Hal Alper, Ph.D.
B.S: Chemical Engineering, University of Maryland at College Park
Ph.D: Chemical Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Post-doc: Whitehead Institute
Post-doc: Shire Human Genetic Therapies
Huaimin Wang, Ph.D.
Ph.D.: School of Energy and Environment, The City University of Hong Kong
M.S.: Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology
B.S.: Environmental Engineering, Shenzhen University
Email: huaimin.wang AT utexas.edu
Research: I am interested in metabolic engineering based plastic biodegradation and biorefinery.
Interests: Big fan of Texas BBQ, try to do a review for all the BBQ restaurants in Texas. I also love badminton and video games.
Sangdo Yook, Ph.D.
Ph.D.: Food Science and Human Nutrition, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
M.S.: Environmental Engineering, Pohang University of Science and Technology
B.S.: Environmental Engineering, University of Seoul
Email: sangdo.yook AT austin.utexas.edu
Research: I am interested in practical problem-solving through synthetic biology and genetic engineering, particularly in biorefinery, bioremediation, and the production of genetically modified foods.
Interests: I enjoy camping and traveling with family and friends.
Daniel Acosta (co-advised with Dr. Ellington)
PhD Student in Microbiology (ILSGP)
B.S.: Microbiology, University of Arizona
Email: d.acosta AT utexas.edu
Research: I am interested in utilizing metabolic engineering/synthetic biology in bioremediation and renewable feedstock applications, specifically microbial techniques for disposing of plastics.
Interests: I love backpacking and outdoor activities like hiking and rock climbing. I also enjoy skiing and winter sports when presented the rare opportunity to go somewhere cold.
Mayur Bansal
PhD Student in Biochemistry (ILS)
B.S.: Biochemistry and Genetics, Texas A&M University
Email: mayursst AT utexas.edu
Research: I am working on applying synthetic biology techniques to develop more efficient strategies to produce industrially important and/or specialty chemicals.
Interests: I enjoy reading science fiction, watching movies and practicing muay thai. If I'm not at the lab you can find at Barton springs where I can regret not spending all my money on bitcoin 15 years ago.
Amelia Bergeson
PhD Student in Chemical Engineering
B.S.: Chemical Engineering, Tulane University
Email: amelia.bergeson AT austin.utexas.edu
Research: I am interested in research related to sustainability, specifically plasticdegradation, through metabolic engineering and synthetic biology techniques.
Interests: I enjoy skiing, knitting, spending time with family and friends, and trying new things.
Sarah Coleman
PhD Student in Chemical Engineering
B.S.: Chemical-Biological Engineering, MIT
Email: sarahcol AT utexas.edu
Research: I am interested in the synthesis of specialty chemicals in yeast using synthetic biology and metabolic engineering tools.
Interests: I enjoy being outdoors, concerts, gardening and when journal articles have puns in the title.
Natalia Estrada
PhD Student in Microbiology (ILS)
B.S.: Microbiology and Immunology, The University of Texas at San Antonio
Email: natalia.estrada AT utexas.edu
Research: I’m interested in using synthetic biology tools for high throughput screenings and the production of speciality chemicals.
Interests: I enjoy cooking/baking, gardening, and spending time outdoors.
Angela Gordillo Sierra
PhD Student in Chemical Engineering
B.S.: Chemical Engineering and Biomedical Engineering, Universidad de los Andes Bogotá, Colombia
M.Sc.: Chemical Engineering, Universidad de los Andes Bogotá, Colombia
Email: ar.gordillo AT utexas.edu
Research: I’m interested in developing synthetic biology tools for the production of industrially important and/or specialty chemicals.
Interests: I enjoy trying new recipes, being active outside, traveling and eating pizza.
Lizzie Klatt
PhD Student in Chemical Engineering
B.S.: Engineering, Smith College
Email: lklatt AT utexas.edu
Research: I am interested in utilizing tools in polymer science and synthetic biology to create new, living materials with biological functionality.
Interests: I enjoy drawing, gardening, cooking/baking, video games, hanging out with my cats, and wasting my time on the internet.
Sung Gyung Lee
PhD Student in Chemical Engineering
B.S.: Chemical Engineering, University of California, Los Angeles
Email: sunggyunglee AT utexas.edu
Research: I am interested in using synthetic biology tools to produce novel natural products with industrial and medicinal applications.
Interests: I enjoy running and going to the beach, exploring new cuisines, and watching reality TV shows.
Celeste Marsan
PhD Student in Chemical Engineering
B.S.: Chemical Engineering, Worcester Polytechnic Institute
Email: celeste.marsan AT utexas.edu
Research: I am interested in using synthetic biology and genetic engineering tools to produce novel bioactive metabolites.
Interests: I enjoy hiking, playing sports, exploring new places, and pretty much anything else I can do outdoors with my dog, Milo.
Morgan Martinez
PhD Student in Chemical Engineering
B.S.: Chemical Engineering, University of Dayton
Email: morgan.martinez AT utexas.edu
Research: I am interested in using synthetic biology and cell metabolisms to recover and repurpose industrial waste products into useful and environmentally benign products.
Interests: I love cooking, painting, drawing, woodworking, going to concerts, and playing sports (baseball, football, tennis, ultimate frisbee). I’d be remiss to forget memes and my dog, Woodford.
Ryan O’Connor (co-advised with Dr. Keatinge-Clay)
PhD Student in Biochemistry (ILSGP)
B.S.: Chemistry and Biomedical Sciences, Bradley University
Email: roconnor AT utexas.edu
Research: I am interested in engineering microbes and polyketide synthases for the large scale production of novel/industrially relevant secondary metabolites.
Interests: I live for kayaking, live music, anything to do with plants, and busting out some funky tunes on my bass.
Rodney Ridley (co-advised with Dr. Lynd)
PhD Student in Chemical Engineering
B.S.: Biological Engineering and Chemistry, Geneva College
M.S.: Biological Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology
Email: rodneyridey AT utexas.edu
Research: I am interested in the bioremediation and upcycling of plastics, via microbial, statistical learning, and polymer science techniques.
Interests: I enjoy lots of outdoor activities like hiking and kayaking, as well as traveling and playing piano.
Ashli Silvera
PhD Student in Chemical Engineering
B.S.: Chemical Engineering, Worcester Polytechnic Institute
Email: ajsilvera AT utexas.edu
Research: I am interested in applying metabolic engineering and synthetic biology techniques to research in sustainability.
Interests: I enjoy reading and watching documentaries & reality tv shows.
Karol Nogueira, Ph.D.
Ph.D.: Biochemistry, University of São Paulo
B.S.: Biochemistry, Federal University of São João del-Rei
Email: kmvnogueira AT utexas.edu
Marcel Lopez Reed
B.S.: Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of California Santa Cruz
Email: marcellopezreed AT gmail.com
Larissa Aspiras
Email: lga589 AT my.utexas.edu
Anjana Balaji
Email: anjanabalaji14 AT utexas.edu
Ryan Dittoe
Email: redittoe AT utexas.edu
Geena Kaown
Email: geena.kaown AT gmail.com
Sanchali Karthikeyan
Email: sanchali AT utexas.edu
Jessica Lam
Email: jlam4104 AT utexas.edu
Gia Maioriello
Email: gmaioriello AT me.com
Rebeka Nickell
Email: rebekanickell2 AT gmail.com
Blanton Priebe
Email: blanton.priebe AT utexas.edu
Esha Ramanan
Email: esha.ramanan AT utexas.edu
Anupama Subramanian
Email: anupama.subramanian AT utexas.edu
Adit Trivedi
Email: adit.trivedi AT utexas.edu