Who We Are
Principal Investigator
Andrea K. Locke, PhD
Office: ESB 638
Email: andrea.locke@vanderbilt.edu
Dr. Locke is Assistant Professor of Biomedical Engineering and Chemistry at Vanderbilt University. She received her BS and PhD in Biomedical Engineering from Texas A&M University. Dr. Locke received the Academic Pathways Fellowship award and completed her postdoctoral training at Vanderbilt Biophotonics Center. She is a member of SPIE and the National Society of Black Engineers. Her research interests include optical spectroscopy, biosensors, nanostructures, paperfluidics, and point-of-care diagnostic.
Current Lab Members
Graduate Students
Kauryn Datcher
Degree: Chemistry
Email: kauryn.a.datcher@vanderbilt.edu
Research: Kauryn’s project focuses on the development of an aptamer-based biosensor for pro-inflammatory cytokine detection within vaginal fluid as a noninvasive predictor of preterm birth. By integrating paper-based microfluidics, she aims to translate this work into a sensitive, user-friendly monitoring platform for early risk assessment.
Viannely Francisco
Degree: Biomedical Engineering
Email: viannely.a.francisco@vanderbilt.edu
Research: Viannely utilizes surface enhanced Raman spectroscopy to study bacteria and biochemicals in the vaginal microbiome. She aims to integrate this method with a microfluidics platform and portable Raman spectrometer to create a label free point-of-care system for vaginal health assessment.
Darby Heffer
Degree: Chemistry
Email: darby.c.heffer@vanderbilt.edu
Research: Development of a fluorescent, aptamer-based l-lactate sensor optimized for vaginal health screening at the point-of-care. To support this goal, she uses metabolomics to better understand the effects of certain microbes on biological mechanisms and identify metabolic pathways disrupted by pathogenic organisms.
Madison Walker
Degree: Chemistry
Email: madison.l.walker@vanderbilt.edu
Research: Madison leverages the multiplexing ability of Raman spectroscopy to create a screening tool using saliva for the chronic esophageal disease, eosinophilic esophagitis. In parallel to her work, she implements surface chemistry reactions to create a low-cost, modified substrate for Raman measurements.
Luke Whitehead
Degree: Biomedical Engineering
Email: luke.whitehead@vanderbilt.edu
Research: Luke works on developing a point-of-care diagnostic platform that brings Raman spectroscopy to clinical settings. To accomplish this goal, he works on bacterial detection in biofluids, miniaturized sample preparation devices, and automating spectroscopic workflows.
Undergraduate Students
Sophia Juarez (SyBBURE Undergraduate Research Fellow)
Major: Biomedical Engineering
Research: Design of paper-based substrates for surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy for bacteria detection
Kate Goncalves
Major: Molecular and Cellular Biology
Research: Investigation of portable and benchtop Raman spectroscopy systems for women´s health applications.
Jaedyn Alford
Major: Biomedical Engineering
Research: Development of a protocol for soybean plant imaging using SOPi.
Audrey Hartke
Major: Biomedical Engineering
Research: Development of a paper-based microfluidic platform for bacterial separation and detection in diagnostics.
Isabella Blauzdys
Major: Biomedical Engineering
Research: Investigate lactic acid production in Lactobacillus crispatus using surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS) and a colorimetric assay to identify and quantify lactic acid secretion.
Collaborators
Vanderbilt Biophotonics Center
Huijin An
Degree: Interdisciplinary Materials Science
Email: huijin.an@vanderbilt.edu
Research: Flexible nanoplasmonic substrates for volatile organic compound sensing
Lab Alumni
Dr. Anna Rourke-Funderburg – BME PhD Graduate Student
- Research: Culture-free detection of bacterial pathogens using surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy
Quinn Weiler – High School Intern
- Development of 3D-printed, handheld, low-cost centrifuge for bacteria separation in low-resource settings
Dr. Alec Walter – Postdoctoral Research Fellow
- Research: Development and improvement of the analytical techniques used to obtain quantitative metrics from optical measurements; spectroscopic detection of bacterial infections; optical tissue phantom design
TJ Yokley – Postdoctoral Research Fellow
- Research: Point of care diagnosis of tuberculosis using surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy; nanoparticle synthesis
Layla Reejhsinghani – Undergraduate Research Assistant
- Research: In-line monitoring of yeast growth using surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy
Jeremiah Johnson – Dual Bachelor’s/Master’s Research Assistant
- Research: Characterization of cellular secretions using surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy
Sophia Pannullo – SyBBURE Undergraduate Research Fellow
- Research: Low-cost paper-fluidic point of care device for the detection of sickle cell anemia
Amelia Taylor – Postbaccalaureate Fellow
- Research: Developing a nanoplasmonic paperfluidic membrane for salivary biomarkers detection at the point-of-care