Lisa A. Beck, M.D.

Dr. Beck brings more than 20 years' experience to the treatment of atopic dermatitis and eczema. She is currently involved in an NIH-funded study to determine why certain patients are susceptible to the herpes simplex and Staphylococcus aureus viruses. Dr. Beck received her undergraduate degree from Mount Holyoke College and her medical degree from the State University of New York at Stony Brook.

Research

Dr. Beck's research interests are in three interrelated areas. First, we are interested in characterizing the epithelial tight junction defects at the molecular level in atopic dermatitis, the most common inflammatory skin disease in man. Numerous projects radiate from that central theme and include – 1) how do these defects differ in other inflammatory skin diseases such as chronic urticaria, psoriasis, CTCL, 2) what effects do various pharmacologic agents have on TJ function and structure, 3) can protease containing allergens or microbes affect TJ function and if so how. A second area of focus is evaluating the magnitude and character of the microbial responsiveness of keratinocytes (cutaneous epithelial cells) from atopic dermatitis subjects compared to nonatopic healthy controls. When differences are noted we are trying to determine the basis for these differences and believe this line of inquiry may explain AD subjects' susceptibility to colonization and infection with numerous bacteria, viruses and even yeast. Our third area has been to understand why there is such a paucity of tissue neutrophils in lesions from subjects with atopic dermatitis. These studies are not as advanced but suggest that there are phenotypic differences in AD neutrophils' responsiveness to the potent chemoattractant, IL-8 (CXCL8) compared to nonatopic controls.

Credentials

Education

1981
BA | Mount Holyoke College
Chemistry

1985
MD | Stony Brook Univ Health Sciences Center School of Medicine
Medicine

Post-doctoral Training & Residency

07/01/1987 - 07/31/1990
Residency in Dermatology at Duke University Medical Center

07/01/1986 - 07/31/1987
Residency in Internal Medicine at University of Rochester Medical Center

06/27/1985 - 07/31/1986
Internship in Internal Medicine at University of Rochester Medical Center

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Awards

2008
Dermatology Faculty Teaching Award
Sponsor: University of Rochester Medical Center

2007
Mentor for NEASE Skin Research Grant Recipient
Sponsor: NEASE

2007
Mentor for AAAAI Summer Research Grant Recipient
Sponsor: AAAAI

2006
Mentor for Astellas Skin Research Grant Recipient
Sponsor: Astellas

2005
Mentor for Fujisawa AAAAI Research Grant Recipient
Sponsor: Fujisawa

1997
Mentor for Howard Hughes Summer Fellowship Recipient
Sponsor: Howard Hughes

1994
Physician-Scientist Award
Sponsor: National Institute of Health

1994
Research Award
Sponsor: Dermatology Foundation

1992
Teaching Appreciation Award
Sponsor: Johns Hopkins University
Location: Dermatology Department

1992
Internal Medicine Teaching Award
Sponsor: Francis Scott Key Medical Center

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Patents

Title: Designed Peptides for Tight Junction Barrier Modulation
U.S. Serial #: 14/912,098
Filed: Aug 18, 2014
Invented By: Elizabeth Anderson, Lisa Beck, Anna De Benedetto, Benjamin Miller

Title: System and Method for Studying Epidermis Samples Ex Vivo
U.S. Serial #: 13/743,879
Filed: Jan 17, 2013
Invented By: Lisa Beck, Anna De Benedetto

Publications

Journal Articles

11/1/2018
Kwon CW, Beck LA. "Severe atopic dermatitis: Therapeutic update." Allergy and asthma proceedings :. 2018 Nov 1; 39(6):411-419.

10/2018
Simpson EL, Villarreal M, Jepson B, Rafaels N, David G, Hanifin J, Taylor P, Boguniewicz M, Yoshida T, De Benedetto A, Barnes KC, Leung DYM, Beck LA. "Patients with Atopic Dermatitis Colonized with Staphylococcus aureus Have a Distinct Phenotype and Endotype." The Journal of investigative dermatology.. 2018 Oct; 138(10):2224-2233. Epub 2018 Mar 28.

10/2017
Li S, Villarreal M, Stewart S, Choi J, Indra G, Babineau DC, Philpot C, David G, Yoshida T, Boguniewicz M, Hanifin J, Beck LA, Leung D, Simpson E, Indra AK. "Altered composition of epidermal lipids correlates with Staphylococcus aureus colonization status in atopic dermatitis." The British journal of dermatology.. 2017 Oct; 177(4):e125-e127. Epub 2017 Sep 05.

Books & Chapters

2008
Chapter Title: Update on the Managment of Atopic Dermatitis
Book Title: Allergy Frontiers: Epigenetics to Future Perspectives
Author List: Ibrahim SF, DeBenedetto A, Beck LA
Edited By: Pawankar R, Holgate S, Rosenwasser L
Published By: Springer 2008 in Tokyo, Japan

2007
Chapter Title: Regulation of the Production and Activation of Eosinophils and Neutrophils
Book Title: Dermatology in General Medicine
Author List: Beck LA, Loveless J, Holland S
Edited By: Freedberg I, Katz S, Wolff K, Eisen A, Austen KF and Goldsmith L
Published By: McGraw-Hill Co. 2007 in New York

2004
Chapter Title: Dermatitis
Book Title: Current Therapy in Allergy, Immunology and Rheumatology
Author List: Beck LA
Edited By: Lichtenstein LM, Busse WW and Geha RS
Published By: Mosby Yearbook Inc. 2004 in St. Louis

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