current members

shivalir@stanford.edu

I was born and raised in Lucknow, India, though my roots trace back to the Himalayas. I earned my bachelor’s and master’s degrees in biotechnology from Amity University and IIT Guwahati, respectively. I pursued my PhD with Dr. Swasti Raychaudhuri at the CSIR-Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology in Hyderabad, where I investigated protein aggregation under stress conditions in mammalian cells. Following this, I completed a brief postdoctoral training with Prof. Bingwei Lu at Stanford University. In the Rohatgi lab, my research focuses on the cholesterol trafficking pathway implicated in Niemann-Pick disease type C. Outside the lab, I enjoy watching sitcoms, British television shows, Korean dramas, and Japanese anime. I am an animal lover and a nature enthusiast.

yukigy@stanford.edu

Born in the Bay Area and raised in Pennsylvania, I began my academic journey at Penn State University on a full-ride scholarship. During my undergrad, I primarily worked on high-throughput small molecule screening to identify potent inhibitors of an antibiotic resistance-inducing enzyme and completed my honors thesis entitled "The inhibition of Erm methyltransferases to prevent antimicrobial resistance" under the mentorship of Dr. Squire J. Booker. Wanting to pursue my long-standing interest in cancer cell signaling research, I decided to take two gap years working in the Rohatgi lab before applying to MD-PhD programs. In the Rohatgi lab, I plan to investigate small molecules that target components of the Wnt pathway. Outside of the lab, I enjoy spending time with my family, my dog Pax (a morkie), playing the piano/tenor saxophone, and practicing taekwondo.

kdelong@stanford.edu

NSF Graduate Research Fellowship Program

I grew up traveling, so while I went to high-school in northern Virginia I often call Massachusetts home! I attended the University of Chicago, where I researched neuromuscular junction formation in the Carrillo lab. Post-graduation, I worked in Feng Zhang's lab at the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard to develop novel delivery systems. I then came to the Department of Molecular and Cellular Physiology to pursue my interest in the molecular mechanisms and regulation of developmental signaling pathways. As a PhD student in the Rohatgi lab, I plan to investigate signal transduction at the primary cilia and develop a mechanistic understanding of key pathways such as Shh and Wnt. Outside of research, I enjoy reading classic science fiction novels, going to concerts, and exploring national parks!

mnarayan@stanford.edu

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.

lnocka@stanford.edu

The Walter V. and Idun Berry Postdoctoral Fellow

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.

mma19@stanford.edu

A.P. Giannini Foundation, Post-doctoral Fellowship

American Cancer Society, Post-doctoral Fellowship

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.

mkinnebr@stanford.edu

Hanna Gray Fellow and Stanford Distinguished Fellow

NIH Director’s Early Independence Award Recipient

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!

ganesh22@stanford.edu

American Heart Association, Post-doctoral Fellowship

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.