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INFORMATION FOR

Lab Members

Principal Investigator

Research Assistants & Associates

  • Bornali Bhattacharjee

    Associate Research Scientist

    Dr. Bornali Bhattacharjee, MS, PhD is a Research Associate Scientist at the Department of Immunobiology and the Associate Director at the Center for Infection & Immunity. Her role is to lead, coordinate and manage biomedical research projects that are geared towards understanding the immune trajectories of post-acute infection syndromes. Her training and research interests lie at the interface of pathogen genomics, evolutionary biology and host-pathogen interaction. She earned her PhD in Molecular Epidemiology & Virology from Indian Statistical Institute & University of Calcutta. Her post-doctoral training was in Viral Genomics & Evolution at University of Massachusetts Medical School.
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  • Andrew Daniels, PhD

    MD/PhD Student

    Andrew (Drew) Daniels is an MD/PhD student at Yale School of Medicine. Prior to attending medical school Drew graduated from The Johns Hopkins University with a BA in Neuroscience. There, he completed research in both immunology, studying the systemic immunosuppression associated with brain tumors; and neuroscience, studying the neural circuitry underlying higher order visual processing using advanced imaging techniques. During medical school Dr. Daniels built on his passion for immunology and immuno-oncology and earned his PhD under the co-mentorship of Dr. Marcus Bosenberg and Dr. Akiko Iwasaki. His thesis research focused on anti-tumor immunologic memory responses. He investigated critical T cell subsets for memory responses, transcriptional and epigenetic changes that defined these cells, therapeutic strategies to enhance this population, and adoptive cell therapy as a potential treatment modality. Dr. Daniels maintains a broad interest in tumor immunology and strategies to enhance long-term anti-tumor responses. His clinical interest include head and neck cancers, immunotherapies in these settings, and adoptive cell therapies, and he is applying to otolaryngology residency programs this year.
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  • Jeff Gehlhausen, MD, PhD

    Instructor (Clinical)

    Research Interests
    • Connective Tissue Diseases
    • Dermatomyositis
    • Lupus Erythematosus, Cutaneous
    • Lupus Erythematosus, Discoid
    • Vasculitis
    • Panniculitis, Lupus Erythematosus
    Dr. Gehlhausen is a dermatologist and physician-scientist in Dr. Iwasaki's lab working on autoimmune connective tissue diseases affecting the skin, including lupus erythematosus. His focus is on how type I interferons, which are essential innate antiviral pathways, mediate the pathophysiology of lupus disease. Though the association of type I interferons and lupus has been well established, the precise mechanism of how and which cell types mediate pathologic changes remains incompletely understood. Dr. Gehlhausen has a connective tissue disease clinic where he sees complex autoimmune cases and utilizes high dimensional techniques like single cell rna sequencing to profile the skin manifestations of these patients. Additionally, he makes heavy use of genetic mouse models of try to better understand the cellular and molecular effectors driving type I interferon-mediated disease.
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  • Kevin Givechian

    MD/PhD Student

    I grew up in Southern California and graduated from USC. I spent a few years doing computational cancer genomics research which eventually led me to the interface of genomics and tumor immunology. I am currently interested in the intersection of cancer biology, immunology, and machine learning to improve and/or develop novel therapies for cancer patients. Outside of research and medicine, I spend my time playing soccer on the club team here at Yale, playing pick-up basketball with classmates, and eating (probably too many) chocolate chip cookies.
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  • Kerrie Greene

    MD/PhD Student

    I graduated from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) with a double major in Biological Engineering and Brain & Cognitive Sciences. In the past, I studied infant social cognition using functional near-infrared spectroscopy in the Saxe Lab at MIT. At the Mayo Clinic, I led a protein engineering project working with tissue inhibitor of metalloproteinases-1 (TIMP-1) to alter the inhibitory profile toward cancer biomarkers, matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs). Moving forward, I will continue to pursue cancer research, specifically tumor immunology, immunotherapy, and neuro-immunology. Fun fact: I was invited to train at the United States Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs, CO for volleyball!
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  • Jon Klein, PhD, MD

    MD/PhD Student

    Research Interests
    • DNA Virus Infections
    • Sexually Transmitted Diseases
    • Coronavirus
    • Encephalitis, Viral
    • Central Nervous System Viral Diseases
    Jon originally hails from California and attended University of California, Davis completing degrees in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology with a minor in Neuroscience. After graduation, Jon worked for several years at University of California, San Francisco working in the laboratory of Dr. Leor Weinberger before accepting a position in the MD/PhD program at the Yale School of Medicine. Jon is currently conducting his PhD research in SARS-CoV-2 pathogenesis in the laboratory of Dr. Akiko Iwasaki.
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  • Mario Pena-Hernandez

    PhD Student

    Research Interests
    • Arboviruses
    • RNA Viruses
    • Zoonoses
    • Coronavirus
    • Flaviviridae
    Mario graduated from Universidad Autónoma de Nuevo León in Mexico with a major in Genomics and Molecular Biology. He worked with distinct viruses such as Measles, HIV, Zika, and Chikungunya under the mentorships of Dr. Laura Trejo-Ávila, Dr. Ana Rivas-Estilla, Dr. Stephen P. Goff, and Dr. Manuel Llano. After graduation, he worked as a Postgraduate Associate in the laboratory of Dr. Brett Lindenbach investigating the molecular replication of flaviviruses, using Yellow Fever virus as a model. Mario is currently working on his Ph.D. dissertation project under the mentorship of Dr. Akiko Iwasaki and Dr. Craig Wilen. He is studying the impact of human and bat innate antiviral responses in pathogenesis and pandemic potential of bat coronaviruses.
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  • Eric Hoyeon Song, MD, PhD

    Hospital Resident

    Eric Song received his undergraduate training at University of Southern California in biochemistry. After graduating, he joined Justin Hanes' lab as a master's student studying how to better design nanoparticles to deliver genes and drugs into the brain. After a post-bacc in Mark Saltzman's lab at Yale expanding his skillset as a biomedical engineer, he entered the Yale Medical Scientist Training Program for his MD and PhD degrees. For his PhD he worked with Akiko Iwasaki to answer questions regarding why immune responses in the brain are different than the rest of the body. Eric continues to perform research in trying to understand and manipulate immune responses in immune privileged tissues to help design new therapies for diseases without cures.
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  • Wesley Tung

    MD/PhD Student

    Wesley Tung grew up in Central Illinois where he attended the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign studying Molecular and Cellular Biology. In 2019, he graduated with many academic distinctions, completing a honors thesis on the role of the RNA-binding protein hnRNPI in intestinal homeostasis. Following his graduation, he travelled to the National Institutes of Health where he studied the genetic contributions of a defective Type I Interferon pathway in conferring viral infection susceptibility in humans. These experiences defined his interests in medicine, clinical immunology and virology, where he hopes to pursue in his future academic career. He is currently participating as part of Yale's MSTP as an NIH Oxford/Cambridge Graduate Partnership Program Scholar.
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Former Lab Members

Former Postdocs

Philipp Alberts

Susan Fink, MD, PhD
Postdoctoral fellow 2012-2016
sfink@uw.edu

Ellen Foxman
Postdoctoral Fellow 2010–2017
Ellen.foxman@yale.edu

Benjamin Goldman-Israelow, MD/PhD
benjamin.goldman-israelow@yale.edu

Smita Gopinath

Takeshi Ichinohe, Ph.D.
Postdoctoral fellow 2007-2010
ichinohe@ims.u-tokyo.ac.jp

Norifumi Iijima

Xiaodong Jiang

Kellie Jurado

Myoungjoo Kim

Eriko Kudo

Yosuke Kumamoto

Alex Lipovsky

Carolina Lucas
carolina.lucas@yale.edu

Yusuke Nakanishi, Ph.D.
Postdoctoral fellow 2006-2009
y-naka.bre@mri.tmd.ac.jp

Jieun Oh

Balaji Ramanathan, Ph.D.
Postdoc 2006
balaji@upei.ca

Kayo Sagawa, Ph.D.
Postdoctoral Associate 2006-2009
kayo.sagawa@yale.edu

Miwa Sasai
Postdoctoral fellow 2007-2012
m-sasai@biken.osaka-u.ac.jp

Ayuko Sato, Ph.D.
Postdoc 2002-2006
ayukosato@hotmail.com

Hong Shen, Ph.D.
Postdoc 2005-2006
hs24@u.washington.edu

Haina Shin

Weily Soong

Kenichi Takano

Manabu Taura

Jody Thompson

Joseph M. Thompson, Ph.D.
Postdoctoral Associate 2007-2009
joseph.thompson@yale.edu

Maria Tokuyama

Shumpei Yamauchi

Xinyan Zhao, Ph.D.
Postdoc 2000-2003
xinyan_zhao@yahoo.com

Former Students

Rachel Bian

Audry Chan
M.P.H. student 2000-2002
audrey.chan@yale.edu

Vincenzo DiNatale

Asu Erden
Graduate Student 2012-2017
asuerden@gmail.com

Kachiko Hayashi
Graduate Student 2011–2017
Kachiko.yahashi@yale.edu

Annie Hoang

Ulyssess Isidro

Teshika Jayewickreme

William Khoury-Hanold
Graduate Student 2011-2016
william.khoury-hanold@yale.edu

Daniel Kim

Gloria Lee

Heung Kyu Lee
Immunology Ph.D. Candidate 2005-2009
heungkyu.lee@kaist.ac.kr

Alice Lu-Culligan

Jennifer Lund, Ph.D.
Graduate Student 2002-2006
jmlund@u.washington.edu

Renata McKay

Lisa Mattei
Graduate Student 2007-2012
Lisa.mattei@yale.edu

Leila Mendonca

Pietro Miozzo

Ryan Molony
Graduate Student 2015–2018
ryan.molony@yale.edu

Gladys Ng
M.P.H. student 2001-2003
ngg@mail.amc.edu

Iris Pang
Graduate Student 2009-2012
iris.pang@yale.edu

Padmini Pillai
Graduate Student 2011-2016
padmini@gmail.com

Tasfia Rakib

Stephanie Sellers

Kelly Soderberg, Ph.D.
Graduate Student 2001-2005
kelly_soderberg@yahoo.com

Alex Storer
Graduate Student 2012-2013
storera21@gmail.com

Michal Tal
Graduate Student 2007-2012
mikstars@gmail.com

Rebecca Treger

Arvind Venkataraman

Patrick Wong

Yexin Yang

Laura Yockey
Graduate Student 2012-2018
laura.yockey@yale.edu

Brian Yordy
Graduate Student 2007-2012
Brian.yordy@yale.edu