Lab Members

Mi Chen, a postdoctoral associate in the Department of Laboratory Medicine, graduated from the Hubei University in 2013 with a B.S. in Biology. Mi received an M.S. in Bioengineering from Institute of Microbiology, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences (UCAS) in 2016. Following her masters, Mi went on to earn her Ph.D. in Biomedical Sciences from the University of Macau (UM) in 2022. Currently, Mi is working as a postdoctoral associate in the Krause lab and will be investigating leukemogenesis and hematopoietic stem/progenitor cell fate specification.

Dr. Betty R. Lawton is a senior member of the Krause laboratory with expertise in pluripotent stem cell culture and differentiation, as well as cell and molecular biology. The predominant interest that has driven the direction of her scientific career is the regulation of gene expression. She came to the Krause laboratory from the University of Connecticut. Her graduate (Genetics, PhD) studies were focused on examining the regulation of gene expression at the Igf2/H19 locus in marsupials and live-bearing fishes. This region is genomically imprinted in mammals and critically important for normal development. The emergence of the Connecticut Stem Cell Initiative provided an opportunity to combine her scientific interests with the needs of patients for medical alternatives to incurable conditions. She was amongst the first group of trainees at UCONN in hESC when the initiative started. She performed post-doctoral studies focused differentiation of human embryonic stem cell to skeletal muscle. In addition to performing many aspects of laboratory management, Dr. Lawton performs multiple studies focused on parathyroid cell differentiation and function.

Rubia first earned her degree in Pharmacy from the Pontific Catholic University of Campinas, Brazil in 2013 before pursuing a Masters in Science from the University of São Paulo in 2016. Following her Masters, she went on to earn her PhD in Medical Physiopathology from the University of Campinas in 2020 while working in the laboratory of Sara T. Olalla Saad. Currently, Rubia is working as a Postdoctoral Associate in the Krause lab and will be investigating hematopoietic stem and progenitor cell fate specification.

Lin Wang has been a Research Associate in the Krause’s laboratory for over 20 years. She received her Master’s Degree from the University of New Haven in molecular/cellular biology. She is highly trained in molecular/cellular biology, protein biochemistry and cell culture including primary murine and human cells. Her interests outside of the laboratory include her family, gardening, hiking, backpacking, photography (including aerial photography), and volunteering for the community. She has been bagged 40 out of the 48 ‘high peaks’ in New Hampshire, and has climbed more than half of the 4000 ft peaks (total 115) in the northeastern US. Both science and nature make life fun!

Ping-Xia Zhang, Associate Research Scientist, is a senior member of the Krause laboratory with wide research interests and extraordinary technical expertise. Dr. Zhang moved to the United States from China, where she was educated as an MD and then pursued a PhD in Immunology. She next performed postdoctoral studies in Immunology in the Department of Pediatrics at Yale School of Medicine. She then joined the Krause laboratory, where she performed studies in collaboration with Dr. Emanuela Bruscia on cystic fibrosis. She currently divides her time between the laboratories of Drs. Krause and Bruscia, where she provides critical expertise to many ongoing studies and help students and postdocs to complete their projects in both laboratories.

Agnieszka graduated with Honors from Skidmore College in 2017, completing her studies with a BA in Molecular and Cellular Biology and a minor in Computer Science. During her undergraduate career, she led several studies on understanding circadian dysregulation in Alzheimer’s, developing computational methods for assessing axon dynamics in fetal alcohol spectrum disorders, and developing transgenic zebrafish models for studying spinal cord injury recovery. After her undergrad, she spent four years working as a medical scribe and researcher at the Cardiovascular Research Institute at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai (ISMMS). She led and operationalized the convalescent plasma program during the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, which ultimately resulted in the development of HIG at Mount Sinai in collaboration with Immunotek. Additionally, Agnieszka was the lead scientist on various NASA Human Research Program and Translational Research Institute for Space Health-funded projects in the Goukassian lab. These projects focused on elucidating acute and chronic effects of ionizing radiation on cardiovascular disease risks. Clinically, she is interested in cardio-oncology. As an MD/PhD candidate in the Department of Cell Biology, Agnieszka has joined Dr. Diane Krause's lab, where she is investigating the mechanisms by which the transcription factor RUNX1, a commonly mutated target in acute myeloid leukemia, regulates the fate of bipotent megakaryocyte-erythroid progenitors.

Max Carlino graduated from the Ohio State University in 2015 with a B.S. in Chemistry. Max earned an M.S. in Infectious Disease and Immunology at Loyola University Chicago, then worked toward the development of large animal cancer models as a researcher at the University of Illinois Chicago and as a consultant with Sus Clinicals, Inc. Max joined the Krause lab as a Research Associate in May of 2021 with an interest in elucidating relationships between transcriptomic regulation and hematopoietic potential. As a PhD student in The Combined Program in the Biological and Biomedical Sciences at Yale, Max joined the Krause and Smith labs with a focus on elucidating regulatory landscapes of endocrine progenitors to inform and enhance stem cell differentiation protocols to enable the development of novel stem cell therapies.

Amos was born in Baguio City, Philippines and immigrated to the Bay Area, CA in 2009. He attended Diablo Valley College where he obtained his Associate’s Degrees (with Honors) in Biology, Life Science, and Natural Science. At UC Berkeley, he completed his Bachelor’s Degree (with High Distinction) in Integrative Biology. During his senior year of undergrad, he began working at UCSF in the lab of Dr. Michelle Arkin in collaboration with the Accelerating Therapeutics for Opportunities in Medicine (ATOM) Consortium. His previous research aimed to develop and optimize cell-based assays to quantify drug-induced liver injury with the goal of creating predictive models to accelerate and improve the drug discovery process. Currently, his doctoral (Ph.D.) research focuses on understanding the molecular mechanisms of cancer development – specifically, acute megakaryoblastic leukemia. Amos is also a member of the Medical Research Scholars Program (MRSP) that bridges traditional predoctoral training with medically-oriented coursework and clinical exposure. In his free time, he enjoys reading fiction, playing with his cats (Truffle and Olive), and going on scenic hikes. Fun Fact: Amos has an identical twin in optometry school!

Madeline Mayday is a PhD Candidate in the Department of Pathology and is a Medical Research Scholar. Originally from Muskoka, Ontario, she graduated with a B.S. in Cell and Molecular Biology from San Francisco State University. Following her undergraduate career she worked as a Research Associate at UCSF to develop a protocol for detection of pathogens causing respiratory failure in pediatric HSC transplant patients. Madeline started her graduate studies in Yale’s MMPP program in Fall 2019 and joined the Krause Lab in May 2020 with an interest in translational research and malignant hematopoiesis. She is currently working on a project to better understand the development of AMKL, a rare neonatal leukemia. Madeline was the Chief Graduate Student for the Department of Pathology from 2023-2025.

Evrett Thompson, a PhD student in the Department of Cell Biology, graduated from the University of Connecticut in 2016 with a B.S. in both Molecular Cell Biology and Chemistry. Following his undergraduate studies, Evrett worked in industry at Semma Therapeutics where he focused on stem cell research and discovered a passion for studying differentiation and cell fate. Evrett started his PhD studies at Yale in the fall of 2019 and joined the Krause lab in March 2020 with an interest in exploring cell fate in megakaryocyte/erythroid progenitors.

Vanessa Scanlon is an Assistant Professor at the University of Connecticut. She is passionate about science and strengthening the pipeline of underrepresented individuals to successful research careers. Her research interests include hematopoiesis and the bone marrow microenvironment. In her spare time, she enjoys live music, gardening and star gazing.