Dr. Branka S.

While in Serbia, Dr. Stanic worked as a physician-scientist and clinical pathologist at the Clinical Center of Vojvodina. She gained experience as a Co-Investigator and Principal Investigator at the Clinical Center of Vojvodina’s Children’s Hospital. She also served as Principal Investigator of the Endocrinology Diagnostics and Human Reproduction Lab. She mentored medical students in the Department of Pathophysiology, as well as residents across laboratory medicine and pathology, supporting their academic development and research training. As a Principal Investigator, Dr. Stanic oversaw study design, regulatory strategy, patient recruitment, and data analysis across metabolic disorders, hypertension, and hyperparathyroidism in investigator-initiated clinical studies. 

As a researcher, Dr. Stanic’s work focuses on cardiometabolic diseases, hypertension, and biomarker-driven research. This work is complemented by residency training in laboratory medicine, where she developed expertise in biochemistry, molecular biology, microbiology, infectious diseases, and immunology. Her research portfolio spans cardiometabolic diseases, neuroscience, oncology, pediatrics, and lung pathology. Dr. Stanic’s work has contributed to advancing the understanding of disease mechanisms and biomarker relationships, including novel insights into the interaction between endocrine and cardiovascular systems.

Dr. Stanic conducted pre-clinical and translational pathology studies at Georgetown University as a National Institutes of Health and American Heart Association grant-supported Investigator. Her work examined neuroinflammation in COVID-19 and cardiorenal injury in a calorie-deficit model, with an emphasis on the identification and validation of biomarkers for inflammation, fibrosis, and microglial activation. She has authored numerous peer-reviewed publications in prominent journals, such as the International Journal of Endocrinology, the American Journal of Physiology-Regulatory, Integrative and Comparative Physiology, and Medicina. She has presented her findings at major scientific meetings, winning the Top Poster Award at the Association for Clinical and Translational Science (ACTS) Annual Meeting. She currently works as a translational research scientist at Georgetown University. 

Dr. Stanic’s work has been recognized with multiple awards, including the Ruth L. Kirschstein (NRSA) Postdoctoral Research Training Award at the Department of Medicine Georgetown University Medical Center, the National Institutes of Health Research Award, the First Place Early Stage Investigator Award, and competitive research presentation honors. She has extensive experience mentoring students and trainees at Georgetown University and the University of Novi Sad Graduate School of Medicine in clinical research and laboratory medicine, guiding them through study design, data interpretation, and scientific writing.

Dr. Stanic has over a decade of research mentorship experience, guiding undergraduate and graduate trainees in translational medicine research methods and laboratory techniques. Her mentoring approach is structured, practical, and results-driven. Dr. Stanic works closely with students to develop strong, publication-ready research projects, emphasizing critical thinking, scientific rigor, and clear communication. Students gain experience in clinical research methodology, biomarker analysis, and the development of impactful poster and oral presentations for scientific conferences, along with strong academic writing skills. She is passionate about helping students build meaningful research experiences and accomplish their academic and career goals.