Elizabeth M. McNally is an American human geneticist and cardiologist. She is the Elizabeth J. Ward Chair and director of the Center for Genetic Medicine at

Northwestern University Northwestern University is a private research university in Evanston, Illinois. Founded in 1851, Northwestern is the oldest chartered university in Illinois and is ranked among the most prestigious academic institutions in the world. Charte ...

Feinberg School of Medicine Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine is the medical school of Northwestern University and is located in the Streeterville neighborhood of Chicago, Illinois. Founded in 1859, Feinberg offers a full-time Doctor of Medicine degree p ...

. In 2021, McNally was elected a member of the

National Academy of Medicine The National Academy of Medicine (NAM), formerly called the Institute of Medicine (IoM) until 2015, is an American nonprofit, non-governmental organization. The National Academy of Medicine is a part of the National Academies of Sciences, En ...

"for discovering genetic variants responsible for multiple distinct inherited cardiac and skeletal myopathic disorders and pioneering techniques for mapping modifiers of single gene disorders by integrating genomic and transcriptomic data to define the pathways that mediate disease risk and progression."

Early life and education

McNally was born and raised in Chicago, Illinois. Growing up, she became inspired to pursue a career in science in part due to the Museum of Science and Industry in Chicago. She completed her undergraduate degree in biology and philosophy from

Barnard College Barnard College of Columbia University is a private women's liberal arts college in the borough of Manhattan in New York City. It was founded in 1889 by a group of women led by young student activist Annie Nathan Meyer, who petitioned Columbia ...

Columbia University Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhatt ...

before pursuing her

medical degree A medical degree is a professional degree admitted to those who have passed coursework in the fields of medicine and/or surgery from an accredited medical school. Obtaining a degree in medicine allows for the recipient to continue on into special ...

and PhD from the

Albert Einstein College of Medicine Albert Einstein College of Medicine is a research-intensive medical school located in the Morris Park neighborhood of the Bronx in New York City. Founded in 1953, Einstein operates as an independent degree-granting institution as part of t ...

. McNally then trained in internal medicine and cardiovascular medicine at the

Brigham and Women’s Hospital Brigham and Women's Hospital (BWH) is the second largest teaching hospital of Harvard Medical School and the largest hospital in the Longwood Medical Area in Boston, Massachusetts. Along with Massachusetts General Hospital, it is one of the two f ...

and completed her postdoctoral training in genetics at

Boston Children's Hospital Boston Children's Hospital formerly known as Children's Hospital Boston until 2012 is a nationally ranked, freestanding acute care children's hospital located in Boston, Massachusetts, adjacent both to its teaching affiliate, Harvard Medical Scho ...

Howard Hughes Medical Institute The Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI) is an American non-profit medical research organization based in Chevy Chase, Maryland. It was founded in 1953 by Howard Hughes, an American business magnate, investor, record-setting pilot, engineer, fil ...

Career

Following her postdoctoral training, McNally joined the faculty at the

University of Chicago The University of Chicago (UChicago, Chicago, U of C, or UChi) is a private research university in Chicago, Illinois. Its main campus is located in Chicago's Hyde Park neighborhood. The University of Chicago is consistently ranked among the b ...

(UChicago) as an

assistant professor Assistant Professor is an academic rank just below the rank of an associate professor used in universities or colleges, mainly in the United States and Canada. Overview This position is generally taken after earning a doctoral degree and general ...

in 1996. While working in this role, she was named one of four recipients of the Charles E. Culpeper Foundation Scholarships in Medical Science for 1998 to study the inherited nature of human disease. McNally was eventually promoted to the rank of

associate professor Associate professor is an academic title with two principal meanings: in the North American system and that of the ''Commonwealth system''. Overview In the ''North American system'', used in the United States and many other countries, it is a ...

in medicine and human genetics in 2003 and elected to the

American Society for Clinical Investigation The American Society for Clinical Investigation (ASCI), established in 1908, is one of the oldest and most respected medical honor societies in the United States. Organization and purpose The ASCI is an honorary society to which more than 2,800 ph ...

. During her lengthy tenure at UChicago, McNally's research into genetic modifiers of myopathies resulted in the detection of several new protective pathways.

Northwestern University

In 2014, McNally was recruited to become the Elizabeth J. Ward Chair and director of the Center for Genetic Medicine at

. While serving in this role, she was elected into the

National Academy of Inventors The National Academy of Inventors (NAI) is a US non-profit organization dedicated to encouraging inventors in academia, following the model of the National Academies of the United States. It was founded at the University of South Florida in 2010. ...

and

American Academy of Arts and Sciences The American Academy of Arts and Sciences (abbreviation: AAA&S) is one of the oldest learned societies in the United States. It was founded in 1780 during the American Revolution by John Adams, John Hancock, James Bowdoin, Andrew Oliver, and ...

. At the start of the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...

, McNally collaborated with Feinberg investigators to develop an at-home COVID-19 antibody test that can determine prior exposure to the SAR-CoV-2 virus. In 2021, McNally was elected a member of the

Personal life

McNally is married to Steve Kron, a professor of molecular genetics and cell biology.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:McNally, Elizabeth M. Living people Human geneticists Physicians from Chicago American cardiologists Albert Einstein College of Medicine alumni Barnard College alumni Northwestern University faculty University of Chicago faculty Members of the National Academy of Medicine Members of the American Society for Clinical Investigation Fellows of the National Academy of Inventors Fellows of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences Year of birth missing (living people) Academic journal editors