Sam Berk - Virginia Tech, B.S. Biochemistry
T. Acott Lab

Sam works to elucidate mechanisms of extracellular matrix regulation in relation to primary open angle glaucoma.  Specifically, he works with kinase regulation of matrix metalloproteinases involved in the breakdown of the extracellular matrix associated with the trabecular meshwork (TM).  This region of tissue is responsible for aqueous humor outflow, and by varying said outflow rate by modulating matrix thickness and composition the TM can or in the glaucomatous disease state fail to control and maintain intraocular pressure.

Triona Matheson - University of Portland, B.S. Chemistry
D. Farrens Lab

Rich Posert - Reed College, B.A. Biochemistry
I. Baconguis Lab

Rich earned his BA in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology just across the river at Reed College in 2015. He spent two years working toward a structure of open GIRK bound to small molecules or G-proteins in Matt Whorton's lab at the Vollum Institute as a research assistant. He then joined OHSU's Program in Molecular and Cellular Biosciences (PMCB) in 2017 and the Baconguis lab in April 2018 to study the structure of ENaC in complex with regulatory proteins. When he's not in lab he can be found riding his bike or playing with his cat, Nooch.

Anthony Shumate - University of Missouri-Columbia, B.S. Biochemistry
D. Farrens Lab

Anthony grew up in the Midwest, where he attended the University of Missouri-Columbia in pursuit of a degree in biochemistry. During his time at Mizzou, Anthony studied the molecular interactions that connected the plant immune system to the photoreceptors responsible for leaf orientation and chloroplast dynamics. After graduating, Anthony briefly worked in industry, performing trace elemental analysis on developing drug products. Upon attending OHSU, Anthony found that the research done by the Farrens Lab combined his favorite aspects of past experiences while also presenting him with exciting new challenges. Employing approaches in molecular biology, biochemistry and spectroscopy, Anthony now studies the structure and conformational dynamics of the GPCR rhodopsin, the dim-light photoreceptor of the rod cells in the retina.

Weekie Yao -
D. Farrens Lab

Daniel Bejan- Washington State University, B.S. Biology
M. Cohen Lab

Jacqueline Emathinger- San Diego State University, B.S. Biology
S. Gurley Lab

Jackie is an MD/PhD student who joined the Gurley lab in summer 2019. She is currently investigating the protective role of ACE2 in acute kidney injury. Outside of the lab, Jackie devotes her time to reading, rowing on the Willamette river, and raising her puppy Willa.

Scotty Farley- Reed College, BA in Chemistry
C. Schultz & F. Tafesse Labs 

Growing up, my family lived in Washington, Georgia, and Massachusetts, but my love always went first and foremost to the Northwest, so I moved to Portland to pursue an undergraduate degree in chemistry at Reed College. After college, I felt the need to do something concrete with the great teaching I had benefited from, and I joined the Peace Corps, which sent me to Mozambique for two years to teach high school math and chemistry. Those two years I cannot hope to encompass in a paragraph; suffice to say I was filled with a passion for addressing medical questions that have been largely left behind by western science, especially the devastation caused by infectious tropical diseases. This brought me back to OHSU to supplement my background in chemistry with pharmacology and chemical biology, where I started in the PMCB program in 2016. I am now being jointly mentored by Carsten Schultz and Fikadu Tafesse, and between their two labs I am developing chemical probes to characterize sphingolipid involvement in Zika and Dengue infection.

Mason Handford- University of California- Santa Cruz, B.S. Chemistry
M. Riscoe Lab

Ryan Hecht- University of Rochester, B.S. Microbiology
C. Morgans Lab

Originally from Maryland, I attended the University of Rochester in upstate New York where I earned my B.S in Microbiology. During that time I studied the ontology of innate-like T cells in the lab of Dr. Jacques Robert. After volunteer teaching in Guatemala for one year, I enrolled in OHSU’s Program in Molecular and Cellular Biosciences where I joined the lab of Dr. Catherine Morgans. My thesis research is dedicated to understanding the etiology of an autoimmune disorder known as Melanoma Associated Retinopathy (MAR) which causes Congenital Stationary Night-blindness (CSNB). Outside of my life as a researcher, I dedicate my time to playing/writing music, cooking, snowboarding, hiking, and spending time with my cats. 

Julia Huey- Georgia Institute of Technology- Atlanta, BS Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, BS Biochemistry
A. Janowsky Lab

My name is Julia Huey, but mostly folks call me Juli. I spent my formative years in Georgia, which can be blamed for my excessive use of the word "y'all" and firm belief that fried okra is the best vegetable. At Georgia Tech, I worked in the M.G. Finn lab in support of projects to characterize and modify virus-like particles for in vivo applications. After college, I worked as an industrial process engineer in various chemical plants and manufacturing facilities. I found my heart was still in the lab, so I decided to pursue a graduate education. At OHSU, I discovered my interest in central nervous system pharmacology and joined the lab of Aaron Janowsky. Here, I am studying the G-protein coupled receptor trace amine-associated receptor 1 (TAAR1). I am fascinated by the molecular mechanisms underpinning psychiatric disorders including addiction, and hope to better understand how chronic methamphetamine use affects TAAR1 signaling and trafficking. When I'm not in the lab, I can be found hiking the glorious Northwest with my husband Ike and our dog Cashew, or cozied up on the couch with a good podcast, our cats Blini and George, and a knitting project.

Kaya Keutler- Albert-Ludwigs-Universität Freiburg, MS in Biochemistry and Biophysics
C. Schultz Lab

Χαίρετε (chaírete, greek for hello),

My name is Kaya Keutler and I was born in the north-west of Germany. However, my parents have left the country for many years to live abroad and therefore I grew up on a small island in Greece, where I spent a great childhood and still feel deeply connected to the sea and the sunshine. However, as a curious nature and after my diagnosis as a diabetic, I early decided to become a scientist - in later stages this idea shaped up and I decided to study biochemistry. My studies took me back to Germany, where I finished my bachelors in the small city of Tübingen, working on the purification and functional characterization of an anti-apoptotic protein in the Garcia-Saéz Lab. However, I realized that even though I enjoyed any research field, I had the desire to focus on diabetic research. That brought me to Freiburg, where I started my master studies in biochemistry and biophysics. Through the university of Freiburg I had the chance to perform an internship followed by my master thesis in the lab of Carsten Schultz in Heidelberg. There I worked on Insulin secretion and the signaling factors regulating that process. After a rather short journey I finally arrived in the research field I was aiming for. During my PhD here at the OHSU Schultz lab, I will continue working on insulin secretion trying to unravel the influence of autocrine signaling and the importance of a particular class of signaling factors called "trace amines".

Ivan Rodriguez Siordia- The Center for Biological Research of the Northwest, M.S. Biotechnology
M. Cohen Lab

Daniel Sanderson- California Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo, B.S. Biochemistry
M. Cohen Lab

Alix Thomas- Paris 7 Diderot University, MS in Biochemistry
C. Schultz Lab

I received my BA in chemistry from Paris 5 Descartes University in 2015 and then started a master in Biochemistry with a focus on the structural biology of proteins. During this master I worked on developing a protein-protein interaction assay based on UAAs incorporation and small chemical probes in the lab of Terrence Strick at the Jacques Monod Institute. I then did my master thesis in the lab of Mario Pende in the Necker Institute where I was mentored by Ganna Panasyuk. There I worked on biliary atresia, focusing on the molecular mechanisms driving autophagy. I then joined the lab of Carsten Schultz in Heidelberg for a small internship followed by a PhD here at the OHSU Schultz Lab. I am currently working on developing a FRET biosensor-based imaging platform to study the effect of combinatorial drugs on the signaling network in human cell.

Janelle Tobias- Santa Clara University, B.S. Biochemistry
J. Frank Lab