Principal Investigator/Associate Professor. AB Psychology and Biology. PhD Neurosciences. MD Internal Medicine, Fellowship in Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Post-doctoral work in Circadian Rhythms, Metabolism, and Gut Microbiome. Enjoys the golden age of television, griping about the LA (?!?) Chargers, and spending time with his wife and kids.

Email: azarrinpar [at] health [dot] ucsd [dot] edu

Twitter: @zarrinparlab

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/amir-zarrinpar-95158271/

Bioinformatics Programmer/Analyst. BS in Molecular/Cellular Biology. MA in Biology (Neuroscience). Has a vast repository of knowledge of bioinformatic methods and techniques, largely by dint of having had to learn from the innumerable mistakes he’s made over the course of his career. Enjoys good music, good conversation, and good food. Bakes cakes when bored or stressed.

Email: rrichter [at] health [dot] ucsd [dot] edu

Lab Manager/SRA-2. BS in Elementary Education. MS in Biology. Makes the lab run! Enjoys hanging out with my family, swimming, hiking with my dog, trying new food, listening to old school Motown, and shopping.

Email: sbailey [at] health [dot] ucsd [dot] edu

Lab Technician/SRA-1. BS in Neurobiology and Education Studies. Maryam Ahmadian Fellow and UCSD ULRP Winner. Currently investigating the role of the gut microbiome in PCOS, and the crosstalk between the gut and HPG axis. Often found hunting for pink flowers or smacking a volleyball at church outings.

Email: shchiang [at] health [dot] ucsd [dot] edu

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/shiantel-chiang-093a9a196/ 

Assistant Project Scientist. BS in Biological Sciences. PhD in Molecular Biology. NHLBI Diversity Supplement Award. Interested in precision medicine and the intersection of microbiome and metabolism. Nature lover, food enthusiast and sewing apprentice.

Email: adantasmachado [at] health [dot] ucsd [dot] edu

Twitter: @acdantasmachado

 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ana-carolina-dantas-machado/

Postdoctoral Fellow. BE Biotechnology. MS Biology, Ph.D. in Molecular Pathogenesis & Molecular Medicine. Interested in understanding the role of the gut microbiome in cardiovascular disease pathogenesis. Enjoys hiking, photography, jigsaw puzzles and soap-making.

Email: alingaraju [at] health [dot] ucsd [dot] edu

Postdoctoral Fellow. MS Biology. Ph.D. in Molecular Medicine, Interested in the role of gut microbiota and immune system in cancer onset and progression. Loves hiking, plants, and desserts.

Email: abrevi [at] health [dot] ucsd [dot] edu

Post-doctoral fellow. BS in Biotechnology. PhD in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology. Interested in using engineered bacteria to understand how the gut microbiome affects glucose and lipid homeostasis. Enjoys fishing, table tennis and badminton, and visiting the zoo.

Email: wuzhong [at] health [dot] ucsd [dot] edu

BMS Graduate Student. BS in Biomedical Engineering. NSF Graduate Student Fellowship Award. NICHD F-31 Award. Studying the gut-brain axis and the role of the gut microbiome in sex differences. Enjoys spending time in nature, rock climbing, olympic lifting, and smuggling her pup, Franklin, into the  lab.

Email: emaissy [at] health [dot] ucsd [dot] edu

BMS Graduate Student. BA in Biology and Statistics. PD Soros Fellow. Searching for circadian metabolites with implications in metabolic disorders. Finds joy in creative tasks like painting, cosplaying, and dance.

Email: sfloresr [at] health [dot] ucsd [dot] edu

Twitter: @Steph_BloomingT

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stephany-flores-ramos

BMS Graduate Student. BS in Biochemistry and a BS in Microbiology. Biologeneds Fellow. NSF Graduate Student Fellowship Award. Engineering native bacteria to study the functional microbiome. Enjoys cooking, baking, doing gymnastics, and collecting as many succulents as possible.

Email: nsiguenz [at] health [dot] ucsd [dot] edu

Twitter: @MCRObchemNicole

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nicole-siguenza-3b173b58/

BMS Graduate Student. BS in Anthropology. MS in Medical Science. Interested in studying the microbiome and engineering native bacteria to treat diseases. Enjoys baking and spending time in nature.

Email: ckanne [at] health [dot] ucsd [dot] edu

MS Graduate Student in Biology. BS in Bioinformatics and a minor in Entrepreneurship & Innovation. Genentech Scholars award winner and UCSD BioTechathalon champion of 2022. Seeking to treat IBD using engineered native bacteria expressing IL-10. Passions range from gut microbiome, immunology and virology to urban design, world culture, international politics and adventure traveling.

Email: hwei [at] ucsd [dot] edu

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/haotian-wei-28b2a7197/

MS Graduate Student in Biology. BS in Human Biology. Studying microbe interactions with tumors in cancer model organisms. Loves playing music, reading, and skating.

Email: pssundar [at] ucsd [dot] edu

Post-Baccalaureate Technician. BS in Human Biology and Global Health at UCSD. Professional dog petter, sunset lover, fanfic writer, KDrama enthusiast, and recovering coffee addict.

Email: hgootin [at] ucsd [dot] edu

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/hanna-gootin-916a39199/

Undergraduate Technician. Currently studying Bioengineering at UCSD. Lee Fellow and Regents Scholar. Investigating microbiome dynamics in human populations. Specializes in data analysis and grabbing things off the top shelf. Loves God.

Email: shs008 [at] ucsd [dot] edu

Undergraduate Technician. Currently studying Microbiology at UCSD. Loves gardening, surfing, hanging out with friends, cooking, and eating all types of  foods.

Email: msadegi [at] ucsd [dot] edu

Undergraduate Technician. Currently studying Human Biology and Global Health at UCSD. Loves talking about any sport, the outdoors, and eating food.

Email: gmfeng [at] ucsd [dot] edu

Undergraduate Technician. Currently studying General Biology. Loves training in Choy Li Fut kung fu, snorkeling, and baking.

Email: eryan [at] ucsd [dot] edu

Postdoctoral/Medical Fellows:

Athanasios Desalermos, MD (Assistant Professor, University of Massachusetts Memorial Medical Center; NIDDK T-32)

Steven Brown, PhD (Director of Software & Analytics – Zafrens, Inc; NIDDK F-32)

Anand Saran, PhD (Scientist, Charles River; AFAR Postdoctoral Fellowship)

Graduate (PhD) Students:

Celeste Allaband, DVM, PhD (Postdoctoral Fellow – Rob Knight Lab; Office of Director T-32)

Kelly Fogelson, PhD (Consulting-McKinsey & Company: NIDDK T-32)

Medical Students:

Jeremy Egnatios (Deceased; NIH Short-Term Grant; AGA Student Abstract Prize x2)

Cecilia Dalle-ore (UC San Francisco Neurosurgery Residency; NIH Short-Term Grant)

Cecilia Leggett (Cedars Sinai OB/GYN Residency; UCSD Summer Research Grant)

Soumya L. Kurnool (UC San Diego Internal Medicine Residency; NIH Short-Term Grant)

Neela Easwar (Cornell Internal Medicine Residency)

Undergraduate/Gap-Year Students:

Vignesh Sivaganesh (Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine – DO/PhD program)

Amy Yu (Staff Research Associate – UCSF; Biological and Biomedical Sciences Graduate Program, Harvard University)

Baylee J. Russell (Biological and Biomedical Sciences Graduate Program, Harvard University)

Amanda (Shae) Puckett (Chief Science Officer – IBDCoach)

Benjamin Medrano (Research Associate – Zymo Research)

Peyton Graves (Columbia College of Physicians and Surgeons)

Maria Tiu (UC San Francisco School of Medicine; BS/MS Program)

Irene Mai (UC San Diego School of Medicine)

Valentina Muti (Lab Manager – Aron Lab, University of Colorado)

Kimberly Yin (Emergency Medical Technician)

Athena Zhang (University of San Diego School of Law)

Haniyeh Javaheri (Medical Assistant)

Chris Mason (UCLA Medical School)