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Current Lab Members
Justin Richner
Principle Investigator
I completed my Bachelor’s degree in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology from Washington University in St. Louis. During my undergraduate time, I worked in the lab of Dr. Barbara Kunkel studying the plant pathogen, Pseudomonas aeruginosa. This research sparked my love of microbiology and my specific interest in host-pathogen interactions. I then moved to the West Coast and entered the PhD program in the Plant & Microbial Biology Department at the University of California Berkeley. Here I joined the laboratory of Dr. Britt Glaunsinger where I worked on herpesviruses and mRNA turnover. From my graduate research, I became interested in viruses and decided to pursue a postdoc focused on the immune response to viral infections. I joined the lab of Dr. Michael Diamond at WashU where I investigated immune mediators of flavivirus pathogenesis and vaccine development. We continue research efforts in these areas in my current lab at UIC.
Ally Bennett
Post- Doc
I graduated from Michigan State University with a Bachelors of Science in Molecular Genetics and Genomics. Currently, I am working towards my PhD in the Richner lab. During my laboratory rotation, I became interested in the development of immune responses against West Nile virus (WNV). WNV is the most common mosquito-borne virus in the U.S.; however, infections are most severe in the elderly population, whose immune systems are weakened. Within the lymph node, protective immune responses are initiated with the help of lymph node stromal cells (LNSCs). Using WNV, the goal of my research is to understand how LNSCs are impacted during viral infection within adult and aged immune systems. Ultimately, the hope is to improve our scientific understanding of viral immunity and guiding strategies to enhance immune responses within older individuals. I am currently working as a post-doc after defending my thesis in November of 2023.
Siddhartha Sengupta
Post-Doc
I earned my masters in biotechnology from Birla Institute of Technology, Ranchi where my thesis work involved characterization of exopolysaccharides extracted from a southern ocean bacterium Pseudoalteromonas sp. This is where I developed an interest in the field of microbiology. I then went on to complete my PhD at the School of Tropical Medicine and Jadavpur University, Kolkata where I worked in Dr. Anusri Tripathi’s lab with host-pathogen interactions involving Chikungunya and Dengue-Chikungunya co-infected patients. I also studied the effects of Curcumin in treating Chikungunya infected arthritic mice. Currently, as a post-doc, I am working on mRNA-LNP vaccine modulations to develop a Chikungunya vaccine which reduces inflammatory reactogenicity and retains other immune sensing pathways.
Enzo Lamontia-Hankin
Graduate Student
I graduated with a Bachelors of Science from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, double majoring in Biochemistry and Microbiology. I developed an interest in vaccine development and virology through my undergraduate research experiences. My research in the Richner lab aims to develop and optimize a vaccine against Dengue virus. Dengue virus infects nearly 400 million people annually so the development of an effective vaccine is of the utmost importance.
Oreoluwa Omoba
Graduate Student
I graduated from University of Wisonsin-Madison with a B.S. in Biology specializing in Neuroscience. I worked in Dr. Prabhakaran's lab where we developed neuroimaging methods for the treatment of different brain lesions, vascular stroke lesions were my primary focus. I also got my M.S. in Infectious Diseases and Immunology at Loyola University Chicago where I studied under Dr. Bryan Mounce. Specifically, I worked in understanding the role polyamines play in viral infections. During this time I developed a true love of research and viruses and decided to pursue a degree where I could combine my interest for medicine with my interest for research. I am now in a combined degree program, MSTP (MD/PhD). Here in the Richner lab I will be working on understanding the long term neurological effects of neurotropic viruses, WNV and SARS-CoV-2.
Grant Warren
Graduate Student
I graduated with my bachelor's from Iowa State University, majoring in biochemistry and double minoring in math and genetics. Throughout undergrad, I worked in the lab of Dr. Julien Roche where I studied the protein DISC1 and its role as a sensor for oxidative stress. There, I developed my passion for research and answering fundamental biochemical questions. After coming to UIC, my rotation in the Richner lab introduced me to the dengue virus and the unique challenges associated with it. These qualities turned a general interest in virology, immunology, and vaccine design into the drive behind my PhD project. During my time here, I aim to elucidate the mechanisms behind DENV antigen stability and why it differs between serotypes. Such aspects are critical in vaccine design and especially prevalent in the area of dengue vaccines. From there, I plan to design antigens that circumvent problematic mechanisms, enhance stability, and hopefully improve future vaccines.
Ali Almousawi
Graduate Student
I graduated from UIC with a B.S. degree in Neuroscience. Ispent a year in the PREP UIC post-baccalaureate program in Dr. Sarah Lutz’ lab in the Department of Anatomy and Cell Biology. I am studying the implications of vascular aging and inflammation on the structure and function of blood-brain-barrier in SARS-CoV-2 with a focus on Caveolin-1 and canonical Wnt/beta-catenin signaling in brain endothelial cells (BECs) and how dysfunctional BECs contribute to neuropathology.
Dhiti Patel
Undergraduate Student
Former Lab Members
Michelle Richner
Lab Manager
I completed my Bachelors of Arts at the University of California at Berkeley in Integrative Biology. I started out as a tech in the tissue culture facility at UC Berkeley and then as lab manager for Dr. Andrew Yoo at Washington University in St. Louis School of Medicine, where I learned and optimized direct reprogramming of human fibroblasts in neurons by overexpressing miR-9 and miR-124 and other transcription factors. I was the lab manager for the Richner lab and have helped out with all projects within the lab, including mRNA vaccine development, ex-vivo lymph node stromal cell culture, and SARS-CoV-2 research. I have also helped maintain and set up our department’s new BSL3 facility. I am now a biosafety officer within UIC’s EHSO.
Clayton Wollner
Graduate Student
I completed my Bachelor of Science at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee where I double majored in Biology and Conservation Environmental Science and minored in Chemistry. I've been interested in vaccinology research since learning about the Red Queen hypothesis as an undergraduate. My research project in the Richner lab involves developing and characterizing a novel mRNA vaccine against dengue virus. Currently, I am working at Regeneron Pharmaceuticals in New York City after earning defending my thesis in August of 2022.
Jake Class
Graduate Student
I obtained my Bachelors of Science in Biotechnology at Frostburg State University in Maryland. After working for a couple years I returned to get my Master's of Science in Microbiology at the University of South Florida in Tampa. From there I worked at a BSL-4 facility under NIAID for two years until coming here to UIC. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, our lab set up two BSL-3 facilities here on campus and I have been doing SARS-CoV-2 research since then. My research focus centers around the humoral immune response and viral evolution during acute SARS-CoV-2 infection.
Tanmayee Vegesna
Lab Manager+ Research Technician
I graduated from the University of Illinois Chicago with a major in Neuroscience and double minors in Linguistics and Philosophy. Learning about antibody dependent enhancement in high school pushed me to pursue research in that domain. During my time as an undergraduate researcher in the Richner lab, my project aimed to generate a better Dengue virus epitope via creating a mutation in the envelope protein to yield antibodies with better neutralizing capabilities to be incorporated into a novel vaccination strategy. After graduating with my Bachelors, I continued working in the Richner lab for two years where I worked on various projects including mRNA vaccine development and virus propagation.. Starting from the fall of 2024, I will be attending Columbia Dental School.
Madeline Mun
Undergraduate Student
I am an undergraduate in University of Illinois at Chicago, majoring in Biological sciences. I am interested in medicine and virology, which led me to work in this lab with Ally. I assist in Ally's study by taking part in immunoflurouscence staining of infected mice lymph nodes. Our goal through this research is to identify different proteins and cells taking part in the lymph node in old individuals and to compare them to adult individuals.
Seshadri Niladhuri
Research Technician
Rajvi Shah
Undergraduate Student
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