Lab members

 

Dr. Dennis Lavrov, Principal Investigator
  • I was born in a city and in a country that do not exist anymore (Leningrad, Sovjet Union).
  • I did my undergraduate studies at St. Petersburg State University in the laboratory of Prof. Zavarzin.
  • Jeff Feder (University of Notre Dame) can be blamed for my interest in evolutionary biology.
  • I got my Ph.D. degree from the University of Michigan, where I worked in Wesley Brown group on arthropod relationships based on mitochondrial genomic data.
  • I did my postdoctoral work with Franz Lang at the University of Montreal, working on mtDNA of demosponges.
  • My current interests in biology are phylogenetics, mitochondrial biology, and animal evolution
  • This picture was taken by my 3 years old daughter

 

Karri Haen, Ph.D. Student

 My scientific background is in the genetics of disease and animal phylogenetics. Currently I have two main research interests: 1.) molecular evolution as it relates to changes in the mitochondrial translational machinery and genetic code and, more generally, 2.) hexactinellid mitochondrial genomics. The latter research is a branch of the Porifera Tree of Life Project. I have taught several university courses including the Biology 101 lecture at Iowa State University as the Knaphus Teaching Fellow in 2008. Biology labs and recitations taught include bioethics, principles of genetics, principles of biology I & II, comparative chordate anatomy, and human anatomy. I was recently selected by the EEOB Department for the Iowa State University Teaching Excellence Award.

Xiujuan Wang, Ph.D. Student

I came from China and got my master degree in Biomedical Engineering at Chongqing University.

In 2004 I entered Genetics program here and currently co-major in Bioinformatics. I am interested in genome evolution and system biology. Now I am working on mitochondrial genome evolution of demosponges.

Ehsan Kayal, Ph.D. Student

 I was born in Asia, raised in Europe, and I am currently working at the lab as a PhD student. That makes me a perfect example of an International Student.

I have a Master degree in Ecology, Biodiversity and Evolution from the University of Paris 6, France.

My main interests are phylogenetics, systematics and the understanding of early Metazoan evolution, with a particular interest in calcareous sponges.

Romulo Segovia, Master Student

 I was born in Peru, in the historic city of Cusco, which is located at an altitude of over 11000 feet in the heart of the Andes Mountains. I did my undergraduate studies at San Antonio Abad State University, and I am currently a genetics master's student and Fulbright scholar at ISU. My current project is tRNA editing in the mitochondrial DNA of Peripatus, a very ancient species on Earth. It is said to be a living fossil because it has been unchanged for approximately 570 million years!!!

Walker (Will) Pett, Ph.D. Student

 I am an Ames native and decided to come back home for graduate work in the BCB program. I got my undergrad in Biology from Bard College in upstate New York, doing mostly field ecology. I rambled around for a bit after that, working with Blanding's turtles in New York, and mist-netting birds in California. Right now I am working on a set of modules for Bioperl to help in the analysis of mitochondrial gene order data. My general interests are phylogenetics, and mechanisms of evolution. I'm also a birder and a musician.

Andrea (Adi) Bekic, Undergraduate Research Assistant

 I was born in Croatia, spent 7 years of my life in Germany, and moved to the United States 10 years ago. I speak 3 languages (English, German and Croatian) and am working on my fourth (Japanese). I am currently majoring in Biology and Psychology with a minor in German. I hope to one day become a doctor. Most of my free time currently goes toward studying for the MCAT, which I take this summer. Otherwise I enjoy doing stuff outdoors, drawing/painting, and writing. I am in the process of writing a children's book about two kids being accidentally miniaturized into a cell!

Jena Hopkins, Undergraduate Research Assistant

 Hmmmmmm.....

Philip Lange, Undergraduate Research Assistant

 I am from Eagan, Minnesota, a suburb of St. Paul. I am presently an undergraduate in the microbiology department here at ISU. I've tried just about every major available and I think I've finally found the one for me. My primary interests are in the field of medicine, particularly diseases and disease control. I currently plan to enter pharmacy school after I graduate from Iowa State.

 

 

Former Lab members

Arun Sethuraman, BCB Rotation Student

 I am from the sunny city of Madras in south India and completed my undergraduate studies in Computer Science at the Birla Institute of Technology & Science, Pilani. I then worked for a year in artificial intelligence and software engineering research at Infosys Technologies Limited. I started off on my PhD in Bioinformatics at Iowa State in Fall 2008 and my research interests include phylogenetics, multi-agent systems, biostatistics and computation theory. Am an ardent reader and traveler and also write quite a bit of fiction.

Kristin Noack, Undergraduate Research Assistant

 Undergraduate research assistant

Lizette Hinojo, Undergraduate Research Assistant

 About me

Olga Burlakova, Visiting Ph.D. Student

 I was born in Nahodka, a small city on the Japan sea of the Pacific Ocean. I live in Irkutsk, a city in Siberia located near the deepest and the most enigmatic lake in the world - Baikal. I graduated from the Irkutsk State University in Biology and Genetics. I continue my study at the Limnological institute. The areas of my current researches are phylogenetics and systematics of endemic Baikal sponges.