Our Lab, Winter 2023!
Our ‘Flag Code’ used here:
✊🏻 solidarity, 🇨🇦🇺🇸🇲🇽 country-based identities,🧠 learning/cognitive disability, 🐕🦺 physical disability, 🏳️🌈 LGBTQ+, 
feminist, 🥇1st Gen College, 💕 mentor training, 💚 loves plants & green algae,🤎 loves seaweeds, 🌽 loves Maize…..(ongoing!)
Note: If you want to learn more about pronouns, check out these resources (NPR, UCLA’s LGBTQIA+ Center)
Lauren Dedow, Senior Research Associate and Lab Manager.
🇺🇸💚 Email: ldedow (at) ucla.edu (she/her )
Lauren completed her PhD at UC Riverside, on RNA biology. She has joined the lab to help keep us on track and bring her molecular biology expertise to our aid!
Emoni Cook, Senior Research Associate
Email: emonic96 (at) ucla.edu (she/her)
Emoni completed her MSc here at UCLA in Ecology, Evolution, and Behavior where she worked to understand antimicrobial resistance. Currently she is working to understand the interaction between algal cell walls and their microbiomes.
Lital Davidi, Post-Doctoral Researcher
💚🇮🇱 Email: litaldavidi (at) ucla.edu (she/her)
Lital is an expert in algal biochemistry, from brown to red to green. She is examining stress tolerance mechanisms in algae, with a current focus on intertidal macroalgae and green algae (desmids). Lital is also pursuing her own exciting research program in the green alga Dunaliella salina, including working on pioneering approaches to genetic engineering.
Steven Beuder, Post-doctoral Researcher
Email: sbeuder(at) ucla.edu (he/him)
Steven has extensive experience studying tip-growth and cell walls in plant pollen tubes. He is leveraging that knowledge to understand convergent processes in Macrocystis pyrifera (giant kelp) as part of the Kelp Magic! team. He is also a passionate mentor and teacher. He is currently also the co-lead for our virtual Kelp Kulture seminar series.
Jessica Carstens-Kass, PhD Student in IMMP
Email: jcarstenskass (at) ucla.edu (she/her)
Jess received her BSc from the University of Montreal in Microbiology. She is currently pursuing her PhD, working on understanding the relationship between kelp and their microbiomes.
Siobhan A. Braybrook, PI.
✊🏻🇨🇦🇺🇸🧠🏳️🌈🥇💚🤎💕
Email: siobhanb (at) ucla.edu (she/they)
As the PI (Principal Investigator) in our lab, it is my greatest joy and privilege to be along for the scientific journeys of the folks in our lab. Scientifically, I am deeply interested in how organisms grow when they have cell walls and asking how our science can be used to improve our world. To learn more about my science journey, my roles at UCLA, and some of my philosophies (science, mentoring, teaching) click here.
Undergraduate Researchers
Noelle Fuller, MCDB Major
Noelle is working to understand the impact of climate change of growth in the giant kelp, Macrocystis pyrifera. She has also spent time working with the model brown alga, Ectocarpus siliculosis.
Elsa Couvillon, Biology Major
Elsa is working to understand the molecular mechanisms underlying desiccation tolerance in the Fucus distichus, one of the toughest brown algae you will find in the intertidal zone!
Grace Donnelly, BioMedical Research Minor & MCDB Major
Grace is investigating the role of the cytoskeleton in gametophyte and embryo development in Macrocystis.
Claire Latendresse, MCDB Major
Claire is building expression constructs and working on transformation in Macrocystis pyrifera.
Catie Virtue, PhySci Major
Catie is working on understanding the giant kelp microbiome, with a focus on how anti-microbial compounds in the cell wall may impact human/animal health.
Vanessa De La Cruz, Biology Major
Vanessa is investigating how carbon availability regulates cell and organismal growth in the giant kelp, Macrocystis pyrifera.
Catherine Sutarjo, Pre-Math/Applied Bio Major
Catherine is working to understand hypocotyl growth dynamics in Arabidopsis thaliana.
Isabela Murray, Physics Major
Isabela is investigating how indentation mechanics in cellular solids (like plant & algal tissue) might best be measured and interpreted.
Lab Assistants
Grace Donnelly
Savannah Ruiz
Past Members
Tia Barfield Griffin, MCDB Major
Serena Ta, MCDB Major
Manya Kimbadi, MCDB Major
Rick Robin, MCDB Major
Manuel Mora, Graduate Student
Emily Oren, MCDB Major
Chloe Rome, MCDB Major
Tim Sisneros, EEB Major
Pablo Martinez, PostDoc & HHMI Hanna Gray Fellow
Chris Caro, Graduate Student
Marina Linardic, Postdoc
Skye Grimm, Lab Assistant
Triet Ngo, Biology major
Shiva Bayatmalayeri, MCDB major
Ashley Royce, Biochem major and Biomedical minor
Firas Bou Daher, Postdoc
J Louis Kaplan, PhD Student
Yuanjie (JJ) Chen, PhD Student
Katie Leap and Devin Gibbs, UCLA Rotating graduate students
Marina Linardić, PhD Student
Roza Vőfély, Graduate Student
Thomas Torode, Post-doctoral Researcher
Adi Naamati, Research Assitant
Shen Bayon de Noyer, Research Assistant
Marco Aita, Post-doctoral researcher
Emily Marr, Undergraduate, Plant Sciences Part II Project.
Summer interns 2015: Jack Clough and Molly Murton (King’s College)
Joanna Wolstenholme, Undergraduate, Plant Sciences Part II Project.
Simon Butterworth, Undergraduate Researcher. Nat Sci.
Amy Roberts, Undergraduate Researcher, UROP Summer Project
Amish Gir, Undergraduate Researcher. Plant Sciences Part II Project.
Ashley Manton, Undergraduate Researcher, UROP Summer Project.
Alexis Peaucelle, Visiting Scientists via AgreenSkills.
Lihua Han, Senior lab technician
*Please note that all images are Creative Commons CC-BY*