Chemistry Seminar: Naomi Lee, Northern Arizona University

Carnegie Mellon University Department of Chemistry Fall 2026 Seminar Series Naomi Lee Northern Arizona University The more you know… about HPV and cervical cancer in Native American women Host: Bruce Armitage Friday, November 6, 2026 12:30 p.m. Mellon Institute Conference Room 348 Abstract: Despite the highest rates of HPV vaccination, Native American women have the highest prevalence of cervical cancer incidence compared to other racial and ethnic groups. Unfortunately, Native American communities were not included in earlier studies focused on HPV prevalence. Thus, Dr. Lee will discuss applying the Two-Eyed Seeing guiding principle to address HPV-associated health disparities in Native American communities. The Two-Eyed Seeing principle combines the strengths of Indigenous ways of knowing with Western ways of science. The talk will highlight research projects surrounding community education, investing in Indigenous researchers, and generating data to develop interventions about HPV among Native communities. In addition, Dr. Lee uses culturally informed biomedical research to design new vaccines to target HPV and other infectious and chronic diseases in Native American communities. Recent findings show the current HPV vaccine does not cover the most prevalent HPV types in two geographically distinct Native American communities. As such, Dr. Lee’s research team is developing a virus-like particle-based vaccine to offer cross reactivity against multiple HPV types, including the most prevalent (HPV-51) in Native American communities. Bio: Dr. Naomi Lee is from the Seneca Nation of Indians and grew up on the Cattaraugus Reservation in western New York. Dr. Lee received a B.S. in biochemistry from Rochester Institute of Technology. She also completed an M.S. and Ph.D. in chemistry from the University of Rochester. From 2013-2015, Dr. Lee was an NINDS postdoctoral fellow under the mentorship of Dr. Steven Jacobson. Currently, Dr. Lee is an Associate Professor in the Depa