Lisa M. Halvorson, M.D.

The regulation of the hypothalamic-pituitary function is critically important in the function of the gonads. In this issue, Dr. Lisa Halvorson has enthusiastically developed an issue to keep the readers of Seminars in Reproductive Medicine up to date.

As many of the readers know, several former fellows and faculty have served in the role of Guest Editor. In this issue, Dr. Halvorson, who joined our faculty in 2002 and is an expert on gonadotropin function (in particular, luteinizing hormone β [LHβ] gene expression), has recruited several talented investigators and clinicians to compile an issue focused on the hypothalamic-pituitary-gonadotropin axis. I anticipate that these articles will be very useful to our readers.

Dr. Halvorson graduated with an M.D. from Johns Hopkins Medical School in 1987. She completed her residency in Obstetrics & Gynecology at Beth Israel Hospital in Boston and a Fellowship in Reproductive Endocrinology and Infertility at Tufts/New England Medical Center.

Dr. Halvorson has a long-standing interest in the molecular biology of the gonadotrophs of the anterior pituitary gland. She completed two postdoctoral training fellowships in the Reproductive Endocrine and Thyroid Units at Massachusetts General Hospital and in the Division of Genetics at the Brigham and Women's Hospital, both in Boston. Her other research interests include the role of pituitary adenylate cyclase-activating peptide in autocrine-paracrine regulation of pituitary gene expression, as well as the effect of pituitary aging on the development of reproductive senescence in females. She has contributed to the literature in each of these areas.

Dr. Halvorson is currently Associate Professor and Director of the Division of Reproductive Endocrinology and Infertility in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas, TX. She is also a member of the Integrative Biology Graduate Program at this institution and participates in graduate student training.

She has received multiple awards, including the Rensellaer Award for Math and Science, the Lewis L. Engel Junior Research Fellowship of the American Cancer Society, the Association of Professors of Obstetrics and Gynecology Excellence in Teaching Award, and the Frontiers in Reproduction Distinguished Alumni Award. She has been awarded research funding through the American Society of Reproductive Medicine/Ortho Research Grant in Reproduction, the Society for Gynecologic Bridge Grant Program, as well as the National Institutes of Health/American Gynecologic and Obstetric Society-Reproductive Scientist Development Program. She has also received a National Research Service Award as well as R03 and R01 funding through the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development and the National Institute of Aging.

Dr. Halvorson is a member of the Endocrine Society, the Society for Gynecologic Investigation, the American Society of Reproductive Medicine, and the Society for the Study of Reproduction.