Julia received her BS in Molecular and Cellular Biology from Stanford in 2018. Her undergraduate thesis in Steven Artandi’s lab centered around understanding the molecular mechanism through which mutant Nucleophosmin1 promotes leukemogenesis. After graduating she worked as a research associate for 3T Biosciences, a cancer immunotherapy start-up based on research from Stanford’s Garcia Lab that focuses on developing TCR based therapies for solid tumors. Her role in identifying novel self-antigen targets for orphan TCRs and establishing TCR cross-reactivity profiles fostered an interest in better understanding the regulation of antigen recognition and activation in T cells. While still fascinated with the immune-oncology space, Julia hopes to explore the role of T cell-based therapies in autoimmunity. Outside of the lab, Julia enjoys biking, rock climbing, and rock music --playing 70s/90s rock on guitar with a questionable amount of skill but a lot of Heart.

Research Interests: Immune responses to viral infection and vaccination; virology; B-cell biology

Research Interests: Cell and protein therapies, macrophage and T cell immunology, cancer immunology, cardiac immunology

Research Interests: T and B cell biology, synthetic biology, protein engineering, and method development

Research Interests: Solid oncology, tumor immunology, spatial biology, T cells

Research Interests: Autoimmunity, transplant medicine, the generation of tools to prevent and reverse insult and rejection

Research Interests: CAR-T therapeutics, T cell metabolism, T cell modulation, adaptive immunity

Research Experience: Adam Mor (Columbia), Daniel Claiborne (Wistar)

Research Interests: Translational medicine, cancer biology, immunotherapy, pathobiology, microbiota-immune axis

Research Experience: Jessica Queen (Johns Hopkins), Stanley Andrisse (Howard University), Candelaria Gomez-Manzano (University of Texas), Todd Douglass (Yale)

Research Interests: Cancer immunotherapy, solid tumor immunotherapy, tumor microenvironment

Research Experience: Catherine Wu (Dana-Farber Cancer Institute), Jennifer Richer (University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus), Justin Miller (Hobart and William Smith Colleges)

Research Interests: Translational immunology, immunotherapy, vaccine development, T cell biology. cancer and immune oncology, host-pathogen interactions, molecular immunology

Research Experience: Rachel Fearns (Boston University School of Medicine), Catherine Wu (Dana-Farber Cancer Institute)

Research Interests: Pregnancy immunology, autoimmunity

Research Experience: Jesus Segovia (St. Mary's), Zhenming Xu (UT Health San Antonio), Benjamin Enslow (St. Mary's), Scott Gordon (UPenn)

Research Interests: Immune memory, immune tolerance, transplantation research, autoimmune disease

Research Experience: Mark Davis (Stanford), Vivianne Tawfik (Stanford), Antoine Dufour (University of Calgary), Mark Smith (Stanford), David Myung (Stanford)

Research Interests: Immunotherapy, cancer biology, tumor microenvironment, virology, immune cell signaling

Research Experience: Tsui-Fen Chou (California Institute of Technology), Kim Green (University of California Irvine)

Research Interests: T-cell biology and CAR T-cell immunotherapy, anti-tumor T-cell response, cancer immune evasion strategies, CAR T-cell exhaustion and metabolism

Research Experience: Eric Ortlund (Emory SOM), Donald Ruhl (Oklahoma State), Ashlee Ford Versypt (Oklahoma State)

Research Interests: Innate immune memory, immunotherapies for fungal diseases

Research Experience: Iain Fraser (NIH), Karen Anderson (Arizona State University), Susan Holechek (Arizona State University)

Research Interests: Cellular translational immunology, immunotherapies for infectious disease and cancer research

Research Experience: Joseph Murphy (BioNTech), Sivan Harel (eGenesis), Peter Sage (Brigham and Women's Hospital), Brian Cohen (Union College)

Research Interests: host-pathogen interactions in terms of the formation and training of human immune memory by the microbiome, (repeated) infections and vaccinations, evolution of pathogens

Research Interests: translational immunology with a focus on immunotherapy and vaccine development

Research Interests:  T cell biology, antigen-presenting cells in homeostasis, chronic inflammation, cancer, autoimmunity

Research Interests: T cell biology, immunometabolism, cell metabolism, host-microbiome interaction, infectious disease, HIV, vaccines, immunotherapy

Research Interests: cancer immunology, immunotherapy, solid tumors, checkpoint therapy, lymphocyte biology, tumor microenvironment, systems immunology

Research Interests: genome-wide CRISPR knockout screening, regulators of type 2 immunity, fungal pathogens, host-pathogen interactions

NIH Scholar

Research Interests: signaling and transcription in lymphocytes, cancer, autoimmunity

Research Interests: viral immunology, host-virus Interactions, T-Cell immunology, immunology and vaccinology, mRNA and self-amplifying RNA (saRNA) vaccine technology, adenoviral vector vaccines, general virology, infectious disease

Research Interests: T cell immunotherapy, cancer immunology, bioinformatics, bioengineering, cancer therapies

Research Interests: innate immunity and host homeostasis, immune evasion by pathogens and tumors, tumor microenvironment, cancer immunotherapy, vaccines

Research Interests: adaptive immunity, memory formation, T and B cell biology, immunodeficiency, immune-oncology, infection immunology

Research Interests: CAR T cells, immune genomics, T-cell exhaustion and the tumor microenvironment

NIH Scholar

Research Interests: SNAPVax nanoparticles, immunotolerance, engineering + immunology

NIH Scholar

Research Interests: molecular immunology, human immunology, T cell biology, immunodeficiencies, gene therapy, genetics, molecular biology, virology

Research Interests: autoimmunity, T cell biology, B cell biology, germinal center biology, immune dysregulation

Research Interests: Mechanisms of autoimmune and inflammatory diseases, translational research

Research Interests: mucosal immunology, microbial community, pathogenesis

Research Interests: intersection of immunology and neuroscience, CD8+ T cells, immunopathology, Alzheimer's disease

NIH Scholar

Research Interests: host-pathogen interactions, mucosal immunity 

Research Interests: host-pathogen interactions, innate immunity, structural biology

Research Interests: host-pathogen interactions, immune responses to bacterial infections

Research Interests: Autoimmunity, Germinal center Reaction, cancer immunotherapy, tumor microenvironment, epigenetics, RNAi
Research Experience: Patrick Wilson, PhD (Univ of Chicago), James Liao, MD, PhD (Univ of Chicago)

Research Interests: Innate and adaptive immune system, T cell signaling, Autoimmunity, Primary Immunodeficiencies, Cancer, Metabolic diseases
Research Experience: Carrie Lucas, PhD (Yale Univ), Linheng Li, PhD (Stowers Institute for Medical Research), Gregory Fairn, PhD (Li Ka Shing Knowledge Institute, St. Michael’s), Paul Cohen, MD, PhD (Rockefeller Univ), Lisa Robinson, MD, FRCSC (Peter Gilgan Center, Hospital for Sick Children)

Research Interests: autoimmune disease, immune tolerance, CAR T cells
Research Experience: Nehal Mehta, MD, MSCE, FAHA (NIH), Theodore Kwaku Dayie, PhD (University of Maryland)

Research Interests: T cell immunology, T cell priming, cancer immunotherapy, mechanisms of immune evasion, antigen presentation
Research Experience: Katelyn Byrne, PhD (University of Pennsylvania)

Research Interests: Immunoengineering, translational immunology, immuno-oncology , vaccine development, infectious diseases
Research Experience: Irvine Lab (Koch Institute)

Research Interests: Cancer immunotherapy, T cell engineering, stem cell derived immunotherapy, immune cell plasticity, modeling disease progression
Research Experience: Christopher Seet (UCLA); Zhefeng Guo (UCLA); Charles Craik (UCLA)

Research Interests: Virus-host interaction, exploring the development and maintenance of the immune response to viral infections, as well as designing and developing novel vaccines and antiviral
therapeutics
Research Experience: Dr. Richard Koup and Dr. John Mascola (Vaccine Research Center, NIAID NIH); Dr. Meike Dittmann (NYU Grossman School of Medicine); Dr. Joel Blankson (Johns Hopkins School of Medicine); Dr. Michael Weichhaus (Chaminade University of Honolulu)

NIH Scholar
Research Interests: How and why innate immune cells interact within the tumor microenvironment, and the consequences of these innate immune cells on T cell responses and cancer progression.
Research Experience: Avinash Bhandoola (NCI); Engda Hagos (Colgate University)

Research Interests: Allergic disease, inflammation and asthma. Also, the microbiome and its effects on health and autoimmunity. Additionally, the influenza virus, how it mutates and interacts with host cells.
Research Experience: Bronwyn Gunn (Washington State University); Douglas Call (Washington State University); Michael Konkel (Washington State University)

Research Interests: Immune correlates of protection/risk as pertains to cancer, vaccine efficacy, and other disease.
Research Experience: Mario Roederer/Kathryn Foulds (NIAID/VRC); Douglas Lyles (Wake Forest SoM); Jason Stumpff (Univ. of Vermont)

Research Interests: Autoimmunity, Molecular Biology, B cell Biology, Allergy
Research Experience: Shiv Pillai (Ragon Institute of MGH, MIT, and Harvard); Christian Karsten (University of Lubeck)

Research Interests: Translational immunology, immunotherapy, vaccinology, cell-based therapies
Research Experience: Maureen Hanson (Cornell University); Jason Cyster (University of California, San Francisco); Benjamin Harris (University of Oxford); Joya Chandra (University of Texas, MD Anderson Cancer Center); Wei Yang (Oregon State University)

Research Interests: Virology, host-pathogen interactions, the relationship between viral infection and autoimmune disease development, and vaccine development.
Research Experience: Sujan Shresta (La Jolla Institute for Immunology); Stephen Spector (UC San Diego)

Research Interests: Host-microbe interactions, microbiome, autoimmunity, immuno-oncology
Research Experience: Daria Van Tyne (University of Pittsburgh); Joseph Zackular (University of Pennsylvania)

Research Interests: Cell therapies, NK and NKT biology, and the tumor microenvironment.
Research Experience: Lili Yang (UCLA)

NIH Scholar

Research Interests: Adoptive Cellular Therapy, Cancer Immunotherapy (TIL, TCR, CAR), Tissue Residency, Autoimmunity, Allergy, Asthma
Research Experience: Seung Kim (Stanford Medical School); Ruth Ley (Cornell Univ), Purna Kashyap (Mayo Clinic); Yasmine Belkaid (NIAID); Steven Rosenberg (NCI); Laura Mackay (University of Melbourne)

Research Interests: T cell development and memory formation. Signals invoking and marking tissue residency. Respiratory diseases, neglected tropical disease models. Optimizing vaccine strategies and regiments.
Research Experience: Marion Pepper (University of Washington)

Research Interests: Human immune responses, specifically the heterogeneity of T cell responses, in the setting of disease, vaccination, autoimmunity, and cancer using single-cell, high-dimensional technologies.
Research Experience: Ramin Herati (NYU); Alex Baugh (Swarthmore College)

Awards: 2025 National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship
Research Interests: Applications of synthetic biology for cell therapy engineering. Leveraging basic science to enhance understanding of cell therapy. Wet lab, omics, and in silico approaches to understand lymphocyte biology.
Research Experience: Marcel van den Brink (Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center/Sloan Kettering Institute); Giancarlo Cuadra (Muhlenberg College), Regeneron Pharmaceuticals (Infectious Disease Therapeutic Focus Area, Inflammation and Immune Disease Therapeutic Focus Area)

NIH Scholar

Research Interests: Immunological mechanisms involved in protective immunity to both self and non-self-antigens, including how these responses can become disrupted during autoimmunity, cancer, and infectious disease.
Research Experience: James J Moon (University of Michigan); Alfred E Chang & Qiao Li (University of Michigan); Bruce S Klein (University of Wisconsin-Madison); Gongqin Sun (University of Rhode Island)

Research Interests: Cell-based immunotherapies to treat cancer and elucidating the immunosuppressive qualities of the tumor microenvironment to better develop immunotherapies to treat solid tumors.
Research Experience: Michelle Townsend, Kim O’Neill (Thunder Biotech); Scott K. Weber (Brigham Young University)

Research Interests: Using mouse models to study mechanisms of immune response against infectious disease for the development of vaccines.
Research Experience: Daniela Weiskopf (La Jolla Institute for Immunology); Tanya Tschirhart (Naval Research Laboratory); Karen Dobos (Colorado State University); Alicia Hawthorne (University of Central Florida)

Research Interests: Regulatory mechanisms behind T cell biology/responses to chronic infections and cancers. Also interested in the link between metabolism and epigenetics of immune cells.
Research Experience: Warren Pear (University of Pennsylvania); Casey Londergan (Haverford College); Kenji Murakami (University of Pennsylvania)

Research Interests: T-cell immunology, exhaustion, cancer, immune oncology, chronic disease, immunotherapy, signal transduction, epigenetics, and aging
Research Experience: Magdalena Zernicka-Goetz (Caltech); Bruce Hay (Caltech)

Awards:  Black in Genetics Professional Development Grant, Center of Excellence in Environmental Toxicology T32
Research Interests: Tumor immunology, immunogenetics, immunoepidemiology, cell and molecular immunology, microbiology, infectious disease, host pathogen interaction, one-health, translational science, autoimmune diseases, sickle cell disease, health disparities, social determinates of health, access to care
Research Experience: Ambs lab (NIH, NCI, CCR); Prokunina-Olsson lab (NIH, NCI, DCEG); Mbulaiteye lab (NIH, NCI, DCEG); Nath lab (NIH, NINDS, SINS)

Research Interests: Development and function of immune cells. Another area of interest is the immunological response to acute versus chronic infections.
Research Experience: Ellen Robey (UC Berkeley); Mustafa Khokha (Yale University); David Pride (UC San Diego)

Awards: 2025 CETLI Graduate Fellow for Teaching Excellence
Research Interests: Connective tissue disease, immune dysregulation, inflammatory degenerative processes, degenerative joint disease, fibrosis, arthritis
Research Experience: Hung Lab (Cellular Engineering Laboratory)

Research Interests: immune cells, such as dendritic cells, T cells, and B cells, specifically around the molecular mechanisms that drive their behavior and function
during development or disease
Research Experience: Carpenter Lab (UCSC), Ansel Lab (UCSF)

Research Interests: autoimmunity, cancer immunology, genomics, machine learning
Research Experience: Thermo-Fisher, Invitae, Bioverativ, Gene Yeo Lab (UCSD)

Research Interests: Cancer immunology, T cell biology, T cell engineering, immunotherapies
Research Experience: Kalbasi, Ribas, and Zamudio Labs (UCLA Biomed)

Research Interests: Translational immunology, cancer immunotherapies
Research Experience: Broad Institute of MIT & Harvard, EMSL Analytical Inc.

Research Interests: developing cancer immunotherapeutics; how leukocytes interact
with their environment, particularly in the context of cancer immunosurveillance/
immunotherapy and immune homeostasis
Research Experience: PDX Pharmaceuticals, Rockey Lab (Oregon State), Turker Lab (Oregon Health & Science)

Research Interests: innate immunology, autoimmune diseases, infectious diseases,
molecular pathogenesis, and host-pathogen interactions
Research Experience: Ileana Rodriguez Lab (Univ PR), Kate Fitzgerald Lab (UMass)

Research Interests: understanding the potential role pathogen-specific T cells play in tumor control and identifying regulators of hypoxia-induced chromatin changes
Research Experience: Rutgers Cancer Institute, New Jersey Institute of Technology

Research Interests: maternal-fetal immunology, host-pathogen interactions, microbial pathogenesis, infectious disease, immune responses at barrier sites, immune system development, and immunoregulation
Research Experience: Jurado Lab (Penn), Schoggins, Reese, Koh Labs (UT), Mitchell and Goeffroy Labs (Texas A&M)

Research Interests: human immune responses to vaccination and natural infection
Research Experience: Douek Lab (NIH), Masopust and Schmidt-Dannert Labs (U Minnesota)

Research Interests: cancer immunology, and specifically immunotherapies of cancer, such as cancer vaccination, CAR T cells, and immune checkpoint blockade
Research Experience: Wu Lab (Dana-Farber Cancer Inst), Hacohen Lab (Broad Institute), Yang Lab (Penn)

Research Interests: adaptive immune response associated with infectious and/or autoimmune diseases
Research Experience: Andrews & McDermott Lab (NIH) Zhang, Varani & Walker Labs (UW)

Research Interests: host-pathogen interactions, immune response, effector function, infections
Research Experience: Singer Lab (NIH), Wynne Lab (U Portland), Nishimura Lab (Colorado State)

Research Interests: translational immunology, tumor immunology, cancer immunotherapy and molecular and cellular biology of the immune system
Research Experience: SUIP-CCI Scholar (Fraietta Lab), U Delaware Summer Program

Research Interests: tumor/cancer immunology, neuroimmunology, and translational immunology
Research Experience: Haydel Lab (AZ State), Bergsagel Lab (Mayo Clinic)

Research Interests
Cancer immunology and immunotherapy; utilizing the immune system to develop new therapies and discovering the pathways to tumor malignancy.

Research Interests
Immune cell types which are functionally critical for clearing infections and how those functions are regulated.

Research Interests
CD4+ T and B cell responses in the context of infections, vaccination, and disease.

Research Interests
Immunopharmacology, pharmacomicrobiomics, immunotherapy, effect of therapeutic options on immune system, host immunity modulation by microbes.

Research Interests
Exploring how our immune system fights off infections. More specifically, how certain pathogens are able to bypass our immune system and cause serious illnesses.

Research Interests
Cancer immunotherapies, tumor immunology, mechanisms of immune suppression in tumors, mechanisms of immune activation, bioinformatics, imaging, cytokines

Research Interests
 Translational immunology, cancer immunotherapies, t cell and b cell immunology, and cancer biology

Research Interests
Cancer Immunology, Viral Immunology, T Cells, Computational Immunology, Novel

Research Interests
Function, regulation, and response of B and T lymphocytes. Adaptive immunity in context of infectious diseases and autoimmunity. Viral immunology and immunotherapy

Meng received his B.S in biochemistry and computer science from the University of Wisconsin – Madison in 2018. His research interests manifested in the lab of Anna Huttenlocher, where he completed his senior thesis on the role of innate immune cells in the glioblastoma tumor microenvironment. Taking summer sabbaticals to different research groups (and countries), Meng explored his interests in various fields, including regenerative medicine (with Kris Saha), collective cell behaviors (at EMBL under the guidance of Darren Gilmour), and spheroid modeling of cancer metastasis (with Laura Kaufmann as a Columbia AMGEN scholar). Post-graduation, Meng spent two years in the lab of Ron Germain as a NIH IRTA fellow looking at clonal T-cell microstates. Outside of research, Meng has a passion for music, puzzles, high-adrenaline sports, and technology.

Jeremy received his BS in Biology with a concentration in Health Sciences at Emmanuel College in Boston in 2018. At Emmanuel, he was a part of the NeuroImmunology Research Project (NIRP) with Dr. Josef Kurtz and Dr. Todd Williams studying the hematopoietic contribution to CNS macrophage populations under various conditions. Following graduation, he joined the Center for Transplantation Sciences at Massachusetts General Hospital studying mechanisms of induced tolerance to cardiothoracic allografts with Dr. Joren Madsen. Jeremy was an integral part of many projects from studying the effect of immunosuppressive agents on the B cell compartment to developing donor-specific CAR-Tregs for future in vivo use. Although Jeremy has a continued interest in transplant immunology, he hopes to explore different areas of immunology at Penn as well. In his free time, he enjoys spending time with his fiancée and their chihuahua, whether they are hiking or biking along the river.

Sam grew up in Painted Post, NY and went to school just up the road at Cornell University. There, he spent two years working in a soil science lab. However, he fell in love with biochemistry and molecular biology and decided to do a postbac at the NIH exploring biomedical research. Sam joined Dr. Mike Lenardo’s lab in NIAID where he worked to uncover the molecular basis or rare genetic diseases. His work included redefining XMEN disease as a congenital disorder to glycosylation and discovering a novel genetic cause of IBD. During the COVID pandemic, Sam switched gears and worked with Dr. Helen Su’s lab to understand the role of host genetics in susceptibility to severe COVID infection as part of the COVID human genetics effort consortium. At the UPenn, Sam would like to learn how to use animal models and big data (omics) experiments to discover the molecular mechanisms of immune responses.

Originally from a suburb of Chicago, Joy received her B.S. in molecular biology from Yale University in 2019. Her undergraduate research interests were varied, from work at Gilead studying viral integrations in the human genome to her thesis in Choukri Ben Mamoun's lab on antifungal drug development. Following graduation, Joy remained in Dr. Ben Mamoun's lab to continue work studying the development of Babesia parasites and formulating new therapeutic strategies. At Penn, Joy hopes to continue her exploration of host-pathogen interactions, but with a new focus on host defense mechanisms. Outside of work, she loves to make music with friends, find new running trails, and accumulate cookbooks for her bookshelf.

Maria is from Gainesville, Florida, although she has been going home to Chattanooga, TN, to visit her family since they moved there a few years ago. Maria received a BA in chemistry from the University of Chicago, where she worked on an autoimmune disease imaging project under Dr. Marcus Clark. A summer research experience at MD Anderson Cancer Center sparked her interest in cancer biology. After graduating, Maria spent a year working in the lab of Dr. Robert Seder at the Vaccine Research Center at the NIH, where she worked on novel methods of delivering immunostimulatory drugs to tumors. In her graduate work at Penn, Maria hopes to research the tumor microenvironment and anti-tumor immunity with the goal of elucidating targets for cancer immunotherapy. Maria is also a medical student at Penn and is interested in oncology and healthcare equity. When she’s not studying, Maria can probably be found running, eating chocolate, or learning something new on the violin.  

Originally from Berkeley, CA, Sam graduated with a BS in biological sciences from the University of Chicago in 2019. He first became enamored with lab research pouring agar plates for Dr. Daniel Portnoy at UC Berkeley, where he later researched how the bacterium Listeria monocytogenes induce a virulence program upon sensing nutrients within host cells. Studying pathogens sparked an interest in the host response, so Sam returned to UC Berkeley for two summers under Dr. David Raulet to research how natural killer cells recognize markers of disease. While at UChicago, he studied with Dr. Erin Adams how the affinity of T cell receptors for self-antigens shapes the development of thymocytes. After graduation, Sam returned to the Raulet Lab to develop approaches of reducing the immunogenicity of CRISPR-Cas9 gene therapy. At Penn, Sam will strive to integrate learning medicine with high-dimensional analyses of human immunity against pathogens. Off campus, Sam enjoys baking crusty sourdough, stewing legumes, collecting psych rock records, and trying to finish novels in time for book club.

Rachel received her BS in biochemistry from Miami University in 2018. During her undergraduate career, she studied the structure of a bacteriophage membrane protein and helped develop novel methods of studying membrane protein structure under the supervision of Dr. Gary Lorigan. After graduation, she became a research assistant at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital in Dr. Lee Grimes’ lab, focusing on myelopoiesis. Rachel’s main project involved understanding the role of the transcription factor Gfi-1 in severe congenital neutropenia with a focus on the transcriptional landscape. Her broad research interests include host-pathogen interactions, adaptive immunity to infectious diseases, and T-cell biology. Eventually, she hopes her research will help decrease infectious disease burden in low-income regions of the world. Outside of the lab, Rachel is an avid traveler, having been to about 35 countries. Locally, she is always on the lookout for the best brunch spot, hiking trail, or IPA in the city.

Isaiah received his BS in Microbiology and Spanish from the University of Wisconsin (UW)-Madison in 2016.  After graduating, he remained at UW-Madison for two years working as a research technician in the laboratory of Dr. Yoshihiro Kawaoka studying Ebola virus.  More specifically, using serum samples collected from both survivors of the virus and those with whom they came in close contact, his project sought to better understand the cellular and molecular mechanisms required to develop immunity to infection.  In 2018, he was awarded a position as a Post-baccalaureate Fellow at the National Institutes of Health in the laboratory of Dr. John O’Shea.  Here, he is studying Natural Killer (NK) cells, an innate lymphocyte critical for defense against viral infection and cancer.  The goal of his project is to understand how Interleukin-18, a proinflammatory cytokine, impacts the NK cell epigenome and how that subsequently affects NK cell effector function in terms of cytotoxicity and Interferon-gamma expression.  His current research interests include better understanding the relationship between the immune system and the microbiome, and how pathologies can potentially develop when their communication pathways are disrupted.  Outside of research, Isaiah enjoys weightlifting, singing, and reading fantasy/science-fiction novels.

William was born and raised in San Sebastian, Puerto Rico. He received his BS in Industrial Microbiology from the University of Puerto Rico at Mayaguez. During his time as an undergraduate, he worked in an evolutionary and population genetics lab under Dr. Juan C. Martinez-Cruzado, studying the principal variants, genomic regions and haplotypes affecting resistance or susceptibility to diabetic nephropathy in Puerto Rico. His summer research experiences while an undergraduate sparked his interest in the molecular mechanisms that regulate immune response. His research interests include non-coding RNA biology, inflammation and immunometabolism. In his free time, he enjoys reading a good book, martial arts, eating and going to the beach with friends and family.

Jeff received his BS in Biology from Rider University in 2019. During his undergraduate, he worked with Dr. James Riggs studying B cell biology and ovarian cancer. After graduating in May 2019, Jeff moved to Philadelphia and began working with Dr. Michael Abt at the University of Pennsylvania as a research specialist. Here he worked on various projects including characterization of the host immune response to C. difficile, a challenging nosocomial infection. His research interests include adaptive immunity, immune memory, and mucosal immunology. In his spare time, Jeff can be found biking or running, pipetting in his sleep, and (covid pending) exploring Philadelphia in search of good nachos and IPAs.

Stefan received his BS in Agriculture & Natural Resources from the University of Delaware in 2012. As an undergraduate, he worked in a lab studying Marek’s disease virus. More recently, he’s been working in the field of CAR T cell therapy examining mechanisms of expansion, persistence, and efficacy in hematologic malignancies. This work has brought him down the path of studying epigenetic and transcriptional regulators of T cell fate and function. He is looking forward to better understanding the role of these epigenetic and transcriptional networks in controlling T cell function with hopes to apply these findings to the fields of immune checkpoint blockade and adoptive cellular therapies. Beyond work in the lab, Stefan enjoys roaming around all the different parts of the city by bike to looking for unique photography opportunities, as well as new places to eat, and explore.

Bruktawit obtained her bachelor's degrees in Health Sciences and Spanish from DePaul University. Upon graduating, she joined Dr. Evan Stubbs’s laboratory at the Hines V.A. where she worked with Dr. Kelly Langert to elucidate the protective effects of locally administered Lovastatin encapsulating nanoparticles in Experimental Autoimmune Neuritis. She later joined Dr. Clifford Lane’s laboratory as an NIH postbaccalaureate fellow where she worked on two projects: 1st: Under the mentorship of Dr. Marta Catalfamo, she discovered that combination rhIL-15+Avelumab immunotherapy enhances HIV-specific CD8 T cell functionality. 2nd: She was mentored and worked with Drs. Hiromi Imamichi and Kanal Singh on a longitudinal study of “defective” HIV proviruses in a cohort of chronically HIV-infected patients with the aim of characterizing their changes over time and evaluating their role in HIV-associated pathogenesis. Her research interests lie in immunotherapy and vaccine development against infectious diseases. She enjoys writing, volunteering, and learning about different cultures. 

Originally from Morelia, Michoacán, Mexico, Montse graduated from the University of Texas at El Paso with a B.S. in Cellular and Molecular Biochemistry in 2019. During her undergraduate training, she was part of the BUILDing SCHOLARS Program, which facilitated the opportunity to conduct research during her summers at various institutions, including the University of New Mexico Health Sciences Center, Baylor College of Medicine, and the University of Rochester. As an undergraduate, she worked under the mentorship of Dr. Laura O’Dell where she completed an undergraduate thesis studying how nicotine withdrawal produces sex-dependent changes in nicotinic acetylcholine receptors in the interpeduncular nucleus. She hopes to combine her interest in the brain and immunology by studying neuro-immune and host-pathogen interactions and sex differences. Montse is excited to join IGG and to eventually become the first Dr. Arreguin in her family. Outside of the lab, Montse enjoys reading, cooking, and attending concerts.