Elizabeth Pollina
Assistant Professor
pollina[at]wustl.edu
Liz obtained her PhD in the fields of epigenetics and aging and did her postdoctoral work in molecular neurobiology. Liz is fascinated by how the environment impinges on the genome to modulate neuronal development and aging. Outside of lab, Liz enjoys reading, long distance running, and spending time with her young family .
Shilpa Padmanaban
Postdoc Fellow
pshilpa[at]wustl.edu
Shilpa received her PhD from the University of Michigan, where she studied how telomeres protect the ends of chromosomes. Currently, she is broadly interested in understanding if DNA repair mechanisms are different in young and aged brains. In her free time, she enjoys painting, listening to music, and traveling.
Cecilia Lei
Postdoc Fellow
leih[at]wustl.edu
Cecilia did her PhD at WashU in Dr. Shin Imai’s lab, where she probed the effects of aging on motivational behaviors and responses to social isolation in mice. In the Pollina lab, she will focus on 1) exploring how sleep and sleep deprivation affects the brain-gut axis at single-cell level and 2) screening for pivotal DNA repair factors that maintain genome stability in aging neurons. Aside from science, Cecilia enjoys feeding herself & others, watching anime & movies, and going on trips of all sorts.
Jake Adelman
Staff Scientist
jacoba[at]wustl.edu
Jake received his PhD in cell and developmental biology from the Medical College of Wisconsin, where he studied
human cytomegalovirus infection in human neurons. He is interested in mechanisms of degeneration aging and neuronal repair. Jake enjoys camping, cooking, gardening and (board/video) games.
Cassie Zuckerman
Postdoc Fellow
zuckerman[at]wustl.edu
Cassie received her PhD from the University of Michigan where she studied the function of centrosomes in murine spermatogenesis. Presently, she is interested in how different populations of neuronal cells repair damaged DNA in young versus aged brains. Outside of the lab, Cassie enjoys reading sci-fi and fantasy novels, tending to her tropical plants, and making the perfect cup of matcha.
Ena Haseljic
Graduate Student
e.haseljic[at]wustl.edu
Ena is a PhD student in the Molecular Genetics and Genomics program. She obtained her B.S. in Molecular Genetics from the University of Rochester, where she explored longevity in bowhead whales. Her research interests include exploring DNA repair in neurons and investigating how sleep deprivation affects transcriptomics and epigenetics in neurons. In her free time, Ena enjoys playing volleyball, reading books, working out, and taking long walks.
Joowon Um
Graduate Student
j.um[at]wustl.edu
Joowon is a PhD student in the Developmental Biology program. He obtained his B.S. in Molecular Biology from the University of California, Los Angeles where he experimented on changing methylation levels in Arabidopsis thaliana via fusion proteins containing a methyltransferase domain. His undergraduate research has extended beyond to culture his present interest in the role of epitranscriptomics in aging. In his free time, he enjoys making Youtube videos and making Korean food!
Hazel Lee
Graduate Student
hyoseo[at]wustl.edu
Hazel is a PhD student in the Molecular Cell Biology program. She earned her B.S. in Brain and Cognitive Sciences from Ewha Womans University in South Korea. Following her studies, she pursued postgraduate research at Yale University, where she investigated transcriptional regulation in the development of visual neuronal circuits. Her research interests focus on understanding cell-type-specific DNA repair mechanisms and their role in neurodegeneration. In her free time, she enjoys playing the piano, reading books, and jogging.
Dvita Kapadia
Graduate Student
dvita[at]wustl.edu
Dvita Kapadia is a PhD student in the Neuroscience DBBS program. Dvita received their BA in Neuroscience from Swarthmore College. After graduating, they joined the Tristan Li lab at WashU where their research focused on microglial plasticity in development, disease and aging. They are interested in exploring the impacts of environmental factors, such as chronic stress, on the neuronal genome and environmental consequences on aging. In their free time, they enjoy creative writing, kickboxing and reading while snuggling up with their cat.
Kodai Nakamura
Graduate Student
kodai[at]wustl.edu
Kodai received his MD from the University of Tokyo in Japan. In medical school, he researched how senescent cells are distributed in the ovary and how they affect fertility. He is interested in finding out the mechanisms of aging and how they eventually lead to death or diseases such as dementia. He enjoys running, reading books, and getting in the sauna.
Michael Nguyen
Research Technician I
c.m.nguyen[at]wustl.edu
Michael received his B.A. in Cognitive Neuroscience from Washington University in St. Louis, where he studied how radiation alters the tumor microenvironment in pediatric brain cancers. He hopes to continue his education by attending medical school. When he’s not working in the lab, Michael enjoys playing basketball, working out, exploring new food spots, watching sports, and traveling with friends.
Cici Lin
Undergraduate Researcher
cici.l[at]wustl.edu
Cici is an undergraduate student at WashU majoring in Biology and minoring in psychology on the pre-med track. In her free time, she enjoys being in nature, which led her to develop a love for hiking and exploring trails. She also enjoys playing badminton.
Mary Cao
Undergraduate Researcher
c.tengyue[at]wustl.edu
Mary is an undergraduate student at Washington University in St. Louis, majoring in Biology. In her free time, she enjoy playing sports such as tennis, basketball, table tennis, and badminton. She also enjoys the relaxation, peacefulness, and freedom that comes from swimming, playing chess and baking.
Former Lab Members
In the Pollina Lab, we are honored to have the privilege to train the next generation of scientists and are committed foremost to the success of our members. We are thinkers, dreamers, doers, talkers, and friends. We believe the best science emerges from diverse viewpoints and training paths. We are committed to generating an environment where each person’s passion and individual character synergize to strengthen our team. Our core values are curiosity, generosity, resilience, integrity, and humor, and we celebrate the process of scientific discovery as much as the discoveries themselves. We are eager to recruit individuals to help shape this culture of inclusion and support.
Come join us! We are looking for talented post-docs, students, and bioinformaticians. Please send your CV and three reference letters to pollina[at]wustl.edu.