Principal Investigator
Kara Bernstein
Lab Head
B.A. Bryn Mawr College, 2000
Ph.D. Yale University, 2006 (Advisor Susan Baserga)
Post-doctorate Fellow, Columbia University, 2006-2011 (Advisor Rodney Rothstein)
Lab Head
B.A. Bryn Mawr College, 2000
Ph.D. Yale University, 2006 (Advisor Susan Baserga)
Post-doctorate Fellow, Columbia University, 2006-2011 (Advisor Rodney Rothstein)
Post-doctorate
Sarah Hengel, Ph.D.
Post-Doctorate Fellow
August 15, 2017 - current
B.S. College of Saint Scholastica, 2010
Ph.D. University of Iowa, 2017 (Advisor Maria Spies)
Funding: 2017 Diversity Supplement from the National Institutes of Health
2019 Post-doctoral Hillman Fellowship for Innovative Cancer Research
2019 American Cancer Society Post-doctoral Research Fellow
Lab Publications:
Rosenbaum JC*, Bonilla B*, Hengel SR*, Mertz TM, Herken BW, Kazemier HG, Pressimone CA, Ratterman TC, MacNary E, De Magis A, Kwon Y, Godin SK, Van Houten B, Normolle DP, Sung P, Das SR, Paeschke K, Roberts SA, VanDemark AP, Bernstein K.A. (2019) The Rad51 paralogs facilitate a novel DNA strand specific damage tolerance pathway, Nature Communications, 10(1): 3515. *Equal contribution
Bonilla, B.*, Hengel, S.R.*, Grundy, M.K., Bernstein, K.A. (2020) RAD51 gene family structure and function, Annual Review of Genetics, 54: 24-46. *Equal contribution
Post-Doctorate Fellow
August 15, 2017 - current
B.S. College of Saint Scholastica, 2010
Ph.D. University of Iowa, 2017 (Advisor Maria Spies)
Funding: 2017 Diversity Supplement from the National Institutes of Health
2019 Post-doctoral Hillman Fellowship for Innovative Cancer Research
2019 American Cancer Society Post-doctoral Research Fellow
Lab Publications:
Rosenbaum JC*, Bonilla B*, Hengel SR*, Mertz TM, Herken BW, Kazemier HG, Pressimone CA, Ratterman TC, MacNary E, De Magis A, Kwon Y, Godin SK, Van Houten B, Normolle DP, Sung P, Das SR, Paeschke K, Roberts SA, VanDemark AP, Bernstein K.A. (2019) The Rad51 paralogs facilitate a novel DNA strand specific damage tolerance pathway, Nature Communications, 10(1): 3515. *Equal contribution
Bonilla, B.*, Hengel, S.R.*, Grundy, M.K., Bernstein, K.A. (2020) RAD51 gene family structure and function, Annual Review of Genetics, 54: 24-46. *Equal contribution
Ph.D. Students
Thong Luong
Graduate Student
May 29, 2017 - current
B.S., University of Tennessee, 2011
Lab Publications:
Baldock, R.A., Pressimone, C.A., Baird, J.M., Khodakov, A., Luong, T.T., Grundy, M.C., Smith, C.M., Karpenshif, Y., Bratton-Palmer, D.S., Prakash, R., Jasin, M., Garcin, E.B., Gon, S., Modesti, M., Bernstein, K.A. (2019) RAD51D splice variants and cancer-associated mutations reveal XRCC2 interaction to be critical for homologous recombination, DNA Repair 76: 99-107.
Grimley, E., Cole, A.J., Luong, T.T., McGonigal, S.C., Sinno, S., Yang, D., Bernstein, K.A., Buckanovich, R.J. (2021) Aldehyde dehydrogenase inhibitors promote DNA damage in ovarian cancer and synergize with ATM/ATR inhibitors, Theranostics, 11(8): 3540-3551.
Graduate Student
May 29, 2017 - current
B.S., University of Tennessee, 2011
Lab Publications:
Baldock, R.A., Pressimone, C.A., Baird, J.M., Khodakov, A., Luong, T.T., Grundy, M.C., Smith, C.M., Karpenshif, Y., Bratton-Palmer, D.S., Prakash, R., Jasin, M., Garcin, E.B., Gon, S., Modesti, M., Bernstein, K.A. (2019) RAD51D splice variants and cancer-associated mutations reveal XRCC2 interaction to be critical for homologous recombination, DNA Repair 76: 99-107.
Grimley, E., Cole, A.J., Luong, T.T., McGonigal, S.C., Sinno, S., Yang, D., Bernstein, K.A., Buckanovich, R.J. (2021) Aldehyde dehydrogenase inhibitors promote DNA damage in ovarian cancer and synergize with ATM/ATR inhibitors, Theranostics, 11(8): 3540-3551.
Hayley Rein
Graduate Student
March 25, 2019 - current
B.S., University of South Florida, 2018
Graduate Student
March 25, 2019 - current
B.S., University of South Florida, 2018
Mohd Azrin Jamalruddin
Graduate Student
July 1, 2019 - current
B.S., Michigan State University
Lab Publications:
Brunette, G.J., Jamalruddin, M.A., Baldock, R.A., Clark, N.L., Bernstein, K.A. (2019) Evolution-based screening enables genome-wide prioritization and discovery of DNA repair genes, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 116(39): 19593-19599.
Graduate Student
July 1, 2019 - current
B.S., Michigan State University
Lab Publications:
Brunette, G.J., Jamalruddin, M.A., Baldock, R.A., Clark, N.L., Bernstein, K.A. (2019) Evolution-based screening enables genome-wide prioritization and discovery of DNA repair genes, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 116(39): 19593-19599.
Undergraduate Researchers
Ella Roberts
Undergraduate Researcher
October 5, 2019 - current
Funding: 2020 Brackenridge Fellowship for Summer Research
Undergraduate Researcher
October 5, 2019 - current
Funding: 2020 Brackenridge Fellowship for Summer Research
Katherine Oppenheimer
Undergraduate Researcher
January 7, 2020 - current
Funding: 2021 University Honor's College Fellowship, 2021 Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship in Molecular Pharmacology
Undergraduate Researcher
January 7, 2020 - current
Funding: 2021 University Honor's College Fellowship, 2021 Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship in Molecular Pharmacology
We are always looking for highly motivated undergraduates, rotation students, and post-doctorate fellows!
Technicians
Former Trainees
Graduate Students
2012-2015 |
Stephen Godin |
Current Position: |
Oncology Scientist at Cygnal Therapeutics |
2014-2020 |
Meghan Sullivan |
Current Position: |
Review Analyst-Variant Scientist at GeneDx |
2016-2020 |
Braulio Bonilla |
Current Position: |
Post-doctoral Research Fellow with Dr. Sarah Hainer, University of Pittsburgh |
Post-doctorate
2016-2018 |
Robbie Baldock |
Current Position: |
Lecturer in Biochemistry at Solent University |
2015-2018 |
Julieta Martino |
Current Position: |
Post-doctorate |
2012-2015 |
Stefanie Bohm |
Current Position: |
Editor at EMBO Journal |
2012-2013 |
Cheryl (Clauson) Kozina |
Current Position: |
Associate Professor (with tenure) at St. Leo University |
Medical Students
2012-2015 |
Yoav Karpenshif |
Current Position: |
Internal Medicine Resident at Harvard's Beth Israel Deaconnes Hospital |
2013-2015 |
Zhuying Zhang (Rebecca) |
Current Position: |
Tsinghua Medical Student |
2015-2017 |
Anton Karpenshif |
Current Position: |
General Surgery Resident U. Louisville |
Undergraduate Students
2015-2018 |
Catherine Pressimone |
Current Position: |
Medical Student at University of Pittsburgh |
2016 |
Gannon Rooney |
Current Position: |
Medical Student University of Pittsburgh |
2014-2015 |
Jared Baird |
Current Position: |
Anesthesiology Resident Wake Forrest |
2011-2015 |
Faiz Kabbinavar |
Current Position: |
Medical Student |
2013-2014 |
Alison Lee |
Current Position: |
Ph.D. Student University of Texas Austin |
2013-2014 |
Morgan Casal |
Current Position: |
Pitt PharmD Student |
2013-2014 |
Shahm Raslan |
Current Position: |
Medical Student Florida International University |
2011-2013 |
Dominique Bratton-Palmer |
Current Position: |
Graduate Student at Stanford University |
2011-2013 |
Christina Hornack |
Current Position: |
Medical Student at Edward Via College of Osteopathic Medicine |
2012-2013 |
Robert Caro |
Current Position: |
Dental Student at Temple University |
2012 |
Cynthia Thomas |
Current Position: |
N.A. |
2017-2020 |
Chelsea Smith |
Current Position: |
Graduate Student University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill |
Technicians
2015-2017 |
Benjamin Herken |
Current Position: |
Ph.D. Student at University California San Fransisco TETRAD program |
2016-2019 |
Gregory Brunette |
Current Position: |
Ph.D. Student at Harvard University in Bioinformatics |
2018-2020 |
McKenzie Grundy |
Current Position: |
Research Technician University of Pittsburgh |
2011-2018 |
Michael Mihalevic |
Current Position: |
R.N. |
High School Students
2012 |
2013 |