People
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The main reason why I decided to create the VGL is to push Genomics forward. In my life time, I want to see perfect genome assemblies of all living vertebrates. Not only I want to witness this achievement but I also want to be a major player.
Erich D. Jarvis, Director of the VGL
Jennifer Balacco
Lab operation lead
Jen is a molecular biologist and expert in isolating ultra-High Molecular Weight DNA and in many long read technologies such as PacBio and Bionano.
Giulio Formenti
Bioinformatics lead
Giulio is a bioinformatician interested in genome assembly. He has developed several methods for genome assembly, polishing, and evaluation.
Lauren Shalmiyev
Management and Administration Lead
Lauren oversees VGL finances, communications, and is a liaison for the lab.
Melanie Couture
Import/export
Melanie is a field biologist specialized in bird capture. She has an extensive knowledge of sample collection, import, and export permits.
Nivesh Jain
Research scientist
Nivesh is a molecular biologist specialized in ultra-High Molecular Weight DNA isolation, Bionano, and Oxford Nanopore.
Tatiana Tilley
Research scientist
Tatiana is a molecular biologist specialized in ultra-High Molecular Weight DNA isolation, Hi-C, Oxford Nanopore and PacBio.
Kathleen Horan
Project manager
Kathleen is our Project Manager. She facilitates samples exchange between institutions and coordinates new genomic projects.
Nadolina Brajuka
Research scientist
Nadolina is a bioinformatician specialized in genome assembly and curation. She is interested in the intersection between data science, computation and -omic research.
Conor Whelan
Research Scientist
Conor is a molecular biologist specialized in next-generation sequencing technologies..
Patrick Traore
Research Scientist
Patrick is a molecular biologist specialized in ultra-High Molecular Weight DNA isolation.
Linelle Abueg
Research scientist
Linelle is a bioinformatician specialized in genome assembly. She is passionated about biodiversity and loves popcorn more than anything.
Sabrina Burmeister
Visiting professor
Sabrina is a visiting professor from UNC Chapel Hill. She uses an integrative approach that combines behavioral, anatomical, and molecular biology techniques to discover the neural mechanisms of the behavior of natural animals with a focus on social and spatial cognition.
Cassidy Jonhson
Graduate Student
Cassidy is a PhD student at Rockefeller University. She is interested in genome assembly methods and is currently rotating at VGL.
