Gil Yosipovitch, M.D., Professor, is an internationally recognized leader in the field of dermatology and itch-related diseases. He is leading the Itch Center, which focuses on chronic itch as a disease state. The center serves as an institutional hub for patient-focused care, research collaborations and interactions among investigative dermatologists, neuro- and other bio-medical scientists. These specialists’ efforts will focus on a better understanding of chronic itch that may lead to new therapies for this common affliction. Dr. Yosipovitch investigates the causes and treatments of chronic itch in skin diseases and systemic diseases.
Prior to joining the faculty of University of Miami, Dr. Yosipovitch was founding Chair of the Department of Dermatology at Temple University and directed the first translational, clinical and research center dedicated to the study of chronic itch in the US. He has been awarded dozens of grants from the government, industry and private foundations to pursue his investigations into the causes and cures of diseases of the skin. He has published more than 400 articles in books and peer reviewed journals and has edited 4 books.
He is the founder and past president of the International Forum for the Study of Itch and is the current Scientific Director of the National Eczema Association. He has been a board member of 7 key dermatology journals. In addition, he received one of the highest awards in dermatology, the Marion B. Sulzberger lectureship award, at the 2016 AAD meeting for his work on itch. Dr. Yosipovitch was awarded several other prestigious awards for his research including the Heinz Maurer prize by the German Dermatology Society in 1998 and the inaugural Jeff Bernhard award in the World Conference of Itch in Boston in 2013. During his 11 years of tenure at Wake Forest School of Medicine, he received the Clinical Investigator Award and the Friends of Students’ Award for Teacher of the Year.
Dr. Yosipovitch has given more than 500 invited lectures to dermatology groups and organizations around the world and has mentored more than 30 fellows, PhD students and post-Doc fellows.
Hideki Mochizuki, Ph.D.
Hideki Mochizuki, Ph.D., is a Research Assistant Professor at the Phillip Frost Department of Dermatology and Cutaneous Surgery. He received his Ph.D. from Tohoku University, School of Medicine. Dr. Mochizuki was a postdoc at the National Center of Neurology and Psychiatry from 2004-2007 and the National Institute for Physiological Science from 2007-2009. His research interests include brain-skin communication. In particular, he has conducted human brain imaging studies to better understand the basic brain mechanisms of itch and scratching. He studies the pathophysiology of chronic itch using a variety of imaging techniques such as functional magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), positron emission tomography (PET), electroencephalography (EEG), and magnetoencephalography (MEG), as well as noninvasive brain stimulation devices such as transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS).
Leigh Nattkemper, Ph.D.
Leigh Nattkemper, Ph.D., an Assistant Professor, earned her Bachelor of Science in Microbiology and her Masters of Science in Molecular Medicine from the University of South Florida. She earned a Doctor of Philosophy degree in Biomedical Sciences with a concentration in Neuroscience from Temple University. Dr. Nattkemper’s research interests involve the investigation of the neuroanatomy and neurophysiology of chronic pruritus. Her basic research focuses on understanding the molecular and neurological pathways that are involved in chronic itch, while her translational research focuses on developing human itch induction models. Dr. Nattkemper works alongside Dr. Gil Yosipovitch in developing new therapeutic compounds and directing the Miami Itch Center’s clinical trial program.
Tasuku Akiyama, Ph.D.
Tasuku Akiyama, Ph.D., joined the department as Assistant Professor in 2016. He received his Ph.D. from the Toyama University under the mentorship of Prof. Kuraishi who is a pioneer of pre-clinical animal models of itch. Dr. Akiyama was a post-doctoral fellow in the Department of Neurobiology, Physiology and Behavior at UC Davis from 2008 to 2012, where he conducted research on the peripheral and spinal mechanisms of itch and pain sensations. His laboratory works on mechanisms that drive chronic itch at the systemical, cellular, and molecular levels. Dr. Akiyama also focuses on brain circuits underlying itch processing. He serves on the section editor for Acta Dermato-Venereologica. He published more than 35 peer-reviewed articles in international journals, 6 of these as corresponding author and 27 as first author.
