Meet the Team

Scott Soleimanpour, MD

• Position: Principal Investigator
• Hometown: Youngstown, Ohio
• Education: BS in Integrated Life Sciences, Kent State University (Combined BS/MD program); HHMI-NIH Research Scholar, NIH, Maryland;
  MD, Northeastern Ohio University College of Medicine; Residency, Internal Medicine, Hospital of the University of Penn; Fellowship, Endocrinology, Diabetes, Metabolism, Hospital of the University of Penn

 

Morgan Gingerich, BS

• Position: Graduate Student
• Hometown: Anchorage, Alaska
• Education: BS in Cellular and Molecular Biology, Western Washington University
• Focus of project: Clec16a structure-function relationships, focusing on regions lost in a disease-associated variant of Clec16a

 
 

Elena Levi-D’Ancona, BS

• Position: Graduate Student
• Hometown: Oak Park, Illinois
• Education: BS in Biochemistry, Tulane University

 
 
 
 
 

Anne Lietzke, BS

• Position: Graduate Student in Pharmacology
• Hometown: Fort Wayne, Indiana
• Education: BS in Biochemistry, Indiana University Bloomington

 
 
 
 
 

Gemma Pearson, PhD

• Position: Research Investigator
• Hometown: Sydney, Australia
• Education: Bachelor of Medical Science, University of Technology, Sydney; PhD in Cell Biology and Biochemistry, UNSW Australia
• Focus of project: Understanding how mitochondrial function regulates beta-cell identity and function

 
 

Emma Reck

• Position: Research Assistant, former Undergraduate Research Opportunity Program (UROP) student
• Hometown: Howell, Michigan
• Education: Current University of Michigan undergraduate

 
 
 
 

Nasha Rios-Guzman, BS

• Position: Post-baccalaureate Research Education Program (PREP) Scholar
• Hometown: Ruskin, Florida
• Education: BS in Cell and Molecular Biology, University of South Florida

 
 
 
 
 

Vaibhav Sidarala, PhD

• Position: Postdoctoral Researcher
• Hometown: Hyderabad, India
• Education: BS in Pharmacy, Rajiv Gandhi University of Health Sciences; PhD in Pharmaceutical Sciences, Wayne State University
• Focus of project: Examine mitochondrial health and function in pancreatic beta cells under the duress of pro-inflammatory cytokines

 
 

Emily Walker, PhD

• Position: Research Investigator; Web Design Lead/Webmaster
• Hometown: Sioux Falls, South Dakota
• Education: BS in Biology, University of Nebraska; PhD in Cell Biology, Medical College of Wisconsin

 
 
 
 

Jie Zhu, MS

• Position: Lab Manager
• Hometown: Suzhou, China
• Education: Bachelor of Medicine (Pediatrics), Nanjing Medical University; Master of Science in Hematology, Suzhou University; Master of Medical Informatics, Northwestern University School of Professional Study
• Focus of project: Lab mouse colony maintenance, perform animal surgeries and assist in other projects, maintain general lab operations