medicine and Radiology and Director of the Echocardiography Lab there. Dr. Liu will round on the inpatient cardiology services, see outpatients, and read/perform echocardiographic, nuclear, and MRI studies. In his role as the Director of Echocardiography and Director of the Echocardiography Laboratory, Dr. Liu will be charged with expanding clinical services, strengthening the educational program, and building a successful clinical research program.

Shayna Melvani, MD – Clinical Assistant Professor
Division of Immunology

Dr. Shayna Melvani joined the Division of Immunology as a Clinical Assistant Professor on February 1, 2018. Dr. Melvani received her MD from Jefferson Medical College in Philadelphia, followed by an Internal Medicine Residency and a fellowship in Allergy & Immunology at Rush University Medical Center in Chicago. Dr. Melvani’s clinical interests include environmental allergies, allergen immunotherapy, food allergy, urticaria, angioedema, atopic dermatitis, and asthma. When not in the clinic, she enjoys traveling to new places and trying out delicious recipes!

Minati Singh, PhD – Associate
Division of Nephrology

Dr. Minati Singh joined the Division of Nephrology at the beginning of 2018. Dr. Singh is an Associate in Dr. Chou-Long Huang’s lab, which focuses on ion channel physiology and the role of anti-aging protein Klotho in central nervous system. Dr. Singh received her PhD from the University of Alberta and joined the University of Iowa after a postdoctoral fellowship at Vanderbilt University. Most recently, she worked in the HHMI with Dr. Val Sheffield on mice models of BBS syndrome. In her spare time, Dr. Singh likes to volunteer and do floral arrangements.