Born in the subterranean jungle of Washington, DC on the eve of the Uganda-Tanzania war. At the fragile age of 3,
he was relocated to Athens, Greece where he was raised to adulthood on a steady diet of European football,
garage-punk music, and feta cheese. Following various stints as radio dj and DIY punker, Elias settled in West
Philadelphia, PA, where he currently leads a monastic life centered around experimental philosophy and the septin
gospel.
Franklin Mayca Pozo
Senior Scientist
Franklin was born and raised in a subtropical city - nestled between the mountains of the Eastern
Cordillera of southern Peru and close to the Amazon basin - called Quillabamba. After graduating
from high school, he moved to Arequipa-Peru to study Medicine, learning through working with
oncology patients. The desire to contribute to cancer research led Franklin to further study in Japan, where
he worked on investigating DNA repair pathways, and earned a doctorate in Medical Sciences (Medical
Genetics). In recent years, he has been working to clarify the molecular mechanism involved in the
loss of nuclear stability due to the dysregulation of cytoskeletal proteins such as myosin.
Currently, his interest is in knowing how septins contribute to the
stability of the nucleus in the face of DNA damage.
Andrew Schaefer
Senior Scientist
Born in Washington State, Andy did not stay there for long before moving and going on to live in
twelve other states! He completed his bachelor’s at Williams and Mary before doing his master’s at Wake
Forest and his PhD in Neuroscience at Case Western Medical School. After a Post doc at Yale developing
his microscopy skills, Andy left the academic field for a while to pursue a degree in Physical Therapy
while thinking about the perspectives in doing science of "discovering something new" vs "experiencing something that
already exists" and how to decolonize the practice of science. He’s now back to explore
the role of Septins in neuronal growth cones. You can find him outside the lab reading poetry,
literature, and philosophy. He also enjoys hiking, eating, and visiting Mexico with his wife.
Noor A Alam
PhD Graduate Candidate
Born and raised in the vibrant city of Dhaka, Bangladesh, Noor’s academic
journey has propelled him across borders, igniting a keen passion for unraveling the intricacies of cellular biology.
After completing his undergraduate studies, he went for a master's degree in the bustling metropolis of Tokyo,
where he delved deep into the realm of chromatin remodeling proteins. Currently pursuing a Ph.D. in the Spiliotis Lab,
he is fulfilling his hunger for using cutting-edge microscopic techniques and exploring the role of septin family
of GTPases in spatial cellular organization. When not in the lab, you will most probably find him in some random
restaurant trying out new foods with his friends.
TrishaJean Holt
PhD Graduate Student
Bio coming soon.
Sarath Reghunathan
Senior Lab Specialist
Sarath's journey in science began in India, where he is originally from Kerala and grew up in Pondicherry.
His scientific path started with a Bachelor's in Genetic Engineering, after which he entered the front lines
of clinical diagnostics during the COVID-19 pandemic in India. Following a two-year period working in Oman,
he moved to the U.S. and earned a Master's in Molecular Cell Biology and Genetics in Philadelphia.
Known for being enthusiastic and approachable, Sarath is always up for a chat about science, or more importantly, the
latest Marvel series. Outside the lab, he moonlights as a film critic and a culinary scientist, experimenting with bold
flavor combinations. Rest assured, only his successful (and delicious) culinary creations make it to the public; the
failures are buried deep, lost to history.
Previous Members
PhD Graduate Students
Benjamin Robinson (2017-2023)
Yani Suber (2017-2023)
Megan Radler (2017-2022)
Lou Devlin (2015-2021)
Eva Karasmanis (Master's, 2012-2013) | (PhD, 2013-2019)
