Lindsey A. Criswell, M.D., M.P.H., D.Sc., is a rheumatologist and human genetic epidemiologist who has played a major role in the identification of genes and environmental factors that contribute to risk and outcome of autoimmune rheumatic diseases. Dr. Criswell has substantial training and experience in epidemiologic and statistical methods for identifying genes that contribute to complex human disorders. Dr. Criswell’s contributions to genome-wide association studies (GWAS) of systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), rheumatoid arthritis (RA), and Sjögren’s disease resulted in the identification of many genes that contribute to these disorders. In addition to leading projects that seek to refine genotype-phenotype associations for specific manifestations of autoimmune diseases, Dr. Criswell also leads studies that seek to determine whether epigenetic factors, such as differences in DNA methylation status, contribute to risk and outcome of SLE, RA and Sjögren’s disease.

With 20 years’ experience recruiting and enrolling autoimmune disease patients for participation in genetic and epidemiologic studies, Dr. Criswell played a major role in the development of several national and international consortia. As vice chancellor of research at the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF), she was responsible for directing UCSF’s effort to advance innovative, collaborative, and interdisciplinary biomedical research across the university’s professional schools and graduate programs. Dr. Criswell also served as the program director for the National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases (NIAMS) P30 Precision Medicine in Rheumatology (PREMIER) Center and was co-PI for the Clinical and Translational Science Institute at UCSF. More recently, Dr. Criswell served as the director of the National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases (NIAMS), and she continues to serve as head of the Genomics of Autoimmune Rheumatic Disease Section at the National Human Genome Research Institute (NHGRI). Dr. Criswell is deeply committed to mentoring at all levels and has personally mentored more than 50 predoctoral, doctoral, and postdoctoral trainees. She has also been elected to the Association of American Physicians and the National Academy of Medicine.