Dr. Mehdi Rashighi is a physician-scientist and Assistant Professor in the Department of Dermatology at the University of Massachusetts (UMass) Chan Medical School in Worcester, Massachusetts. He earned his MD from Tehran University of Medical Sciences in Iran. In 2011, Dr. Rashighi joined Dr. John Harris’s vitiligo research laboratory at UMass Chan Medical School, where he utilized basic and translational research approaches to uncover a critical immune pathway involved in the pathogenesis of vitiligo. This discovery led to the successful off-label use of JAK inhibitors for vitiligo and subsequently informed the design and implementation of clinical trials for these therapies.

Dr. Rashighi established the Connective Tissue Disease Clinic and Research Center following his dermatology residency at UMass. Through this initiative, he advances translational and clinical research to deepen understanding of autoimmune processes in inflammatory skin diseases, emphasizing developing innovative, targeted treatments.