Oral History Project: Kristin A. Hogquist, PhD-Interview with Kristin A. Hogquist , Ph.D.

Video Transcription

Video Summary

Dr. Christian A. Hochquist describes a “roundabout” path into immunology shaped by rural Minnesota roots (teacher father, nurse mother) and limited early exposure to research careers. She entered college planning to become an occupational therapist, but an anatomy course taught by immunologist Jan Seery sparked a deep fascination with the newly emerging concept of somatic recombination in immune cells. She graduated in biology with a teaching certificate, then took a temporary lab technician job in Dick Lynch’s pathology lab at the University of Iowa. There, mentors—especially Tom Waldschmidt—helped her envision a PhD career and apply to graduate school.<br /><br />At Washington University in St. Louis (1986–1991), she trained in the early immunology program during Emil Unanue’s influential tenure, co-mentored by Unanue and David Chaplin. Her thesis focused on how the cytokine IL-1 is secreted—an unresolved but clinically important problem that later connected to therapeutic IL-1 blockade.<br /><br />For her postdoc with Michael Bevan at the University of Washington, she shifted to thymic T-cell development and helped solidify the “affinity/Goldilocks” model of thymic selection. She highlights Bevan’s integrity, mentorship, and idea-driven lab culture.<br /><br />Hochquist and fellow postdoc Steve Jameson pursued dual faculty jobs, married before the search, and joined the University of Minnesota in 1995 as the Center for Immunology was forming under Matt Mescher. She emphasizes collaborative culture, later advocating for gender equity and serving in leadership roles. She values AAI service—especially public affairs advocacy for NIH funding and better research climate. Her scientific goal is understanding T-cell “education” in the thymus to inform immunodeficiency, autoimmunity, and future T-cell reconstitution therapies.

Asset Caption

Kristin A. Hogquist is David M. Brown Professor and Vice Chair for Research in the Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathology at the University of Minnesota Medical School. She is also the Associate Director of the Center for Immunology at the University of Minnesota. Dr. Hogquist was recipient of the AAI-Thermo Fisher Meritorious Career Award in 2019 and elected a Distinguished Fellow of AAI in 2021.

Keywords

Christian A. Hochquist

immunology career path

somatic recombination

University of Iowa pathology lab

Washington University in St. Louis

IL-1 cytokine secretion

thymic T-cell development

affinity (Goldilocks) model

Michael Bevan mentorship

University of Minnesota Center for Immunology

gender equity and NIH funding advocacy