Daniel McNerny  B.S. Chemical Engineering, Biomedical Engineering Carnegie Mellon University M.S. Chemical Engineering University of Michigan Ph.D. candidate Department of Chemical Engineering (2005-present) Project: Design of Poly(amidoamine) Dendron Synthetic Avidity Agents Utilizing Initiation Site Coupling Advisor: James R. Baker

About Dan: Dan graduated from Carnegie Mellon in 2005 and joined MNIMBS upon his arrival in Michigan that fall.  His thesis project involves designing a dendron targeted delivery platform that reduces the product heterogenity found in traditional dendritic platforms.

Recent publications:
McNerny, D. Q.; Kukowska-Latallo, J. F; Mullen, D. G.; Wallace, J. M.; Desai, A. M.; Shukla, R.; Huang, B.; Banaszak Holl, M. M.; Baker, J. R. RGD Dendron Bodies; Synthetic Avidity Agents with Defined and Potentially Interchangeable Effector Sites That Can Substitute for Antibodies. Bioconjugate Chemistry 2009, 20 (10), 1853-1859. (link)

Dan serves as the GSI for the NanoBiology Certificate Program Seminar: Winter 2009, Fall 2009, Winter 2010.

Douglas Mullen, BSE B.S.E. Mechanical Engineering Duke University M.S.E. Macromolecular Science and Engineering University of Michigan Ph.D. candidate Macromolecular Science and Engineering (2005-present) Project: Design of Multi-Functional Drug Delivery Platforms Advisor: Mark Banaszak Holl

About Doug: Doug received a Bachelor's of Science in Engineering from Duke University in 2005. In 2007 Doug received a Master's of Science in Engineering from the University of Michigan's Program in Macromolecular Science and Engineering and in 2009 he completed the MBA Essentials and Entrepreneurship Program at Michigan's Ross School of Business. He is presently a Doctoral Candidate in the Macromolecular Science and Engineering Program and his thesis work involves the development of targeted chemotherapeutic agents. He has received several awards including the Raymond C. Gaugler Award in Materials Science and Engineering at Duke, the Rackham Regents Fellowship at the University of Michigan, an award for Excellence in Graduate Polymer Research from the American Chemical Society, and the National Starch and Chemical Award from the Macromolecular Science and Engineering Program at the University of Michigan.

Doug is a former member of the Duke Sailing Team and currently sings with the U of M Law School's a cappella group, the Headnotes.

Recent publications:
Mullen, D. G.; Desai, A. M.; Waddell, J. N.; Cheng, X-M.; Kelly, C. V.; McNerny, D. Q.; Majoros, I. J.; Baker, J. R.; Sander, L. M.; Orr, B. G.; Banaszak Holl, M. M. The Implications of Stochastic Synthesis for the Conjugation of Functional Groups to Nanoparticles. Bioconjugate Chemistry 2008, 19 (9), 1748-1752
(link)

Meredith Brenner B.S. Physics University of Maryland at College Park Ph.D. pre-candidate Applied Physics (2007-present) Project: Pulse-shaping Multi-photon FRET Microscopy Advisor: Jennifer Ogilvie About Meredith:  Meredith graduated cum laude from the University of Maryland at College Park in 2007, where she

earned a B.S. with honors in physics, completed a second major in psychology, and was elected to Phi Beta Kappa.  Meredith is currently working towards her Ph. D. in Applied Physics, researching the application of laser pulse shaping techniques to nonlinear microscopy. She is a recipient of the NIH Molecular Biophysics Training Grant, the Rackham Merit Fellowship, and the University Regents’ Fellowship. Outside of the lab, Meredith is a member of the University of Michigan Women’s Glee Club 

Ming (Flora) Fang  B.S. Chemistry University of Science and Technology of China Ph.D. pre-candidate Department of Chemistry (2008-present) Project: Collagen fibril morphology in healthy and estrogen depleted ovine bone Advisor: Mark Banaszak Holl

About Flora: Flora received a B.S. in chemistry from University of Science and Technology of China in 2008. At USTC, she did research using state of the art Guassian 3 to study quantitative structure-property relationship of tetrathiafulvalene analogs. Here at Michigan, Flora is
a materials chemistry graduate student advised by professor Mark Banaszak Holl. Her research is aimed at understanding bone collagen changes occurring in sheep and humans with osteoporosis disease.

Yunbo Guo B.S. Mechanical Engineering Tsinghua Universiyty M.S. Optical Engineering Tsinghua University Ph.D. candidate Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science (2005-present) Project: Development and biomedical application of a novel label-free photonic crystal sensor Advisor: Theodore Norris

About Yunbo: Yunbo got his B.S. in Mechanical Engineering (2002) and M.S. in Optical Engineering (2005) both from Tsinghua University. His M.S. research was focused on optimization of holographic data storage and correlation recognition system, and he was honored as "Scientific and Technological Achievement Completer" by China Ministry of Education in 2004.

Currently he is developing a novel optical biosensors for biomolecular binding analysis, which has achieved significantly higher sensitivity than the state-of-the-art surface plasmon resonance based instrument, and will allow people to perform binding studies that are currently out of reach of those systems already on the market. His work was turned into a patent and is being commercialized.

Alexander Hrin B.S. Engineering Physics Colorado School of Mines M.S. Applied Physics Colorado School of Mines Ph.D. pre-candidate Biophysics (2008-present) Project: Detection of DNA through the Asynchronous Rotation Tecnique Advisor: Raoul Kopelman

About Alex: Alex graduated from Colorado School of Mines in 2007 with a B.S. in Engineering Physics and in 2008 with a M.S. in Applied Physics.  He entered the University of Michigan Biophysics Graduate Program in 2008.  His thesis project involves detection of DNA through the use of rotating magnetic particles.

Recent publications: Adams DE, Planchon TA, Hrin A, Squier JA, Durfee CG. Characterization of coupled nonlinear spatiospectral phase following an ultrafast self-focusing interaction. Optics Letters, 2009.

Paivo Kinnunen B.S. Physics Minors in Mathematics and Computer Science University of Turku, Finland Ph.D. candidate Applied Physics (2007-present) Project:  Emerging Microbiological Sensor - Asynchronous Rotation of Magnetic Beads  Advisor: Raoul Kopelman

About Paivo: Paivo received his BS from the University of Turku after completing a year long exchange program at the University of Michigan in 2007. He started Applied Physics program at the UofM the same year, joining Professor Kopelman's research group in 2008 where he currently is a doctoral candidate. 

Recent Publication:

McNaughton, B. H, P. Kinnunen, R. G Smith, S. N Pei, R. Torres-Isea, R. Kopelman, and R. Clarke. “Compact sensor for measuring nonlinear rotational dynamics of driven magnetic microspheres with biomedical applications.” Journal of Magnetism and Magnetic Materials (2009).

Paivo's work highlighted on Mlive.com

Shelly Lueng B.S. Biochemistry University of Michigan Ph.D. pre-candidate Graduate Program in Immunology (2008-present) Project: Elucidating the role of immunogolic memory in the anti-tumor response upon vaccination with nanoemulsion adjuvant Advisor: James R. Baker About Shelly: Shelly graduated from the University of Michigan in 2008 with a degree in Biochemistry. She did her undergraduate research in the field of Systems and Synthetic

Biology, focusing on building and characterizing genetic bistable switches to generate memory in E. coli. Her current research interests have shifted towards a more translational focus in the field of Immunology.

Publications: Chang DE, Leung S, Reifler AN, Atkinson MR, Forger DB, Ninfa AJ. 2009. Building biological memory by linking positive feedback loops. Proc Natl Acad Sci USA. (Revisions in progress)

Christopher Sarra B.S. Materials Science and Engineering Cornell University Ph.D. pre-candidate Macromolecular Science and Engineering (2009-present) Advisor: Mark Banaszak Holl

About Chris: Chris graduated from Cornell University in May 2009 with a B.S. in Materials Science and Engineering. As an undergraduate, he worked on a co-advised research project in both the Wiesner and Estroff Research Groups. At the University of Michigan, Chris is working toward a PhD in Macromolecular Science and Engineering. Working in the Banaszak Holl Research Group, his research will be focused on the synthesis and characterization of precisely conjugated dendrimers for application as targeted chemotherapeutic agents.

About Becky: Becky graduated with a B.S. in Chemistry from the University of Illinois in 2007 where she did research with Scott Silverman on catalytic DNA. At Michigan, Becky is working towards a Ph.D. in Chemistry. Her research focuses on understanding the mechanisms of non-viral gene delivery. She is also working towards an M.S. in Post-Secondary Science Education under the guidance of Joe Krajcik.

Blake Erickson, B.S. B.S. Creative studes (Physics)  University of California, Santa Barbara B.A. Creative studes (Literature)  University of California, Santa Barbara University of Michigan Ph.D. Candidate program in Biophysics Project: Functional Imaging and Mechanics of Nanoscale Biological Systems Advisor: Mark Banaszak Holl

About Blake: Blake graduated from the University of California, Santa Barbara in 2006.  He spent two years in Paul Hansma's lab studying the fracture mechanics of trabecular bone.  At Michigan, he has focused on adapting and applying Atomic Force Microscopy to biological systems.  He is currently looking at the properties of supported lipid bilayers and bone. Outside of the lab, Blake splits his free time ballroom dance and photography.

Recent publications:
Interaction of Poly(amidoamine) Dendrimers with Survanta Lung Surfactant:  The Importance of Lipid Domains B. Erickson, S. DiMaggio, D. G. Mullen, C. V. Kelly, P. R. Leroueil, S. A. Berry, J. R. Baker, Jr., B. G. Orr, M. M. Banaszak Holl, Langmuir 2008 24 11003-11008
(link)

Blake Erickson CV

Rahul Rattan, M.S. B.E. Biotechnology Panjab University, India University of Michigan Ph.D. degree program Biomedical Engineering Project:  Advisor: Mark Banaszak Holl

About Rahul:  Rahul graduated from Panjab University, India in 2006 with a BE in Biotechnology. He is currently pursuing a PhD in Biomedical Engineering. He is characterizing the impact of dendrimer based drug delivery on mammalian cells specifically the way these interact with cell membranes and enter cells.

Recent Publications:

The Role of Ganglioside GM1 in Cellular Internalization Mechanisms of Poly(amidoamine) Dendrimers

S. Hong, R. Rattan, I. Majoros, D. G. Mullen, J. L. Peters, X. Shi, A. U. Bielinska, L. Blanco, B. G. Orr. J. R. Baker, M. M. Banaszak Holl  Bioconjugate Chemistry  2009,  20,  1503-1513.

of Professors Banaszak Holl and Orr. Her research investigates the interaction between folic acid and folate binding protein at the single molecule level using atomic force microscopy.

Recent Publication:

Stoichiometry and Structure of Poly(amidoamine) Dendrimer-Lipid Complexes C. V. Kelly, M. G. Liroff, L. D. Triplett, P. R. Leroueil, D. G. Mullen, J. M. Wallace, S. Meschinchi, J. R. Baker, B. G. Orr, M. M. Banaszak Holl ACS Nano 2009 3, 1886-1896.

Jiumei Chen, M.S. Ph.D. program in Macromolecular Science and Engineering B.E., B.A  Tianjin University M.S.  Wayne State University  Jiumei earned a double major at Tianjin University with a Bachelors of Engineering in Polymer Materials and Engineering

and a Bachelors of Arts in English.  She then earned an MS in Materials Science and Engineering from Wayne State University.  She is now in the Nanobiology certificate program using patch clamp techniques to study the interactions between nanoparticles and biological membranes.  This work will help to provide an understanding of nanoparticle toxicity and the mechanism of DNA transfection. In October 2006, Jiumei won the prestigious Materials Incorporated Award in recognition of her academic excellence in the Macromolecular Science and Engineering Center. The award was presented at the banquet of the annual symposium.

In the 2009, Jiumei won the Distinguished Achievement Award from the Macromolecular Science and Engineering Program.

Ajdin Kavara, B.S. Ph.D. Candidate in Chemistry Ajdin is from Capljina, Bosnia & Hercegovinia.  He moved to Grand Rapids, Michigan in 1997 and earned his B.S. in chemistry from Grand Valley State University in 2004.  He did his undergraduate research with Prof. Kovacs on heterogeneously catalyzed breakdown of sugars.  His PhD work is focused on CH-activation chemistry using Sn, applications of the products to cross-coupling chemistry, and novel approaches to natural

products, an application within the Nanoscience graduate program.

In 2009, Ajdin received the Peter A. S. Smith fellowship for research in synthetic organic or inorganic chemistry.

Recent Publications

A Stannylene/Aryl Iodide Reagent for Allylic CH-Activation and  Double Bond Addition Chemistry

Direct Formation of Propargyl-Tin Compounds via CH-Activation

Tin Mediated CH-Activation and Cross-Coupling in a Single Flask.

J. M. Bartolin, A. Kavara, J. Kampf, M. M. Banaszak Holl. Organometallics 2006, 25, 4738-4740.

Damian Khan, B.S. University of Michigan PhD program in Applied Physics Bachelor of Science Morehouse College Master of Science Clark Atlanta University

Damian Khan received a B.S. in physics from Morehouse College and an M.S. in physics from Clark Atlanta University. He is currently an applied physics graduate student working with the Orr group and Banaszak Holl groups where he does STM imaging of coated gold surfaces as part of the Nanoscience graduate program.

Recent Publications

Cationic Nanoparticles Induce Nanoscale Disruption in Living Cell Plasma Membranes

Nanotexturing Gold Surface with Dendrimers for Selective Cell Adhesion, M.