Lab Personnel

Christopher Frost

Lifetime Gharakhanian Lab Member.

B.S. Microbiology (CSULB, 2002), B.S. Biology (CSULB, 2002), M.S. Biochemistry (CSULB 2005)

Currently, Chris provides training to incoming lab members. He also assists with various laboratory operations including experiments involving yeast microscopy.

Surya Manandhar

Post-Doctoral Research Associate

General Medicine from Institute of Medicine, Tribhuvan University, Kathmandu, Nepal; Ph.D. in Biochemistry from Kharkov State University, Kharkov, Ukraine (USSR); M.S. in Biochemistry from Kharkov State University, Kharkov, Ukraine (USSR).

Surya's research is focused on understanding yeast ENV7p, product of a gene ENV7 that is not yet characterized, but apparently involved in sorting proteins at late endosome-to-vacuolar interface. Using molecular, biochemical and microscopic approaches, Surya intends to characterize this gene/protein in respect to its cellular localization and biological functions in Saccharomyces cerevisiae.

Ikha Mansoora Siddiqah

Research Assistant II

Master of Science degree in Biology, B.S. in Molecular, Cell & Developmental Biology.

I am studying the role of Env7 phosphorylation in negative regulation of vacuolar fusion.

Sara Valencia

Graduate Research Assistant

I study phosphorylation and localization of vacuolar membrane kinase Env7 during the cell cycle in order to better understand how it regulates vacuolar membrane fission/fusion dynamics. I also study protein-protein interactions between Env7 and Yck3, another vacuole membrane kinase.

Leah Frisardi

Graduate Research Assistant

I am studying how vacuolar membrane protein Env7 reaches the yeast vacuole, and what sorting signals may be necessary for its vacuolar localization.

Andrew Dunnigan

Graduate Research Assistant

I am currently refining cell arrest methods to better understand the variable phosphorylation state of ENV7 and how it localizes over the course of the cell cycle.

Carlos Alvarado

Undergraduate Research Assistant

I am currently involved in establishing a protocol to arrest S. cerevisiae at S phase of the cell cycle using Hydroxyurea. With this protocol, we are hoping to determine the phosphorylation levels of a protein known as Env7 as S. cerevisiae progresses throughout the cell cycle.

Anthony Ricci

Undergraduate Research Assistant

My project is examining the sufficiency of the hydrophobic domain of Env9 on lipid droplet localization to hopefully establish it as a lipid droplet targeting sequence.

Shannon Satterfield

Undergraduate Research Assistant

I am looking at the localization of Env7 in the VAC8 and VAC17 deletion mutants compared to wild-type. Vac8 and Vac17 proteins could potentially interact with or could exist upstream to Env7. By tagging Env7 with GFP, I can visualize it's localization in the deletion mutants using different types of microscopy, for example, DIC and epifluorescence and start to make conclusions from there.

Past Members

Undergraduates Since 2005

Name	Degree, Date
Ariella Pessah	BS, '06
Christina Dominguez	BS, '06
Emily Cantrell	BS, '07
Christian Aguilera	BS, '09
Daniel Olson	BS, '10
Florante Ricarte	BS, '12
Tattika Soreta	BS, '12
Fiona Ruiz	BS, '14
Erika Calle	BS, '14
Kenia Pech	BS, '15
Elizabeth Garfinckle	BS, '16
Isaac Lee	BS, '17
Shannon Sutterfield	BS, '17

Master's Grads to Date

Name	Degree, Date
Mary K. Weidman	MS, '95
Judianne Davis	MS, '95
Luis Geller	MS, '97
Christine Jao	MS, '97
Adolfo Gonzalez	MS, '98
Clare Fasching	MS, '00
Ken Oyadomari	MS, '02
Marcos Pinho	MS, '03
Dyna Sao	MS, '04
Chem Sylors	MS, '04
Christopher Frost	MS, '05
Andrea Araujo	MS, '07
Maria Banuelos	MS, '08
Onyi Chem-okereke	MS, '09
Surya Chhun	MS, '10
Rosa Menjivar	MS, '11
Kris Locken	MS, '13
Lisa Oliveira	MS, '13
Priscilla Bravo	MS, '16
Jonathan Shaoulian	MS, '16

Post Doctoral Research Fellows

Kathleen Takahashi
Daniele Esquenazi Ejzykowicz