Current Members


Hachung Chung, PhD

Principal Investigator
Assistant Professor, Columbia University Medical Center
Department of Microbiology and Immunology
Email: hc3070@cumc.columbia.edu
Degrees: PhD Microbiology and Molecular Genetics (Harvard University); BS Biochemistry (Stony Brook University)

Hachung, a native of South Korea, received her B.S. in Biochemistry from Stony Brook University and her Ph.D. in Microbiology and Molecular Genetics from Harvard University. She conducted her post-doctoral studies at The Rockefeller University. In 2019, she joined the Department of Microbiology and Immunology at Columbia University as an Assistant Professor. Hachung is a recipient of the NIH Ruth L. Kirschstein National Research Service Award (2014 ~2017) and a Searle Scholar Award (2020). Outside of the lab, Hachung enjoys exploring NYC with her husband and two kids!

Heegwon Shin, PhD

Associate Research Scientist
Email: hs3270@cumc.columbia.edu
Degrees: PhD Chemistry (Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology, South Korea)

Jake Gertie

MD-PhD Student
Email: jag2392@cumc.columbia.edu
Degrees: BS Molecular Cellular and Developmental Biology
(Yale University, CT)

Aidan Jones

PhD Student, Integrated CMBS
Email: asj2174@cumc.columbia.edu
Degree(s): BA Molecular Biology & Biochemistry, The College of Integrative Sciences (Wesleyan University, CT)

Meera Singh

PhD Student, M&I
Email: mks2248@cumc.columbia.edu
Degree(s): BS in Biology (Brown University, RI)

Yuanjun Yin

PhD Student, Molecular Physiology and Biophysics
Email: yy3509@cumc.columbia.edu
Degree(s): B.S. Biological Sciences (Peking University, China)

Sydney Sinwoo Hong

Lab Technician/Manager
Email: sh4859@cumc.columbia.edu
Degree(s): B.S. Biological Sciences (Fordham University, NY)

Neomi Li Simoni

Undergraduate Student
Email: ns3841@columbia.edu
Major: Biophysics (intended)

Rachel Tang

Undergraduate Student
Email: zrt2006@columbia.edu
Major: Biological Sciences

Carolina Jessica Stutchbury

Undergraduate Student
Email: cjs2303@columbia.edu


Past Alumni

Claire He, former undergraduate and master’s student

Tyler Dorrity, PhD, former PhD student & Post Doc, May 2019 - August 2024, now a visiting Professor of Microbiology and Immunology at The College of New Jersey

Kenenni Wiegand, former lab technician, July 2021 - July 2024, now a Biomedical Science MA student at Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai

Kavya Batra, former M.A. student in Biotechnology

Amanda Grace Leone, former Undergraduate Student, now a Columbia University PhD graduate student

Justin Aruda, former Columbia University undergraduate researcher and research technician, Fall 2019 - August 2021, now PhD student at Harvard University

Rachel Polfer, former research technician, June 2019 - August 2021, now PhD student at The Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory School of Biological Sciences