Principal Investigator
Daniel Cook, MD, PhD
Assistant Professor of Internal Medicine
Pulmonary, Critical Care, & Occupational Medicine
Dr. Cook is a physician-scientist who studies the intersection of allergic disease and cystic fibrosis. He earned his BS in Biological Sciences and BA in Chemistry (summa cum laude) at the University of Missouri, and his MD and PhD at the University of Iowa Carver College of Medicine, where his doctoral work defined the role of CFTR in airway smooth muscle and airway hyperreactivity using a porcine model of CF. He completed Internal Medicine residency in the Physician Scientist Training Pathway at Vanderbilt University Medical Center before returning to Iowa to launch his independent laboratory.
Team Members
Danielle Yanda
319-335-1574 | danielle-yanda@uiowa.edu
Danielle is the lab’s manager and a Research Specialist with research interests in cystic fibrosis and adaptive and innate immunology. She is hands on in the Cook Lab’s day to day research and works directly with mouse models of allergic airway disease and cystic fibrosis that underpin the lab's work on CFTR, type 2 inflammation, and immune cell biology. She has been with the University of Iowa for 15 years and has served as the Cook Lab's manager for nearly 3. Outside of the lab she enjoys cheering on Iowa Hawkeye Sports, traveling with her partner, and time with her son.
Mike Shlossman, MD
Division of Pulmonary, Critical Care, and Occupational Medicine, Department of Internal Medicine
Dr. Shlossman is a pulmonary and critical care medicine fellow with research interests in cystic fibrosis, airway inflammation, and translational immunology. He earned his BS in biological sciences from Virginia Tech before obtaining his MD from the Virginia Tech Carilion School of Medicine. He then completed internal medicine residency at the University of Iowa where he is currently completing fellowship training.
Daisy Hernandez, BS
Immunology Program
Daisy is a PhD candidate whose project focuses on group 2 innate lymphoid cells (ILC2s) in the lung during allergic disease and their contribution to type 2 inflammation. She obtained her B.S. in Genetics and Microbiology from Iowa State University. Her interests involve reading, traveling, and eating. Go Valkyries and Cyclones!
Maithreyi Prakash, MS
Immunology Program
Maithreyi is PhD student in the Cook Lab, whose research focuses on understanding intestinal disease in the context of cystic fibrosis. She holds a master’s degree in Cellular & Molecular Medicine from the University of Arizona, where she investigated how Amish dust exposure influences the maintenance of airway epithelial barrier integrity. Outside the lab, Maithreyi enjoys hiking and exploring cuisines from around the world.
Sarah Winckler
Sarah is a research technician in the Cook Lab, providing hands on laboratory support across the group's projects which focus on CFTR, allergic disease, and cystic fibrosis.
Former Lab Members
| Name | Research Training Period | Position Held |
|---|---|---|
| Guillermo Romano Ibarra | Fall 2025-Spring 2026 | Postdoctoral Research Scholar |