Trainees

Justin Brennan
Email Justin
Sun Lab

Research interest:
Given the potent interferon-stimulating and viral interference activities of defective viral genomes, a better understanding of their generation and accumulation kinetics could enable researchers to design therapies that harness these intrinsic biological properties, by amplifying or suppressing their effects, to attenuate viral replication and prevent severe respiratory infections.

Fun Fact:
I enjoy collecting tropical houseplants.

Kristina Fenner
Email Kristina
Lawrence Lab

Research interest:
We aim to investigate how environmental exposures impact antibody responses to childhood vaccination against lung diseases. This research will further help us understand factors that drive long-lived protection and give us insight into how environmental exposures influence immune defenses.

Fun Fact:
I was raised on a farm that had bison, goats, and chickens.

Lananh Ho
Email Lananh
Dean Lab

Research interest:
My project focuses ondeveloping a lung-on-chip platform to study the pathogenesis of Acute Respiratory DistressSyndrome (ARDS) in vitro. I am working on deepening our understanding on the role of cell-cell communication during disease development and evaluating a gene therapy target thatcan address the damage to the air-blood barrier in ARDS.

Fun Fact: 
Beside my love for science, I am an avid painter. I love traveling and documenting my travels with my oil paintings of landscapes and scenery I encountered.

Eric Merrell
Email Eric
Georas Lab

Research interest:
We hope to use novel techniques (oscillometry) to better understand unexplained shortness of breath in patients undergoing cardiopulmonary exercise testing. Using new tools for the assessment of unexplained dyspnea may expand access and reduce cost for patients and aid in diagnosis for clinicians.

Fun Fact:
I have a 4-year-old husky doodle named Nova.

Molly Niska
Email Molly
Zand Lab

Research interest:
My project seeks to improve our understanding of splenic immune memory against the respiratory pathogen influenza A virus (IAV), providing insight into where IAV-reactive memory B cells (MBCs) are maintained and how these reservoirs evolve upon further antigen exposure. Additionally, analysis of the IAV-specific MBC reservoir offers the opportunity to discover broadly reactive monoclonal Ab therapeutics and identify critical epitopes to target for future vaccine development, reducing the burden of influenza A.

Fun Fact:
I love baking and have won awards for my pumpkin cinnamon rolls and lemon raspberry petit fours.

Imran Tahir
Email Imran
A. Rahman Lab

Research interest:
My overarching research goals are to understand how the lung endothelium becomes inflamed and leaky after injury. Specifically, I am interested in understanding the role of mechanistic/mammalian target of rapamycin complex 1 (MTORC1) in endothelial cell (EC) inflammation and barrier regulation in the context of acute lung injury/acute respiratory distress syndrome (ALI/ARDS). My studies use a combination of in vitro and in vivoapproaches to clarify the role and regulation of MTORC1 in activated EC and evaluate the therapeutic efficacy of modulating MTORC1 signaling against ALI. Knowledge from this work may lead to a novel therapeutic strategy that relies on targeting MTORC1 to control ALI.

Fun Fact:
If I wasn’t in research, I would be a carpenter. I love taking a pile of wood and building something useful out of it.

Kari Thrasher
Email Kari
Leuck Lab

Research interest:
My project aims to discover and better understand novel therapeutics to overcome Cystic Fibrosis caused by nonsense mutations.