current members

rrohatgi@stanford.edu

Parijat Sarkar

Postdoctoral Scholar

parijats@stanford.edu

Murugesh Narayanappa

Life Science Research Professional

mnarayan@stanford.edu

Laura Nocka

Postdoctoral Scholar

The Walter V. and Idun Berry Postdoctoral Fellow

lnocka@stanford.edu

Mandi Ma

Postdoctoral Scholar

A.P. Giannini Foundation, Post-doctoral Fellowship

American Cancer Society, Post-doctoral Fellowship

mma19@stanford.edu

Chandni Patel

Graduate Student

c7patel@stanford.edu

Maia Kinnebrew

Postdoctoral Scholar

Hanna Gray Fellow and Stanford Distinguished Fellow

NIH Director’s Early Independence Award Recipient

mkinnebr@stanford.edu

Ganesh Pusapati

Senior Research Scientist

(American Heart Association, Post-doctoral Fellowship)

ganesh22@stanford.edu

I was born and raised in Kolkata (a.k.a. City of Joy), India.  I did my Integrated BS-MS from the Indian Institute of Science Education and Research (IISER) Kolkata with a major in Biological Sciences. I subsequently moved to Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology, Hyderabad, India and received my Ph.D., studying membrane organization, dynamics and GPCR-cholesterol interactions in the lab of Prof. Amitabha Chattopadhyay.  I joined the Rohatgi lab to study the molecular mechanisms that regulate lipid trafficking at primary cilia.  I am a train & aviation enthusiast, enjoy cooking, watching cricket and exploring new places (not in that order!).

I grew up in southern India, on the outskirts of Bangalore. I earned my undergraduate degree in pharmacy from the Government College of Pharmacy in Bangalore. I then went on to earn my PhD in Biochemistry and Biophysics at Oregon State University, where I worked in Dr. Colin Johnson's lab on the biophysical characterization of a ferlin family of proteins implicated in hearing loss and muscular dystrophy. I completed my postdoctoral training at Weill Cornell Medical School in Dr. Jeremy Dittman's lab, where my research focused on understanding the role of synaptic proteins in neurotransmission using C. elegans as a model organism. Now, as a life science research professional in Dr. Rajat Rohatgi's lab, I am interested in the mechanistic understanding of WNT and stress response signaling pathways using a variety of approaches including biochemistry, cell biology, genetics, and microscopy. When I am not in the lab, I like to read, go on hikes, cycle, and play cricket.

Born in New Jersey and raised in Massachusetts, I began my undergraduate studies on the east coast at New York University. Here I studied Chemistry and Mathematics and was introduced to research through work with Mark Tuckerman. After two years in the big city I transferred to Wesleyan University in Connecticut, where I earned my BA in Biological Chemistry and Mathematics. During my time at Wesleyan I worked with Ishita Mukerji and David Beveridge on dynamics of Holliday Junctions. At this point I decided to take my studies to the west coast and began grad school at UC Berkeley. Here I earned a PhD in Chemistry working on mechanisms of immune signaling at the plasma membrane in the labs of John Kuriyan and Jay Groves. In the Rohatgi lab, I plan to continue my studies of the molecular mechanisms of signal transduction, focusing now on the Hedgehog pathway and mechanisms of receptor regulation through ubiquitylation.

I was born in China and grew up in the Bay Area. Wanting to explore the sun and beaches of southern California, I attended UC San Diego, where I received a BS and MS in Cell Biology and Biochemistry. From there, I attended Yale University and received my PhD in Cell Biology, studying membrane trafficking in the laboratory of Christopher Burd. Missing California food and weather, I came back to the Bay Area and joined the Rohatgi lab in August 2019. Here, I hope to use my cell biology expertise to further our understanding of oncogenic WNT signaling in cancers. Outside of the lab, I enjoy hiking, traveling, and playing tennis.

I grew up in San Jose from where the sun and sand of Southern California drew me to study Cell Biology at the University of California, San Diego. After a few research projects and inspiring classes during my undergraduate studies, I wanted to dive deeper into the fundamental properties of cells, so I decided to move back to the Bay Area to complete a PhD in the Biochemistry Department at Stanford. In the Rohatgi Lab, I (along with a few others in the lab) aim to discover how mammalian cells sense and respond to osmotic stress using a combination of biochemical assays and genetic screens. Outside of lab, I like to go to the beach, watch baking shows, and explore the city.

I was born in Guatemala and grew up in Orange County, California. Since then, I have continued to move north on the North American continent, first to the University of California at Santa Barbara, where I received a BA in Biology, and now to Stanford where I am a PhD candidate in the Rohatgi lab. My project focuses on the molecular mechanisms of Hedgehog signaling, with a emphasis on the EvC complex and Smoothened. While not in the lab, I enjoy fishing, camping, cooking and wine/beer tasting, especially in combination!

I was born and raised in Vizag, a coastal city in Southern India. After completing my Masters in Biotechnology from the University of Hyderabad, I moved to Germany to begin my research career. I obtained a Ph.D. degree in the field of Cell Biology (protein trafficking and signal transduction).  After completing a short post-doc in the Pfeffer lab at Stanford University, I joined the Rohatgi lab in early 2013. My major research interest is to understand the molecular mechanisms of oncogenic WNT and Hedgehog signaling pathways. My long-term research career goal is to develop a therapeutic targeting “undruggable” oncoproteins. My outside interests include playing cricket and watching documentaries.