Meet Our Graduate Students

Name: Ramee Grace Aranda

Program: Ph.D. Student

Lab: Hadwiger Lab

Hometown: Eva, OK

"I am studying signal transduction in Dictostelium discoideum."

Name: Anton Avramov

Program: Ph.D. Student

Lab: Burnap Lab

Hometown: Krasnoyarsk, Russia

"Cyanobacteria, algae and plants produced enough oxygen for evolution to create humans so they can try to understand how the oxygen is produced by these organisms."

Name: Justin Bowen

Program: Ph.D. Student

Lab: Conway Lab

Hometown: Tulsa, OK

"Upon learning that transforming bacteria with the human insulin gene to effectively turn them into factories that produce insulin for diabetics was when my interest in microbiology became realized. I want to discover novel ways transformed microbes can be utilized for human health. Especially as a way to regulate the human microbiome for the maintenance of human health."

Name: Melissa Brewer

Program: Ph.D. Student

Lab: Shaw Lab

Hometown: Weatherford, OK

"I've been interested in research, especially pathogens and the immune system since a very young age. Doing research here allows me to study interesting interactions between intracellular pathogens proteins and their host cell."

Name: Sudhir Doranga

Program: Ph.D. Student

Lab: Conway Lab

Hometown: Syangja, Nepal

"My interest lies in understanding the mechanisms of competition between microorganisms in nature"

Name: Rebekkah Friske

Program: Ph.D. Student

Lab: Prade Lab

Hometown: Columbus, OH

"I am currently studying extracellular vessicles in fungi. I hope to one day get an industry research job after I graduate."

Name: Chris Hamm

Program: Ph.D. Student

Lab: Cabeen Lab

Hometown: Bay Area, California

Name: Radwa Hanafy

Program: Ph.D. Student

Lab: Youssef Lab

Hometown: Cairo, Egypt

"Anaerobic fungi have unique cellulolytic capabilities and are considered to be promising for biofuel production. I am interested in harnessing their powers by studying their genomes and metabolic capabilities."

Name: Biraj Kayastha

Program: Ph.D. Student

Lab: Patrauchan Lab

Hometown: Bhaktapur, Nepal

"It is breathtaking to think how microbes present themselves as single cell models for studying various life processes."

Name: Rabindra Khadka

Program: Ph.D. Student

Lab:

Hometown: Dhangadhi, Nepal

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Name: Michelle King

Program: Ph.D. Student

Lab: Patrauchan Lab

Hometown: Choctaw, OK

“It is fascinating how an organism so small can manipulate and utilize the environment around them to thrive. I love to think how eukaryotes evolved from these organism and the adaptations that had to take place.”

Name: Deepali Luthra

Program: Ph.D. Student

Lab: Lutter Lab

Hometown: Ludhiana, Punjab, India

"Researching to unravel the mysteries of interactions of the pathogen with host cells stimulates curiosity to learn more about the intricate pathogenesis of a disease!"

Name: Suman Maharjan

Program: Ph.D. Student

Lab:

Hometown:

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Name: Neil Miller

Program: Ph.D. Student

Lab: Burnap Lab

Hometown: Stillwater, OK

"It is incredible how sensitive microorganisms can be to changes in their environment, and it has shown me how important the maintenance of microbial communities is to the human industries like the production of crops, biosynthesis of useful chemicals, and fermentation"

Name: Chelsea Murphy

Program: Ph.D. Student

Lab: Youssef Lab

Hometown: Allen, TX

"Microbes encompass such a stunning diversity of lifestyles, habitats, and more. There is so much to be discovered, and endless questions to be asked, as these tiny organisms impact life so profoundly in so many ways. I seek to explore new, uncultured, and unique microorganisms, and use a variety of bioinformatic techniques to probe both what they are doing in their environments, and how they came to be."

Name: Benjamin Nelson

Program: Ph.D. Student

Lab: Wozniak Lab

Hometown:

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Name: Somalisa Pan

Program: Ph.D. Student

Lab: Cabeen Lab

Hometown: Asanol, West Bengal, India

"It was during my undergraduate studies, I fell in love with Microbiology as a subject. I was fascinated by the fact that things that we can’t even see with our naked eyes, can have such a huge impact on our lives. Keeping aside all the industrial applications of Microbiology, microbes in general play an important role in all sorts of disease development; some of them curable, while some of them incurable. Thus, studying them at the molecular level, to understand their physiology and pave a way towards finding a therapeutic cure triggers my interest as a graduate student."

Name: Prakash Sah

Program: Ph.D. Student

Lab: Lutter Lab

Hometown: Birgunj, Nepal

"Intracellular survival is intriguing; it's amazing how a tiny creature can manipulate the host to its own benefit."

Name: Tarosha Salpadoru

Program: Ph.D. Student

Lab:

Hometown:

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Name: Ross Walker

Program: Ph.D. Student

Lab: Burnap Lab

Hometown:

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Name: Archana Yadav

Program: Ph.D. Student

Lab: Elshahed Lab

Hometown: Janakpur, Nepal

"I am working to uncover the metabolic and evolutionary aspects of different uncultured microbes using bioinformatics and genomic techniques. Its fascinating to know how every microorganism has a role in environment they thrive in."

Name: Amal Yahya

Program: Ph.D. Student

Lab: Cabeen Lab

Hometown: Riyadh, Saudi Arabia

"I have always been an inquisitive child and "why" was my favorite word! Microbiology fascinates me because it never fails to fuel my curiosity to learn more..."

Name: Colleen "Denver La Force

Program: Research Masters Student, GSA Vice President

Lab: Lutter Lab

Name: Addison Grinnell

Program: Research Masters Student

Lab:

Hometown: Choctaw, OK

"I like understanding big things but wanted to start small"

Name: Ashlee Hawkins

Program: Research Masters Student

Lab: Wozniak Lab

Hometown: Edmond, OK

"I've always been fascinated by the human body and it's mechanisms used to fight off infection and disease. Being apart of the Wozniak lab has allowed me to gain an in depth understanding, from an immunological perspective, of how and why disease and infections persists when the body's defense system is compromised."

Name: Clark Jett

Program: Research Masters Student

Lab: Burnap Lab

Hometown: Kersey, Colorado

"I research carbon concentrating mechanisms in Cyanobacteria."

Name: William Marsh

Program: Research Masters Student, GSA President

Lab: Fathepure Lab

Hometown: Allen, TX

"It's interesting to think of microorganisms as small, extremely complex machines. Studying how the gears turn or how their electrical systems all connect allow us produce better medicine, clean toxic waste, and further our understanding of how these microorganisms influence our macro-lives."

Name: Imani McGill

Program: Research Masters Student

Lab:

Hometown: Oklahoma City, OK

"Science and I have a pretty good relationship. It kind of just gets me. I was the kid that watched more and spoke less....but when I did speak, one would often find that it would be simple yet complex word, "Why?" ".....Why.......why?"

Name: Danielle Lemus

Program: Accelerated Masters Student

Lab:

Hometown:

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