1025 Walnut Street
603 College Building
Philadelphia, PA 19107
Our Team
The Dang Lab Team (L to R): Brittany Ruiz, Ryuku Irobe, Anna Barry-Wolbers, Alvaro Lucci, Hien Dang, Meghan Grim, Kasonde Chewe, and Laura Reynolds
Hien Dang, PhD
Principal Investigator
Dr. Dang earned her PhD in Molecular Medicine from Penn State University, followed by an outstanding Postdoctoral Fellowship at the National Cancer Institute (NCI). She began her own lab at Jefferson’s Department of Surgery in October 2018 focusing on oncogenic RNA binding proteins in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC).
Loves tacos and cannot lie.
Highlighted achievements include:
- the discovery of a novel RNA binding protein (RBP) gene signature that predicts treatment response in liver cancer patients
- planning and development of national and international collaborations
- execution of many large-scale studies
Anna Barry, MS
Research Assistant II
Project: Using CRISPR/Cas9 to develop and validate models to study NELF-E in HCC. Also exploring AGO2 as a possible oncogenic RBP.
Loves going to the beach, hiking, & Founders craft beer.
Alvaro Lucci, PhD
Postdoctoral Fellow
Project: Elucidating AGO2's role and its relationship with NELFE in Hepatocellular Carcinoma
Fun fact: Plays musical instruments and spicy food could kill him very fast
Laura Reynolds, BS
Doctoral Candidate
Project: Validating a therapeutic targeting NELFE in HCC and investigating the mechanisms of NELFE in liver cancer.
Loves photography and going for walks around the city.
Brittany Ruiz
PhD Student
Project: Understanding AGO2’s role in regulating transcription in hepatocellular carcinoma
Fun fact: Enjoys spending time with family and exploring Philly
Former Team Members
Rajkumar Baldeosingh, MS
Contractor, Sparks Therapeutics
Meghan Grim, BS
Master's Student
Project: Investigating the use of antisense oligonucleotides and the involvement of NELFE in pancreatic cancer
Fun fact: Enjoys hiking and hanging out with houseplants
Ryan Lamm, MD
General Surgery Resident
Thomas Jefferson University Hospital
Project: Genome-wide CRISPR/Cas9 screen to identify therapeutic targets against NELFE-driven HCCs.
Fun fact: Was once the lead singer in a rock band.
Michelle Schafer, BSc
Medical Student
Thomas Jefferson University
Adam Wojnar, MS
Research Assistant II
Project: Using bioinformatics to investigate the relationship between NELFE and MYC-induced HCCs.
Believes cheese and beef jerky are the two greatest things in the world.
Kai Zhang, PhD
Assistant Professor
Nanjing University, China