People

Professor and Principal Investigator

Matt Welch

Professor of Cell Biology, Development & Physiology

B.S., University of Michigan, Ann Arbor

Ph.D., University of California, Berkeley

Postdoc, University of California, San Francisco

Specialists

Taro Ohkawa

Specialist

I study the baculovirus Autographa californica M nucleopolyhedrovirus (AcMNPV) manipulation of the host cell actin cytoskeleton throughout the viral replication cycle. This work is carried out using viral genetics and advanced imaging methods to examine how the virus affects cellular actin. My ongoing research includes studying how AcMNPV uses nuclear-localized actin during replication. Our synthesis of molecular virology and cell biology has led to advances in understanding viral mechanisms of transport and viral usage of the actin cytoskeleton.

B.S., Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Ph.D., University of California, Davis

Postdoc, University of California, Berkeley

Current Graduate Students

Meghan Bacher

Graduate Student Researcher

I am interested in studying the cell biology of host-microbe interactions. My project focuses on comparing the activity of the two actin-based motility effectors RickA and Sca2 that many Rickettsia species use to hijack host cell actin cytoskeleton and move about the host cell in the ancestral species R. bellii and a pathogenic species R. parkeri. By investigating actin based motility in divergent Rickettsia species I aim to better understand how the mechanism of these two effectors have evolved in terms of actin nucleation mechanism and function.

B.S., University of Puget Sound

Cuong (Joseph) Tran

Graduate Student Researcher

The cytosolic niche in endothelial cells (ECs) that Rickettsia establishes during infection suggests intimate molecular interactions occurring between the pathogen and the host, providing a unique opportunity to study both pathogenesis and EC biology. I am interested in characterizing the role of differential actin-based motility mediated by RickA and Sca2 during infection of ECs, as well as the molecular mechanisms of junctional protein dysregulation. I hope to improve our understanding of Rickettsia pathogenesis and to provide insights on EC biology.

B.S., University of California, Irvine

Zahra Zubair-Nizami

Graduate Student Researcher

Rickettsia parkeri occupies a long-term intracellular niche inside host endothelial cells. It also hijacks the host actin cytoskeleton to move freely inside the cytosol. I am interested in studying mediators of actin-based motility -- RickA and Sca2 -- and their regulation in relation to different cellular environments. I hope to improve our understanding of the R. parkeri infectious life cycle, as well as elucidate cellular pathways contributing to RickA and Sca2 expression in early and late phase infection.

B.S., University of Maryland, College Park

Staff Research Associate

Joanna Idrovo

Staff Research Associate

My research interests lie at the intersection of microbiology and biochemistry. I will be contributing to projects focused on characterizing actin-based motility exhibited by R. parkeri and R. bellii. I aim to deepen our comprehension of bacterial physiology and potentially uncover insights with broader implications in microbiology and cell biology.

B.A., Amherst College

Current Visiting Scholars

Lee Douglas

Visiting Scholar

Lab Photos

Vida's going away Tiki party 2018

 

Halloween 2017

 

Alumni

Vida Ahyong

Former: Postdoctoral Fellow

Current: Director, Bioassay Innovation and Bioinformatics, Venture-Backed NewCo

Anna Albisetti

Former: Postdoctoral Fellow

Current: Senior Scientific Collaborator, Swiss Tropical and Public Health Institute (Swiss TPH), Basel

Erin Benanti

Former: Postdoctoral Fellow

Current: Principal Scientist, Caribou Biosciences, Berkeley

Stéphane Bodin

Former: Postdoctoral Fellow

Current: Associate Professor, CRBM-CNRS UMR5237, Maitre de Conferences, BioMV, University of Montpellier 2, France

Gina Borgo

Former: Graduate Student Researcher

Current: Postdoctoral Fellow, UCSF

Elizabeth Borths

Former: Graduate Student Researcher

Thomas Burke

Former: Postdoctoral Fellow

Current: Assistant Professor, Department of Microbiology and Molecular Genetics, UC Irvine School of Medicine

Ken Campellone

Former: Postdoctoral Fellow

Current: Associate Professor, Department of Molecular and Cell Biology, University of Connecticut

Julie Choe

Former: Graduate Student Researcher

Current: Associate Director, Corporate Development and Operations, Valitor, Berkeley, CA

Joseph D'Alessio

Former: Technician

Current: Director, Oncology Biotherapeutics, Novartis Institutes for BioMedical Research, Boston

Jamie Depelteau

Former: Volunteer

Current: Researcher, Utrecht University

Steve Duleh

Former: Graduate Student Researcher

Current: Physician, Emergency Medicine, Greenview Regional Hospital, Bowling Green, KY

Patrik Engström

Former: Postdoctoral Fellow

Current: Principal Scientist, Primrose Bio, San Diego, CA

Elif Nur Firat

Former: Graduate Student Researcher

Current: Associate Professor, Department of Molecular Biology and Genetics, Koç University, Istanbul, Turkey

Magi Gabra

Former: Undergraduate Researcher

Current: Pediatric Hospital Medicine Fellow, Nicklaus Children's Health System, Miami, FL

Erin Goley

Current: Former Graduate Student Researcher

Current: Associate Professor, Department of Biological Chemistry, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine

Aubree Gordon

Former: Graduate Student Researcher

Current: Professor of Epidemiology and Global Public Health; Director, Michigan Center for Infectious Disease Threats and Pandemic Preparedness, University of Michigan School of Public Health, Ann Arbor

Hélène Gournier

Former: Postdoctoral Fellow

Current: Partnerships and Business Development Director, Microbiology Institute of Technology, ESCP Europe

Joseph Graham

Former: Postdoctoral Fellow

Current: Executive Director, Ensign Services, Berthoud, CO

Cat Haglund

Former: Graduate Student Researcher

Current: Senior Scientist II, ArsenalBio, Oakland, CA

Brett Haltiwanger

Former: Postdoctoral Fellow

Current: Biological Safety Division Manager, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, Denver

Susan Hepp

Former: Graduate Student Researcher

Current: Senior Microbiologist, California Department of Public Health, Oakland, CA

Bisco Hill

Former: Postdoctoral Fellow

Current: Scientist, Chan Zuckerberg Imaging Institute

Peter Hsiue

Former: Undergraduate Researcher/Technician

Current: MD Resident, Orthopedic Surgery, David Geffen School of Medicine, UCLA

Robert Jeng

Former: Postdoctoral Fellow

Current: Associate Director, Medical Information, Jazz Pharmaceuticals, Carlsbad, CA

Natasha Kafai

Former: Undergraduate Researcher/Technician

Current: MD/PhD Student, Washington University

Kanika Khanna

Former: Postdoctoral Fellow

Current: Gladstone Institute of Virology, UCSF

Nora Kostow

Former: Graduate Student Researcher

Current: Associate Research Specialist, Tri-Institutional Therapeutics Discovery Institure, Inc., NY, NY

Siri Kunchakarra

Former: Undergraduate Researcher

Current: Physician, Central California Faculty Medical Group, Fresno, CA

Rebecca Lamason

Former: Postdoctoral Fellow

Current: Associate Professor, Department of Biology, MIT; Associate Member, Broad Institute, Cambridge, MA

Domokos Lauko

Former: Graduate Student Researcher

Current: Scientist I, 4D Molecular Therapeutics, Emeryville, CA

Catherine Nguyen

Former: Undergraduate Researcher

Current: Physician, Santa Clara Pediatrics, Santa Clara, CA

Kavita Rangan

Former: Undergraduate Researcher

Current: Postdoctoral Researcher, UC San Diego

Shawna Reed

Former: Graduate Student Researcher

Current: Assistant Professor, Biomedical Sciences, Quinnipiac University

Curtis Sera

Former: Graduate Student Researcher

Current: Internal Medicine Resident, Olive View-UCLA Medical Center

Alisa Serio

Former: Postdoctoral Fellow

Current: Executive Director, Microbiology and Non-Clinical Development, Paratek Pharmaceuticals, Boston, MA

Anosha Siripala

Former: Graduate Student Researcher

Current: Technical Associate Director, Scientific Products at Novartis Institutes for BioMedical Research (NIBR), Boston

Justin Skoble

Former: Graduate Student Researcher

Current: Vice President of Technical Operations, Caribou Biosciences, Inc., Berkeley

Tania Sodhi

Former: Undergraduate Lab Assistant

Current: Biology 1B Undergraduate Tutor - Study Sleuths, UC Berkeley

Simina Ticau

Former: Undergraduate Researcher

Current: Principal Scientist, Alnylam Pharmaceuticals, Greater Boston, MA

Neil Webb

Former: Graduate Student Researcher

Current: Biological Sciences Specialist, CHU Sainte-Justine, Montreal

Haiming Wu

Former: Postdoctoral Fellow

Defne Yarar

Former: Graduate Student Researcher

Current: Director, Cancer Biology, Omega Therapeutics, Cambridge, MA

Elizabeth Znameroski

Former: Technician

Current: Technical Consultant, SF Bay Area