Dr. Kirsi Järvinen-Seppo received her MD and
PhD degrees from the University of Helsinki,
Finland and completed a postdoctoral
research fellowship at the Jaffe Food
Allergy Institute at the Mount Sinai School of
Medicine in New York. Following academic
appointments at the Mount Sinai School
of Medicine and Albany Medical College,
Dr. Järvinen-Seppo joined the University
of Rochester School of Medicine, where
she is currently an Associate Professor of
Pediatrics and Chief of Pediatric Allergy and
Immunology. She also holds the Founder’s
Distinguished Professorship in Pediatric Allergy
at the Golisano Children’s Hospital.
Dr. Järvinen-Seppo’s research is focused on
identifying protective mechanisms against
food allergy, including breast milk factors,
with the goal of designing better strategies
for the primary prevention of allergic and
atopic diseases in childhood. Utilizing
human cohorts, her lab is studying the role of
breast milk bioactive components and early
environmental exposures in the development
of the neonatal immune system and oral
tolerance to foods. Dr. Järvinen-Seppo has
authored over 40 journal publications and
book chapters and given numerous lectures
and congress presentations. Her research has
earned her awards from the National Institute
of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) and
the American Academy of Allergy, Asthma,
and Immunology (AAAAI). Dr. Järvinen-
Seppo also serves as Director of the Center for
Food Allergy at Golisano Children’s Hospital,
a multidisciplinary program centered on
providing care to families with food allergies..