Principal Investigator

Megan completed her bachelor’s degree from the University of California, Berkeley and worked for several years under the mentorship of Dr. Scott Wong at the Vaccine and Gene Therapy Institute (VGTI). She received her PhD in Immunology at the Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth under the mentorship of Dr.  William Green, where she studied innate immune mechanisms contributing to LP-BM5 murine retroviral pathogenesis and immunodeficiency. She completed her postdoctoral training in the laboratory of Dr. Deborah Fuller at the University of Washington and evaluated pre-clinical nucleic acid vaccines against HIV, ZIKV, HBV, and SARS-CoV-2.

Interests outside of lab: Running, cooking, playing games, hiking, and spending time with her family.

Pronouns: she/her

Email: meganoc@uw.edu

Lab Manager & Research Scientist/Engineer I

Studied Molecular, Cellular, and Developmental Biology at the University of Washington. Her research focuses on exploring host immune responses in HIV and SARS-CoV-2 co-infection models. Passionate about making science more accessible, Semira works to grow her skill set as a scientist and become an advocate towards BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, and People of Color) women in STEM.

Research Interests: virology, pathobiology, vaccine therapeutics, public health

Interests outside of lab: visiting cafes/restaurants, all forms of RnB/Afrobeats/Hip-Hop, anime, improving on her Tigrinya

Pronouns: she/her

Email: sberaki@uw.edu 

Research Scientist/Engineer I

BS in Molecular, Cellular and Developmental Biology from University of Washington. Her work in the lab investigates how the gastrointestinal and respiratory microbiomes impact disease outcomes.

Outside the lab Zo loves reading, hiking and playing D&D! 

Pronouns: she/her

Email: zohark@uw.edu

Graduate Student: Molecular Engineering, PhD

Lay Heng earned her bachelor's degree in biomedical engineering from the University of California, Davis, where she researched the mechanics of human primary neutrophil phagocytosis on different pathogen surfaces. After she graduated, she worked for a year as a research technician at Emory University where she studied motor control in songbirds and helped launched a free year-long webinar that provided electrode arrays to several neuroscience labs across the world. She then worked for a couple of years as a medical device engineer at a biotechnology startup in the San Francisco Bay Area developing subcutaneous implants for central nervous system disorders. Lay Heng is currently a graduate student in the Molecular Engineering PhD Program. She came back to pursue her degree because she wants to deepen her understanding of immunology and have an interdisciplinary training experience within the UW's collaborative environment. As a first-generation immigrant and college graduate, Lay Heng is deeply aware of the challenges in navigating new systems that one's family is not traditionally familiar with, so she is an ardent supporter of making science more inclusive and accessible.

Interests outside of lab: Exploring the Seattle metropolitan area (or any new city), trying new food (at restaurants, grocery stores, farmers markets, etc.), finding the best caffeinated drinks (coffee, tea, etc.), fashion, collecting pins, and learning new information and skills from others.

Pronouns: she/her

Email: lhteng@uw.edu

What you can ask about from Lay Heng (and she will try her best to answer based on her own experiences): Finding research opportunities as an undergraduate (and how to make the most of that experience), finding a job after earning your bachelor's degree, navigating the graduate school application process, and her favorite things to do in Seattle!

Graduate Student: DLMP MS

Matthew is a master’s student in the Laboratory Medicine program. Their research background is in anatomical biology of Perciforms. Since Covid, they were privileged to join a Global Health and public health organization at the University of Washington, tackling contemporary infectious diseases dilemmas and applying medical research both internationally and locally in Seattle. They are excited to join the O’Connor lab to deepen their skills in translational medicine, with a perspective more form the bench side.

Outside the lab Matthew likes art, coffee and cooking. So, you could find them in museums, a café or the kitchen.

Email: matmi@uw.edu 

Undergraduate Researcher/Volunteer

Majoring in Biochemistry and Economics with an interest in virology, immunology, infectious diseases, and bioeconomics.

Aashna loves dad jokes. Why did the bacteria cross the microscope? To get to the other slide.

Pronouns: she/her

Email: adoshi26@uw.edu