People
Kevin Monahan
Principal Investigator
Kevin graduate from Haverford College with a B.S. in Biology in 2005. He did his graduate work in Tom Maniatis' lab at Harvard University, where he studied the gene regulatory mechanisms controlling the stochastic expression of the clustered protocadherin genes. He went on to do a postdoc with Stavros Lomvardas, first at UCSF and then at Columbia, where he studied role of enhancers and nuclear architecture in controlling the expression of olfactory receptor genes. In January 2020, he joined Rutgers as an Assistant Professor in the department of Molecular Biology and Biochemistry.
Principal Investigator
Kevin graduate from Haverford College with a B.S. in Biology in 2005. He did his graduate work in Tom Maniatis' lab at Harvard University, where he studied the gene regulatory mechanisms controlling the stochastic expression of the clustered protocadherin genes. He went on to do a postdoc with Stavros Lomvardas, first at UCSF and then at Columbia, where he studied role of enhancers and nuclear architecture in controlling the expression of olfactory receptor genes. In January 2020, he joined Rutgers as an Assistant Professor in the department of Molecular Biology and Biochemistry.
Jerome Kahiapo
Postdoc
Jerome completed is undergraduate studies at Stanford University, where he earned a B.A. in philosophy. Under the mentorship of Stavros Lomvardas, he received his Ph.D in molecular biology and biochemistry from Columbia University in 2020. There, he studied the function of a key stress-induced transcription factor critical for proper development of olfactory neurons. Currently, his interests include mechanisms of sensory receptor gene choice in the rodent vomeronasal organ.
Postdoc
Jerome completed is undergraduate studies at Stanford University, where he earned a B.A. in philosophy. Under the mentorship of Stavros Lomvardas, he received his Ph.D in molecular biology and biochemistry from Columbia University in 2020. There, he studied the function of a key stress-induced transcription factor critical for proper development of olfactory neurons. Currently, his interests include mechanisms of sensory receptor gene choice in the rodent vomeronasal organ.
Nusrath Yusuf
Graduate Student
Nusrath graduated from Brandeis University with a B.S. in Neuroscience and Islamic and Middle Eastern Studies. She then worked in Dr Gordon Fishell’s laboratory as a research technician where she helped with projects studying the role of alternative splicing and cell death in cortical interneuron development. In graduate school, she is interested at the role of various genetic factors regulating the development of olfactory sensory and spinal cord neurons. Outside of lab, she likes going on long walks around the city and collectively building an inclusive scientific and academic community.
Nader Boutros Ghali
Technician
Born and raised in Egypt, Nader first studied psychology at Richmond University in London. There he worked at analysing the cascade effects of childhood abuse on people. He had worked at Auspex, helping construct psychographic models of potential customers for targetted advertisement. He transfered to Rutgers where he completed his B.A. in Biology. He is now the star Technician of the Monahan Lab
Technician
Born and raised in Egypt, Nader first studied psychology at Richmond University in London. There he worked at analysing the cascade effects of childhood abuse on people. He had worked at Auspex, helping construct psychographic models of potential customers for targetted advertisement. He transfered to Rutgers where he completed his B.A. in Biology. He is now the star Technician of the Monahan Lab
Joshua Danoff
Postdoc
Josh completed his undergraduate degree in Neuroscience at University of Virginia. He completed his graduate work in Jessica Connelly's lab (also at UVA) where he studied how early life experiences impact neurodevelopmental and epigenetic regulation of gene expression in the prairie vole brain, with a particular focus on the oxytocin receptor. After receiving his Ph.D. in 2023, he joined the lab as a postdoc and is interested in studying how chromatin structure mediates neural adaptations to new sensory environments.
Postdoc
Josh completed his undergraduate degree in Neuroscience at University of Virginia. He completed his graduate work in Jessica Connelly's lab (also at UVA) where he studied how early life experiences impact neurodevelopmental and epigenetic regulation of gene expression in the prairie vole brain, with a particular focus on the oxytocin receptor. After receiving his Ph.D. in 2023, he joined the lab as a postdoc and is interested in studying how chromatin structure mediates neural adaptations to new sensory environments.
Alumni
Giorgia Merolli,
Former undergraduate student Currently a PhD student at Columbia 
Mallory Kolar
Former Technician
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Kazim Jaffry
Former undergraduate student Joined the NJMS 7 year MD program 
Omay Edekar
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Shivani Patel
Former undergraduate student Pursuing an MS in Precision Health at UChicago and applying to medical school |