PI: Sean Gibbons, PhD, and Leroy Hood MD, PhDPhD Supervisory Committee: Drs. Sean Gibbons, Leroy Hood, Nathan Price, Hao Yuan Kueh, Nancy Allbritton, and Julia Cui.Focus: Using data science, gut ecology modeling, and systems and synthetic biology to predict, understand, and engineer the human gut microbiome. Currently exploring a deeply-phenotyped, multi-omics data set to elucidate early pathology in chronic kidney disease (CKD).

PI: David Baker, PhD● Mentored under a post-doctoral scholar in 80+ member, fast-paced, independent lab to learn Rosetta computational framework and present successful design of a protein rotary motor ring that binds to a light-sensitive ligand in hopes of it inducing ratchet motor-like spinning.● Programmed using Bash shell, Jupyter Notebooks, Github, XML (RosettaScripts), and Python (PyRosetta) to dock azobenzene derivatives into protein scaffold.● Leveraged bicystronic expression of plasmids with target protein in E. coli; purified, and tested the feasibility and binding of the protein motor in vitro using Ni-NTMA purification, SDS PAGE, SEC, spectrophotometry, and LCMS.

● Leading global engineering projects for billion $ brands (e.g. Lay’s, Doritos, Ruffles) involving: internal/external and cross-functional (engineering, operations, R&D, marketing, supply chain) collaboration; plant trials; equipment design, testing, logistics; commissioning; experimentation; and process simulation.● Benefiting a multi-million $ brand and billion $ global expenditure as a 2014 summer intern by translating technical results into business strategy for senior leadership in a 12-week research project.● Managing weekly project progress; aligning timelines, driving progress, and assembling technical regulatory and compliance documentation (CE, HAACP, SOP, etc.) for certifying global R&D projects.● Exploring, testing, interpreting, and delivering results on breakthrough R&D technologies spanning electrical, mechanical, chemical, and controls engineering.● Rapidly learning new fields of engineering sciences to develop expertise and design new technologies.● Designing plant experiments (DOE) based on fundamentals (mass/energy balances, chemical analysis) and interpret process data using statistical analysis (post hoc analyses such as ANOVA).● Managing CFD/FEA projects that solve resource-limited problems and reporting results to a P.E.● Training engineers and managers on new R&D technologies in co-developed and hosted seminars.● Mentoring summer college interns on professional culture and delivering excellent technical results.● Selling R&D projects and results to internal departments and executive stakeholders up to Senior VP level to win funding and approval.● Cultivating daily, deep buyer-vendor relationships with partners that source technology and collaborate with global R&D partners between EU and Americas.● Leading communications for vendor contract and purchasing negotiations.● Drafting and maintaining legal documents (Purchase, Work, and Service Agreements) between parties, test plans, training materials, and drawings (PFDs, P&IDs).

Completed research projects and studies in engineering applications under various chemical engineering professors.Dr. Katy Kao: January 2015 - June 2015● Investigated and validated methods to increase bioreactor carotenoid yield in modified yeast cells for nutraceutical applications.● Utilized spectrophotometry, micropipetting, bioreactor sampling, cell culture preparation, HPLC, media preparation, and other biological science laboratory methods.Dr. Victor Ugaz: August 2013 - May 2014● Initiated experiments for designing a portable, USB-powered DNA analysis platform using microscale fluidics during a two-semester research competition called the AggieE-Challenge.● Won Second Place in university-wide research competition.● Designed and tested electrodes, alternative reaction detection mechanisms, and fluorescent imaging techniques for the device.Dr. Sreeram Vaddiraju: January 2013 - May 2013● Researched cobalt-antimony and other nanowire combinations for their material properties and biomedical applications.● Utilized Raman spectroscopy and SEM to identify nanoparticles and compounds.