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Education

  • California State University, Northridge, California – MS in Neuroimmunology
  • North Dakota State University, Fargo, North Dakota – PhD in Molecular Pathogenesis
  • St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, Memphis, Tennessee – Postdoctoral Fellowship in Infectious Disease

Professional Activities

Dr. Samarasinghe is a faculty member in the Division of Allergy, Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine within the Department of Medicine. She currently serves as a standing member in Lung Immunology and Infection (LII) Study Section for the Center for Scientific Review and is an elected co-chair of American Lung Association (ALA) Study Section Panel. Dr. Samarasinghe is a Fellow in the American Thoracic Society.

She has authored or co-authored over 40 publications including peer reviewed publications as well as reviews, case reports and other publications. Dr. Samarasinghe has also received numerous awards, including the Research Excellence Award from the ALA in 2017 as well as the Excellence in Leukocyte Biology Mid-Career Award from the Society for Leukocyte Biology in 2023.

Clinical Specialties

Dr. Samarasinghe's clinical interests mainly focus on allergic asthma and T2 inflammatory respiratory conditions. While she does not see patients, she works closely with clinicians in the UW Health Allergy, Asthma and Immunology Clinic.

Research Interests

View Dr. Amali Samarasinghe’s publications on NCBI My Bibliography

Dr. Samarasinghe’s research interests include allergic asthma, altered immune responses in asthma patients during respiratory viral and bacterial infections, and developing novel therapies and clinical care practices to reduce the healthcare burden.

Her lab was the first to identify that eosinophilic asthma was host protective during the 2009 pandemic influenza virus infection and that eosinophils played a crucial role in this protection. Ongoing studies are aimed at:

  • Identifying antiviral responses in allergic asthma against common respiratory viral infections
  • Identifying antibacterial responses in allergic asthma against common respiratory bacterial infections that occur either independently or as opportunistic infections
  • Understanding the cardio-pulmonary relationship during complex lung disease. 
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