Members

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2022 Lab summer BBQ (10 year lab anniversary & celebration of Melissa's new faculty position)


PI

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Chaolin Zhang Twitter.jpg LinkedIn.png

Associate Professor, Department of Systems Biology, Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biophysics, Motor Neuron Center
Email: cz2294 (at) columbia (dot) edu

Curriculum Vitae

Personal page (old!)

Chaolin is currently an Associate Professor with joint appointments in Department of Systems Biology, Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biophysics, and Motor Neuron Center at Columbia University. Before he joined Columbia, he performed PhD studies at Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory in computational biology and then Postdoc work at Rockefeller University. Before that he obtained bachelor's degree studying Automation at Tsinghua University (Beijing). As a converted biologist originally trained in engineering, he has a deep interest in understanding gene regulatory logics. From the beginning of his academic endeavor, he decided to tackle the RNA code, i.e., how specific protein-RNA interactions determine the gene output in health and disease conditions, which remains the focus of the lab. Chaolin is a winner of NIH Pathway to Independence (K99/R00, 2011) and Maximizing Investigators' Research Award (MIRA/R35, 2022).



Current Lab Members


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Georgia Dermentzaki (09/2021-present), Postdoc

Email: gn2267 (at) cumc (dot) columbia (dot) edu

  • Ph.D., Neuroscience, University of Athens; Biomedical Research Foundation of the Academy of Athens, Athens, Greece

Georgia joined the Zhang lab as an Associate Research Scientist in September 2021 after working as a Postodoctoral Research Scientist in Serge Przedborski’s and Francesco Lotti’s lab in the Motor Neuron Center at Columbia Medical Center. There she focused her research in studying mechanisms of motor neuron degeneration in ALS and SMA with particular interest in RNA modifications / RNA metabolism. In addition, she worked in the Project ALS Therapeutic Core as the Lead Scientist for the Viral Unit where she developed and optimized novel assays for AAV production targeting the CNS and PNS in ALS mice models for preclinical studies. Her current research is focusing on the functional impact of neuron-type specific alternative splicing in the brain and RNA-based therapeutics for brain-related disorders. She also enjoys cooking Greek food (being Greek), long walks in Central Park, and yoga/pilates.



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Jessica Estrada (11/2022-present), Technician

Email: je2673 (at) cumc (dot) columbia (dot) edu

  • BA, Chemistry, Stony Brook University

Jessica received her B.A from Stony Brook University in Chemistry and is a Technician in the Zhang Lab. She assists on various projects in the lab while developing a research focus, and plans on pursing a PhD in the biomedical sciences. In her free time, she likes to go on hikes and cook for friends and family.


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Brian Joseph (11/2021-present), Postdoc (joint with Hynek Witchterle lab)

Email: bj2468 (at) cumc (dot) columbia (dot) edu

  • Ph.D., Gerstner Sloan Kettering Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences


Brian joined the Zhang and Wichterle labs as a postdoctoral fellow in November 2021 after a brief research experience in Kevin Eggan’s motor neuron lab at Harvard. He completed his PhD with Eric Lai at the Sloan Kettering Institute in NYC focusing on the biology of cotranscriptional RNA processing mechanisms. He plans to explore RNA metabolism in neurons and hopes to identify novel vulnerabilities that can be the basis for therapeutic intervention. Brian is currently an ALS scholar in therapeutics.

A native Pakistani, Brian is obsessed with cricket and biryani. He is also an avid runner who still believes the PRs are yet to come.


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Suvrajit Maji (07/2022-present), Postdoc

Email:sm4073 (at) cumc (dot) columbia (dot) edu

  • Ph.D.,Carnegie Mellon University


Suvrajit is received his Bachelor's and Master's degree in Mathematics and Computing from the Indian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur, India. He then received his Ph.D. degree in computational biology from Carnegie Mellon University under the mentorship of his thesis advisor Dr. Marcel P. Bruchez. His thesis topic was single-molecule localization microscopy and super-resolution reconstruction of biological structures using generative models. He moved to Columbia University to continue his postdoctoral research work under the mentorship of Dr. Joachim Frank, when he focused on developing advanced mathematical, computer vision, and machine learning techniques for studying the structure and dynamics of molecular machines such as the Ribosomes and determining high-resolution 3D structures from 2D cryo-EM image datasets. His current research focuses on computational methods development, application, and analysis to study RNA-protein binding interactions using CLIP sequencing datasets. He is also involved in developing and applying machine learning & deep learning methods to study RNA-protein complex structures.

Personal page

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Daniel Moakley (06/2018-), Graduate Student

Email: dfm2129 (at) cumc (dot) columbia (dot) edu

  • Ph.D. student, Integrative Program, Columbia University


Before coming to Columbia, Dan earned Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees from Wesleyan University, where he studied the maturation of ESC-derived interneurons in Laura Grabel’s laboratory. Then, he worked with Brian Wainger at Massachusetts General Hospital, where he focused on the electrophysiology of ESC-derived motor neurons. Dan is interested in molecular underpinnings of the immense cell type diversity in the brain. His work leverages both computational and experimental techniques to examine neuron type-specific alternative RNA splicing regulation. He uses the reanalysis of large, publicly available data sets to identify potential regulators of splicing differences across neuron types. These hypotheses are then tested in embryonic stem cell (ESC)-derived neurons.


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Paola Rinchetti (05/2022-), Postdoc (joint with Francesco Lotti lab)

Email: pr2485 (at) cumc (dot) columbia (dot) edu

  • Ph.D., University of Milan



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Yocelyn Recinos (06/2018-), Graduate Student

Email: yr2330 (at) cumc (dot) columbia (dot) edu

  • Ph.D. student, Integrative Program, Columbia University
  • NSF GRFP awardee (2019)

Yocelyn received her B.S. in biological sciences from the University of California, Irvine and is a Ph.D. candidate in the Integrated Cellular, Molecular, and Biomedical program at Columbia University. For her thesis research, she is focused on developing high-throughput screening technologies to understand the role of RNA regulation in the context of alternative splicing and disease. Her work is supported by the NSF GRFP (2019). She also enjoys running in Central Park and practicing hot yoga.


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Xiaojian Wang (06/2016-), Lab manager

Email: xw2006 (at) columbia (dot) edu

  • MS, Molecular, Cellular and Developmental biology, the Ohio State University
  • BM, Basic Medical Sciences, Beijing Medical University, Beijing, China

Before coming to work at Columbia, Xiaojian earned her Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees from Beijing Medical University and the Ohio State University, respectively. At CUIMC, she worked as supporting staff and lab manager in several labs. She joined the Zhang lab in 2016, and has been providing support on both molecular biology experiments and mouse work, as well as daily lab operations. In her free time, Xiaojian enjoys cooking, watching baseball games, and spending time with her family.

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Yuchen Xu (02/2022-), Master Student


Email: yx2709 (at) cumc (dot) columbia (dot) edu

  • Public Health in Biostatistics, Columbia University

Yuchen received his B.E degree in bioengineering from Northeastern University (China) in 2018. During his undergraduate study, he was previously involved in research work to study the relationship between TDP-43 protein and Lactoferrin treatment for the Alzheimer’s Disease. He is now a master student biostatistics at Columbia Mailman School of Public Health. In the Zhang lab, Yuchen studies spatial regulation of alternative splicing in the brain. In leisure times, Yuchen likes hiking or visiting coffee shops in NYC.

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Tim Yeh (09/2022-), Postdoc


Email: yy2722 (at) cumc (dot) columbia (dot) edu

  • PhD, Department of Biology, Zukerman Mind Brain Behavior Institute, Columbia University

Tim received his Ph.D. in Biological Sciences from Columbia University (2022). Throughout his scientific career, he has been interested in understanding how the brain works and developing treatment. His graduate research focused on auditory processing in the brain and sensorimotor interaction. As a postdoc in the Zhang lab, Tim hopes to investigate the roles of RNA splicing in normal brain functions and neurological diseases using novel research methods such as gene editing tools and sequencing technologies. When he is not doing science, he likes to play tennis and ping pong. He is also a foodie who enjoys eating pizza!


Alumni

Name/Position in the Lab

Position When Exiting

Current Position

Melissa Campbell (09/2019-11/2022), Postdoc

Email: mmc2259 (at) cumc (dot) columbia (dot) edu

  • M.D./Ph.D., Department of Genetics, NYU
  • NIH K99 awardee (2021)

Assistant Professor, UCSD


Huijuan Feng (8/2016-12/2021), Postdoc

Email: hf2304 (at) columbia (dot) edu

  • Ph.D., MOE Key Laboratory of Bioinformatics, Bioinformatics Division, TNLIST & Department of Automation, Tsinghua University
  • Visiting Ph.D. student (1/2015-1/2016)

Personal page

Associate Professor, Fudan University

Suying Bao (06/2017-06/2021), Postdoc

Email: sb4045 (at) columbia (dot) edu

  • Ph.D., School of Biomedical Sciences, The University of Hong Kong

Bioinformatics Manager, Regeneron


Dmytro Ustianenko (01/2015-05/2021), Postdoc

Email: du2145 (at) columbia (dot) edu

  • Ph.D., Biomolecular Chemistry, Masaryk University, Central European Institute of Technology, Brno, Czech Republic

Blavatnik Fellow in Life Science Entrepreneurship, Yale University

Associate, Flagship Pioneering

Brittany Phillips (05/2018-05/2019), Postdoc

Email: bp2563 (at) cumc (dot) columbia (dot) edu

  • Ph.D., Genetics and Molecular Biology, Emory University

Medical Writer, Chrysalis Medical Communications

Medical Writing Senior Manager, Amgen

Sebastien Weyn (08/2013-02/2018), Graduate Student

Ph.D. student, Integrative Program, Columbia University
Email: smw2185 (at) columbia (dot) edu

  • Titus M Coan Award for Excellence in Research (2018)

Bioinformatics Scientist, Stoke Therapeutics.

Principal Scientist, Bioinformatics, Fosun Pharma USA Inc.

Martin Jacko (08/2013-07/2017), Graduate Student

Ph.D. student (joint with Wichterle lab), Department of Pathobiology & Molecular Medicine, Columbia University
Email: mj2577 (at) columbia (dot) edu

Postdoc, Alice Ting Lab, Stanford University

CEO, Aperture Therapeutics

Qinghong Yan (02/2013-02/2015)， Postdoc
Ph.D., Department of Neurobiology & Behavior, Stony Brook University


Scientist, Amgen

CSO, Leverna Therapeutics

Yong Zhang (04/2013-11/2014), Postdoc
Ph.D., Institute of Genetics and Developmental Biology, Chinese Academy of Sciences

Postdoc, Xuemei Chen lab, UC Riverside

Jie Wu (01/2013-08/2013)

Visiting Ph.D. student, Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory / Applied Maths and Statistics, Stony Brook University

Bioinformatics Scientist, BioMicro Center, MIT

Associate Director, Bioinformatics at Accent Therapeutics, Inc.

Lily Wang (07/2020-09/2020), Undergraduate Research Assistant

Undergraduate student, Mathematics/Statistics, Columbia University
Email: hw2744 (at) columbia (dot) edu

  • Amgen Summer Research Program Award (2020)

Meghna Gopalan (06/2022-08/2022), Undergrad Summer Research Assistant

Email: mg4166 (at) barnard (dot) edu

  • Barnard College

Lydia Wu (10/2021-06/2022), Undergrad Research Assistant


Email: lw2892 (at) columbia (dot) edu

  • Columbia College




Lekha Yesantharao (09/2017-12/2019), Undergraduate Research Assistant

Undergraduate student, Department of Engineering, Columbia University
Email: lvy2002 (at) columbia (dot) edu

  • Simons Foundation Undergraduate Summer Research Program Award (2018)

Medical School, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine

Justin Wong (06/2017-05/2019), Undergraduate Research Assistant

Undergraduate student, Department of Computer Science, Columbia University
Email: justin (dot) wong (at) columbia (dot) edu

  • Simons Foundation Undergraduate Summer Research Program Award (2017)

Graduate Student, UC Berkeley


Yingzhi Qian (06/2016-06/2018), Computational Biologist

Email: yq2139 (at) columbia (dot) edu

  • M.A., Statistics, Columbia University
  • B.Sc., Applied Mathematics, Fudan University

Research Scientist, NYU Lagone Health

Model Risk Management, Barclays

Helene Lovett (06/2017-08/2017), Undergraduate Research Assistant

Undergraduate student, Department of Neurobiology, Harvard University
Email: helenelovett (at) college (dot) Harvard (dot) edu

  • SURF/Amgen Fellowship (2017)


Ankeeta Shah (08/2015-05/2017), Volunteer

Undergraduate student, Barnard College
Email: abs2218 (at) barnard (dot) edu

  • SURF/Amgen Fellowship (2016)
  • Goldwater Scholarship (2016)

Graduate Student, University of Chicago

Jonah Lee (05/2015-01/2017), Volunteer

Undergraduate student, Columbia College
Email: jl3910 (at) columbia (dot) edu

Andrew Arditi (Volunteer, 09/2016-12/2016)
Columbia College
Email: ava2123 (at) columbia (dot) edu

Jingxian You (Volunteer, 07/2016-09/2016)
Fudan University
Email: ykevingrox (at) gmail (dot) com

Jiaye Li (05/2016-08/2016)

MA in Biotechnology, Columbia University

Volunteer

Co-Founder, EleGo Education

Kevin Huynh (10/2015-7/2016)

  • BS, Biochemistry/Cell Biology, UCSD
  • MS, Biology, UCSD

Technician

MD program, UCSF

Resident Physician, UCSF

Joy Pai ( 09/2013-05/2016)
Undergraduate student, Departments of Biological Sciences and Computer Science, Columbia University

  • Harvard/MIT HST Summer Institute Fellowship (2015)
  • SURF/Amgen Fellowship (2014)

Undergraduate Research Assistant

Bioinformatics specialist, Michel Russenzweig lab, Rockefeller University

Graduate Student, Stanford University

Kernyu Park (07/2015-10/2015)
Departments of Biological Sciences and Computer Science, Columbia University

Undergraduate Research Assistant


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