Jason Kent
B.S., biochemistry, Cal Poly San Luis Obispo
Heinrich Lab

Jason grew up in Santa Clarita, California and attended Cal Poly SLO where he earned a B.S. in Biochemistry. At Cal Poly, he worked in the lab of Dr. Michael Black investigating the use of prolyl endopeptidases in the treatment of Celiac Disease. In the fall of 2016, Jason joined the Program in Molecular and Cellular Biology, and the lab of Dr. Michael Heinrich in the spring. He is currently studying the biology of mitochondrial dysfunction observed in Gastrointestinal Stromal Tumors. 

Sara Cate Baker 
B.S., Biological Sciences, English Literature, University of Notre Dame
M.S., Global Health, Trinity College, Dublin
J. Saugstad Lab

Sarah Catherine Baker grew up in northern Indiana. She received a B.S. in biological sciences, as well as a second degree in English literature, from the University of Notre Dame. As an undergraduate, she worked in the lab of Dr. Robert Stahelin on the biochemistry of Ebola viral infections. She went on to obtain a Master's degree in global health from Trinity College Dublin, conducting research on the epidemiology of malaria in rural Ethiopia. She began her Ph.D. at OHSU in the fall of 2019 and shortly after joined the lab of Dr. Julie Saugstad. Now,  her research focuses on the role of extracellular vesicles in neurodegeneration. Outside of the lab, Sarah Cate is passionate about science policy and has dabbled in science communication.  She also loves traveling, hiking, and all things literature.
 

Lauren Miller
B.S., Biochemistry, Portland State University
A. Nechiporuk Lab
 
Lauren grew up in Oregon and graduated from Portland State University, where she received her BS in Biochemistry. At Portland State, Lauren worked with Dr. Jeff Singer investigating the role of the E3 ubiquitin ligase CUL3 in the proteasomal degradation of the neuronal scaffold protein SHANK3. After completing her undergraduate studies, Lauren worked as a Research Assistant in the Ellison and McCormick Labs at OHSU, where she studied renal salt regulation in the distal nephron of the kidney and its influence on blood pressure. Currently, Lauren is pursuing her Ph.D. in Alex Nechiporuk’s lab where she studies molecular mechanisms of axon extension during sensory nervous system development. Outside of the lab, Lauren enjoys cooking, hiking, and playing with her dogs – a golden retriever named Teal and a malamute named Whammy.
 

Alec Peters 
B.S., Biochemistry/Biophysics, Oregon State University
B.S., Bioresource Research, Oregon State University
L. Sherman Lab

Alec was an undergraduate researcher at Oregon State where he generated histone methyltransferase and acetylase knockout strains using homologous recombination. This work formed the basis of his Honors thesis and will be submitted for publication. In 2014, he joined Xiaolin Nan’s lab at OHSU, where he used CRISPR to knock out genes in NIH-3T3 cells as well as many quantitative molecular biology and cell culture techniques to study dynamics of Ras dimerization as a driver for Raf and PI3K pathway activation.
Alec is now a graduate student in Dr. Larry Sherman’s lab on the OHSU West Campus where he studies extracellular matrix remodeling in the healthy and diseased central nervous system. His focus is on the extracellular matrix glycosaminoglycan hyaluronic acid, and how different sizes of hyaluronic acid influence processes such as oligodendrocyte progenitor cell differentiation.
 

Benjamin Woodruff 
B.S., Cellular and Molecular Biology, Humboldt State University
A. Nechiporuk Lab

Ben Woodruff lived most of his life in Humboldt County, CA. There, he attended and graduated from Humboldt State University with a Bachelor of Science in Cellular and Molecular Biology and a minor in Chemistry. After undergrad, Ben spent two years at Stanford University in Dr. Stefan Heller’s lab researching stem cell biology and regeneration as they relate to inner ear biology. Ben is currently pursuing a Ph.D. in Cell and Developmental Biology at OHSU. In March of 2020, Ben joined the lab of Dr. Alex Nechiporuk where he researches the earliest stages of peripheral nervous system development and utilizes zebrafish as a model organism. Ben enjoys video games, taking care of his bonsai trees, science fiction, camping, and trying different restaurants and cuisines.