Principal Investigator

Associate Director of the Pediatric Surgical Research Laboratories, Massachusetts General Hospital
Associate Molecular Biologist, Massachusetts General Hospital
Associate Professor, Harvard Medical School

David Pépin was trained as a molecular and developmental biologist at the University of Ottawa, Canada, where he completed a PhD elucidating the role of chromatin remodeling during ovarian development and in ovarian cancers. In 2011, Dr. Pépin joined the Pediatric Surgical Research Laboratories as a Research Fellow at the Massachusetts General Hospital, in Boston to continue his training in ovarian cancer research. In 2016, Dr. Pépin established his laboratory as an Assistant Professor in the Pediatric Surgical Research Laboratories of the Massachusetts General Hospital. His research focuses on women’s health and particularly female reproductive development, ovarian physiology, and ovarian cancer.

Research Fellow
Marie C. Meinsohn is a postdoctoral fellow in the Pepin Laboratory studying ovarian development, contraception, and ovarian cancer. Dr. Meinsohn holds two master’s degrees, one in Bioengineering and Life Science, and the other in Image Processing, Robotics and Biomedical Engineering, and holds a Doctor of Philosophy in Biomedical Sciences. Before joining the Pepin Laboratory, Dr. Meinsohn completed her PhD studies at the University of Montreal in the laboratory of Bruce D. Murphy, PhD where she studied the role of the orphan nuclear receptor Nr5a2 on the ovarian function with a focus on granulosa cell proliferation and ovarian reserve activation.

Project: Reversible Contraceptives that Block Primordial Follicles (Bill and Melinda Gates Grand Exploration Challenge)

Research Fellow

Maëva Chauvin joined the Pépin Laboratory in 2020 after completing her PhD at the Institut de Recherche en Cancérologie (Cancer Research Institute) in Montpellier, France where she studied the the role of anti-Müllerian hormone and its receptors in gynecological cancers and developed therapeutic antibodies. She is currently studying how the AMH/AMHR2 pathway may regulate the tumor microenvironment in ovarian cancer.

Project: “Therapeutic strategies targeting the AMH/AMHR2 axis to modulate the ovarian tumor microenvironment” (Department of Defense Ovarian Cancer Academy).

Research Fellow

Philippe Godin is a trained veterinarian who completed a PhD in ovarian biology in the laboratory of Dr. Derek Boerboom at the Université de Montréal, where he studied the roles of the Hippo signaling pathway in the murine ovulatory cascade.

He joined the Pépin lab in 2022 to work on the development and testing of anti-Müllerian hormone-based contraceptives in female cats and dogs. He combines his expertise on folliculogenesis and ovulation with his veterinary background to improve the current therapies and better understand their mechanism of action in vivo.

He is a board game enthusiast: his Wingspan all-time high score is 94 (1).

Projects: “Single injection of AAV9 Mullerian Inhibiting Substance as an ideal permanent contraceptive” and “Vectored contraception in the female dog by Mullerian inhibiting substance” (The Michelson Found Animals Foundation)

1- Godin, P., Chénier, V., Roy, S-P. & Soucy, S. Journal (scorepad) of the Wingspan Base Game, North American Edition (2022).

Research Fellow

Phuong Nguyen joined the Pépin lab after completing her Doctor of Philosophy in Human/Medical Genetics at McGill University under the training of Dr. Rima Slim. Dr. Nguyen is currently using single-cell RNA sequencing to study the mechanisms of chemotherapy-related damage on the ovary and uterus, and the protective role of AMH in oncofertility.

Project: “Mechanisms of fertility protection by Mullerian inhibiting substance in the female reproductive tract during chemotherapy” (NIH, NICHD)

Research Fellow

Dr. Chang attained her MD and PhD from Ewha Womans University. She is currently an Associated Professor in the Division of Reproductive Endocrinology and Infertility, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Gangnam CHA Fertility Center, CHA University, Seoul, South Korea. Dr. Chang joined the Pépin lab in 2022 to evaluate the role of recombinant human AMH as a fertoprotective adjuvant to prevent chemotherapy-induced ovarian damage.

Project: “Mechanisms of fertility protection by Mullerian inhibiting substance in the female reproductive tract during chemotherapy” (NIH, NICHD)

Research Technician II

Nicholas Nagykery is one of the Pépin lab’s skilled research technicians with expertise in developing ELISAs, producing recombinant protein, and performing ex vivo urogenital assays.

Project: “Single injection of AAV9 Mullerian Inhibiting Substance as an ideal permanent contraceptive” (The Michelson Found Animals Foundation).

Research Technologist

Aki Kashiwaki joined the Pépin Laboratory in 2020. Dr. Kashiwagi obtained her medical degree and completed her residency in OB/GYN in Japan. She then completed her PhD in Biochemistry in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at Keio University, Japan. She brings vast medical expertise in OB/GYN to the laboratory, particularly in histological assessment of ovaries and uteri.

Project: “Single injection of AAV9 Mullerian Inhibiting Substance as an ideal permanent contraceptive” (The Michelson Found Animals Foundation).

Clinical Fellow

Dr. Fitz attained her Medical Degree from the University of Virginia School of Medicine and completed her residency at the University of North Carolina Hospitals. Dr. Fitz is a Clinical Fellow in Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Biology at Massachusetts General Hospital. Alongside her clinical work, Dr. Fitz investigates the role of AMH on granulosa cell luteinisation.

Project: “Evaluation of MIS response in follicular aspirates”

Research Technician

Josephine joined the Pépin Laboratory in 2023. She received her undergraduate degree studying Animal Behavior at Franklin & Marshall college in 2022. Josephine was involved in projects pertaining to wildlife management, migration, and predator and prey dynamics. She also worked as a veterinary technician for a small animal clinic in New Jersey.

Josephine offers a great technical support on a variety of projects in the Pépin laboratory: from the development of safe AMH-based pet contraceptives for pets to AMH applications in women fertility and ovarian cancer treatments.