Lubna Tahtamouni

Lubna Hamid Tawfiq Tahtamouni (; born 24 January 1976) is a Jordanian biologist known for her work in developmental biology and cancer research. She is the head of the Department of Biology and Biotechnology at Hashemite University in Zarqa, Jordan. She has won multiple awards for her work on breast cancer, and is known as an advocate for allowing young women in the Arab world to choose a career in science. In 2016, she was named one of BBC's 100 Women.

Early life and education Tahtamouni was the third of six children and was raised in Irbid in northern Jordan, a city known for its well-educated residents. She attended the University of Jordan, earning a bachelor's degree in 1997 and a master's degree in 2000. She was placed in a biology program as an undergraduate due to her high test scores.

She did her Ph.D. work in the United States at Colorado State University, graduating in 2005, Some of the classes she oversaw were Embryology and General Practical Biology, from 1997 to 2000. . There, she set off to help inspire young women to advance their science studies , out of commitment to the institutions that supported her move to the United States. Also in 2011, she won a L'Oreal-UNESCO Pan-Arab Regional Fellowship for Women in Science, and an OWSD Award for Young Women Scientists from the Developing World, and she was named one of BBC's 100 Women for 2016. As of 2016, her research interests include actin-binding proteins in chick embryos and breast cancer, human sperm chromatin abnormalities, and the effects of oxidative stress on cell metabolism. In an interview she said that "Jordan is very permissive when it comes to women's education and work, but traditionally women's priorities are pre-defined: her husband, children and household," College of Natural Sciences Summer International Scholars Program Award, 2012. L'OREAL-UNESCO For Women in Science Pan-Arab Regional Fellowship, 2011. Organization for Women in Science for the Developing World (OWSD) Award for Young Women Scientists in Biology for the Arab Region for 2011. King Hussein Institute for Biotechnology and Cancer (KHIBC) Scholar, 2009. First place on the Student Scientific Research Competition, King Abdallah Fund for Development, The Hashemite University, 2008.