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
Charlottesville, VA, 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
Born in the City of Oaks, TJ is the third of six siblings and the eldest daughter. A single mom who works very hard
for her neuron offspring and two perfect felines pearl and percy, TJ is a graduate student who has dedicated her term
in the lab to exploring the septin cinematic universe in developing neurons. When she escapes the lab, TJ valiantly
battles for concert tickets, rewatches fleabag, and reads margaret atwood.
Alexandra Nguyen
Undergraduate Student
Alexandra is a first-year undergraduate at the University of Virginia on the pre-optometry track. She is a member of
Mu Epsilon Delta, a pre-health fraternity at UVA. Alexandra has had a love for math and science from a young age,
always curious and eager to learn more, which led her to apply to the Todd Allen Phillips Medical Math and Science
Center at Mills E. Godwin High School before coming to UVA. Her passion for health care, specifically optometry,
was strengthened through the center. She has interned and worked at Willow Lawn Eye Care in Richmond, VA, where she
grew up, and currently works at C-Luminous Eyecare in Charlottesville as a technician. Her interest in optometry led
to learning about the role of neurons in vision, which drew her to the Spiliotis Lab, where she now gains research
experience and develops lab skills. Outside of her career and academics, she enjoys spending time with friends,
especially in nature, trying new restaurants and cafes, shopping, and doing pilates.
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)
