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Young Lab

Lab Members

 

 

The Young Lab

Principal Investigator

Jamey D. Young, Ph.D.

Cornelius Vanderbilt Professor of Engineering
Director of Graduate Studies in Chemical Engineering
Professor of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering
Associate Professor of Molecular Physiology and Biophysics

Education

B.S. Chemical Engineering, 1999
University of Kentucky
Ph.D. Chemical Engineering, 2005
Purdue University
Postdoctoral Fellow, 2005–08
Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Contact Information
j.d.young@vanderbilt.edu

Curriculum Vitae

Research Faculty and Postdoctoral Researchers

Clint Hasenour, Ph.D.

Assistant Research Professor

Education

B.A. Biochemistry, 2007
DePauw University
Ph.D. Molecular Physiology and Biophysics, 2014
Vanderbilt University

Contact Information
clinton.m.hasenour@vanderbilt.edu

Research
Diabetes & Obesity

Mariachiara Conti, Ph.D.

Postdoctoral Researcher

Mariachiara is a Chemical Engineer with a strong interest in research in bioprocess development. She works at the interface of biology and engineering science, aiming at translating new discoveries into industrial-scale production.

Education

B.A. Material Chemistry, 2015
Alma Mater Studiorum – Universita de Bologna

M.S. Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, 2019
Alma Mater Studiorum – Universita de Bologna

Ph.D. Engineering, 2024
The University of Edinburgh

Contact Information
mariachiara.conti@vanderbilt.edu

Research
Extracellular Vesicle Biomanufacturing

Research Staff

Sara Weidenbach, M.S

Lab Manager

Sara specializes in method validation and small molecule detection via GC and LC-MS/MS. She earned her two bachelor’s degrees in Chemistry and in Forensic Science at Virginia Commonwealth University in 2019 before completing her Master’s degree in Pharmacology at the University of Tennessee Health Science Center in 2020. She has three years of industry experience within the disciplines of health science toxicology and food science before joining the Young Lab in June 2023. Her current research interests are focused on method development and validation through HPLC and Mass Spectrometry.

Contact Information
sara.weidenbach@vanderbilt.edu

Graduate Students

Amy Zheng

Ph.D. – Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering

Education

B.S. Chemical Engineering, 2017
University of Kansas

Contact Information
amy.o.zheng@vanderbilt.edu

Research
Photosynthetic Metabolism

 

Baltazar Zuniga

Ph.D. Candidate – Molecular Physiology and Biophysics

Baltazar Zuniga graduated from The University of Texas at Austin in 2019 with honors degrees in Liberal Arts (Plan II) and Biochemistry. He joined the Young Lab in 2020 through the Molecular Physiology and Biophysics Ph.D. Program. His research interests include the effects of source-sink dynamics on cyanobacterial natural product synthesis and the cyanobacterial fatty acid biosynthesis pathway.

Contact Information
baltazar.e.zuniga@vanderbilt.edu

Research
Photosynthesis Research

 

 

 

 

 

Rachel Moen

Ph.D. Candidate – Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering

Rachel Moen is a current chemical and biomolecular engineering PhD candidate in the Young Lab. She earned a bachelor’s degree in Bioengineering with a concentration in biomaterials from Clemson University, before joining the Young Lab in August 2020. Her research focuses on scaling up the production of extracellular vesicles (EVs) from tissue-specific cell lines derived from induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) for therapeutic applications.  She is co-advised by Dr. Jamey Young and Dr. Ethan Lippmann.

Contact Information
rachel.k.moen@vanderbilt.edu

Research
Extracellular Vesicle Biomanufacturing

Deveena Banerjee

Ph.D. Candidate – Molecular Physiology and Biophysics

Education

B.S. Mathematics, 2020
Bates College

Contact Information
deveena.r.banerjee@vanderbilt.edu

Research
Diabetes & Obesity

 

Kevin J. Ruiz-Márquez

Ph.D. Candidate – Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering

Kevin is a current chemical and biomolecular engineering PhD candidate in the Young Lab. He earned a bachelor’s degree in Chemical Engineering with a minor concentration in Pharmaceutical Engineering from the University of Puerto Rico-Mayaguez in 2021. His current research interests are focused on the utility of host cell engineering in enhancing the metabolic efficiency of mammalian cell lines used in biomanufacturing processes.

Contact Information
kevin.j.ruiz-marquez@vanderbilt.edu

Research
Cell Culture Engineering

Jaejung Kim

Graduate Student – Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering

Jaejung Kim is a current Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering PhD candidate in the Young Lab. He earned a Bachelor’s degree in Biomedical Engineering from the National University of Singapore and a Master’s degree in Chemical and Biomedical Engineering from Nanyang Technological University. Jaejung gained seven years of industry and academic experience prior to joining the Young Lab in August 2024. His research focuses on developing cell engineering strategies to produce extracellular vesicles (EVs) with favorable properties for therapeutic applications.

Education:

B.E. Biomedical Engineering, 2015

National University of Singapore

M.E. Chemical and Biomedical Engineering, 2019


Nanyang Technological University

Contact Information

Jaejung.kim@vanderbilt.edu

Research
Cell Culture Engineering

Extracellular Vesicle Biomanufacturing

 

Undergraduate Students

Gabriella Faircloth

Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering

Gaby is a Class of 2025 Chemical Engineering student minoring in Data Science. She is also part of The SyBBURE Searle Undergraduate Research Program, which provides personal funding and mentorship for undergraduate researchers.

Contact Information
gabriela.j.faircloth@vanderbilt.edu

Research

Extracellular Vesicle Biomanufacturing

 

 

 

 

Sarah Patel

Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering

Sarah is a Class of 2027 Chemical Engineering student minoring in Chemistry.

Contact Information
sarah.g.patel@vanderbilt.edu

Research

Diabetes & Obesity

 

 

 

Group Alumni

Postdoctoral Researchers

  • Piyoosh Babele, 2019-2021
  • Current position: Rani Laxmi Bai Central Agriculture University (India), Assistant Professor
  • Clint Hasenour, 2015-2018
    Current position: Vanderbilt University, Research Assistant Professor
  • Young Mi Whang, 2012-2015
    Current position: Samsung Medical Center (Seoul, Korea), Executive Office Team Leader

Graduate Students

  • Javier Gomez, 2017-2024
  • Sarah A. Sacco, 2016-2022
    Current Position: Merck (Rahway, NJ), Senior Scientist
  • Mohsin Rahim, 2015-2021
    Current position: PTC Therapeutics (Sunnyvale, CA), Scientist I
  • Ali McAtee Periera, 2012-2018
    Current position: Pfizer (Raleigh-Durham, NC),     Senior Scientist
  • Lara Jazmin, 2010-2015
    Current position: Metalytics (Nashville, TN), President
  • Martha Wall, 2013-2015
  • Adeola Adebiyi, 2012-2015
  • Alex Leamy, 2010-2015
    Current position: Deloitte (Cincinatti, OH), Consultant
  • Casey Duckwall, 2011-2014
  • Neil Templeton, 2009-2014
    Current position: Merck (Kenilworth, NJ), Senior Scientist
  • Rob Egnatchik, 2009-2014
    Current position: UT Southwestern, Postdoctoral Researcher, Deberardinis Lab
  • Taylor Murphy, 2008-2013
    Current position: NextGxDx (Franklin, TN), Director of Data Procurement

Undergraduate Students

  • Lauren (Kaylee) Jones, Spring 2025-present
  • Nicholas V Oberbroeckling, Spring 2025-present
  • Matthew McPhail, Fall 2024-present
  • Brett Payne, Fall 2024-present
  • Sarah Patel, Spring 2024-present
  • Gabriela Faircloth, 2023-present
  • Ellie Rose Marie Armstrong, Fall 2024
  • Max Byram, 2022-2023
  • Mushfikur Rahman, 2015-17
    Current position: University of Houston, CHE PhD program
  • Victoria Potter, 2015-17
    Current position: Exxon Mobil
  • Elaine Qian, 2012-2014
    Current position: UCLA, BE PhD program
  • Jackie Whitehead, NSF REU 2012
    Current position: UC Riverside, BME PhD program
  • Jessica Campos, 2010-12
    Current position: Loyola, Chicago MD program
  • Mayo Adigun, 2011
    Current position: Purdue, CHE PhD program
  • Judy Zhu, 2010-11
    Current position: OFS Fitel, Materials Engineer
  • Lina Aboulmouna, 2009-11
    Current position: Cornell, CHBE PhD program
  • Peter DelNero, 2009-11
    Current position: Cornell, BME PhD program

Summer Research Training Program (SRTP) in Diabetes and Endocrinology

  • Kaleb Kohler, 2012
    University of Cincinnati
  • Nicolina Wawrin, 2011
    University of Toledo
  • Brendan Inouye, 2010
    University of Hawaii

Visiting Undergraduate Students

  • Anna Ruth Madera, Summer 2024
    Mercer University
  • Brooke Olesnevich, Summer 2015
    North Carolina State University

Visiting Graduate Students

  • Qianru Jin, Summer 2012
    Johns Hopkins University
  • Veronique Beckers, Fall 2011
    Braunschweig University of Technology

Young Lab Group Photos