Our People

We’re expanding our world’s understanding of Kidney Disease through groundbreaking partnerships with leading consortia and institutions.

Our culture

At MiKTMC, we are a team of highly motivated and passionate individuals who are inspired by our mission to improve the health of patients with kidney disease around the globe. We are rooted in the Michigan Medicine core values:

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Caring

We treat everyone with respect, kindness and empathy, to nurture the well-being of others and ourselves.

Innovation

We foster creativity and curiosity in exploring new avenues of research in our determination to improve the lives of people with kidney diseases.

Inclusion

We thrive by welcoming and appreciating our differences and unique contributions toward advancing our knowledge and serving the needs of all our patients, colleagues, and collaborators.

Integrity

We adhere to the highest ethical and professional standards in conducting research with transparency and honesty, taking pride in our work and holding ourselves accountable for our actions.

Teamwork

We work together, providing equitable opportunities and recognition, celebrating the diversity of skills and perspectives needed to tackle the complex problems on our path to achieve our shared vision.

Ruecksicht

Wir behandeln jeden mit Respekt, Freundlichkeit und Empathie, fuer ein effektives Miteinander.

Innovation

Wir fördern Kreativität und Neugier bei der Erforschung neuer Forschungsansätze, um das Leben von Menschen mit Nierenerkrankungen zu verbessern.

Inklusivitaet

Wir gedeihen, indem wir unsere Unterschiede und einzigartigen Beiträge willkommen heißen und schätzen, um unser Wissen voranzutreiben und den Bedürfnissen von Patienten, Forschern, Ärzten und Studenten gerecht zu werden. Unsere Stärke liegt in unserer Vielfalt.

Integrität

Wir halten uns an die höchsten ethischen und professionellen Standards bei der Durchführung von Forschung mit Transparenz und Ehrlichkeit. Wir sind stolz auf unsere Arbeit und stehen hinter unserer Arbeit und Mitarbeitern.

Teamarbeit

Wir arbeiten mit regionalen, nationalen und internationalen Partnern zusammen, bieten gleiche Chancen und Anerkennung, feiern die Vielfalt der Fähigkeiten und Perspektiven, die erforderlich sind, um die komplexen Probleme auf unserem Weg zur Verwirklichung unserer gemeinsamen Vision zu bewältigen.

Cuidado

Tratamos a todos con respeto, amabilidad y empatía, para fomentar el bienestar de los demás y de nosotros mismos.

Innovación

Fomentamos la creatividad y la curiosidad en la exploración de nuevas vías de investigación en nuestra determinación de mejorar la vida de las personas con enfermedades renales.

Inclusión

Progresamos al dar la bienvenida y apreciar nuestras diferencias y contribuciones únicas para avanzar en nuestro conocimiento y servir a las necesidades de todos nuestros pacientes, colegas y colaboradores.

Integridad

Nos adherimos a los más altos estándares éticos y profesionales en la realización de investigaciones con transparencia y honestidad, sintiéndonos orgullosos de nuestro trabajo y responsabilizándonos por nuestras acciones.

Trabajo en equipo

Trabajamos juntos, brindando oportunidades y reconocimiento equitativos, celebrando la diversidad de habilidades y perspectivas necesarias para abordar los complejos problemas en nuestro camino hacia el logro de nuestra visión compartida.

Bienveillance

Nous traitons tout le monde avec respect, gentillesse et empathie, afin de cultiver le bien-être des autres et de nous-mêmes.

Innovation

Nous favorisons la créativité et la curiosité en explorant de nouvelles stratégies de recherche afin d’améliorer la vie des personnes atteintes de maladies rénales.

Inclusion

Nous évoluons en accueillant et appréciant nos différences et nos uniques contributions dans le but d’étendre nos connaissances et de répondre aux besoins de tous nos patients, collègues et collaborateurs.

Intégrité

Nous respectons les normes éthiques et professionnelles les plus élevées en menant nos recherches avec transparence et honnêteté, en prenant fierté de notre travail et en nous tenant responsables de nos actions.

Travail d'équipe

Nous travaillons ensemble, en offrant équitablement opportunités et reconnaissance, en célébrant la diversité des compétences et des perspectives nécessaires pour aborder les problèmes complexes sur notre voie pour atteindre notre vision commune.

关怀

我们以尊重、友善和同理心对待每个人,培养他人和自己的福祉。

创新

我们培育创造力和好奇心,探索新的研究途径,致力于改善肾脏疾病患者的生活。

包容

我们欢迎并欣赏彼此的不同和独特贡献,推动我们的知识进步并服务于所有患者、同事和合作伙伴的需求。

诚信

我们遵守最高的道德和专业标准,在透明和诚实的研究中保持自豪感,对自己的行为负责。

团队精神

我们团结一致,提供公平的机会和认可,庆祝各种技能和视角的多样性,以解决我们共同追求的复杂问题。

ケア

私たちは、他人や自分自身の幸福を育むため、尊重、親切さ、共感心を持って誰にでも接します。

イノベーション

腎臓病患者の生活を改善するため、新しい研究分野を探求する創造性と好奇心を促進します。

包含性

私たちはお互いの違いと独自の貢献を歓迎し、全ての患者、同僚、協力者のニーズに対応し、知識の進歩を促進することで成長します。

正直

透明性と誠実さを持って研究を行い、最高の倫理規範と専門的な標準を守り、自分たちの行動に責任を持ち、誇りを持って働きます。

チームワーク

私たちはチームとして協力し、多様なスキルと視点の多様性を祝福し、公平な機会と認識を提供することで、共有のビジョンを達成するための複雑な問題に取り組みます。

العناية

نحن نعامل الجميع بالاحترام واللطف والتعاطف ، لتنمية رفاهية الآخرين وأنفسنا.

الابتكار

نحن نعزز الإبداع والفضول في استكشاف مجالات بحث جديدة في تحديدنا لتحسين حياة الأشخاص الذين يعانون من أمراض الكلى.

الشمولية

نحن نتقدم عن طريق الترحيب وتقدير الاختلافات والمساهمات الفريدة لتقدمنا في المعرفة وخدمة احتياجات جميع مرضانا وزملائنا وشركائنا.

النزاهة

نحن نلتزم بأعلى معايير الأخلاق والمهنية في إجراء البحوث بشفافية وصدق ، مفتخرين بعملنا ومتحملين مسؤولية أفعالنا.

العمل الجماعي

نحن نعمل معًا ، ونوفر فرصًا وتقديرًا متساويين ، ونحتفل بتنوع المهارات والمنظورات اللازمة لمواجهة المشاكل المعقدة على طريقنا لتحقيق رؤيتنا المشتركة.

सहानुभूति

हम सबका सम्मान, दया और सहानुभूति के साथ व्यवहार करते हैं, दूसरों और हमारी स्वयं की भलाई को पोषित करते हैं।

नवाचार

हम किडनी की बीमारियों से पीड़ित लोगों की जिन्दगी सुधारने के हमारे संकल्प में नए अनुसंधान की दिशाओं की खोज में सृजनात्मकता और जिज्ञासा को बढ़ावा देते हैं।

समावेश

हम अपने ज्ञान को बढ़ाने और रोगियों, अनुसंधानकर्ताओं, चिकित्सकों, और छात्रों की जरूरतों की सेवा करने के लिए हमारे भिन्नताओं और अद्वितीय योगदानों का स्वागत और सराहना करके उभरते हैं। हमारी ताकत हमारी विविधता से आती है।

ईमानदारी

हम अपने काम में गर्व करते हैं और अपने कार्यों के लिए खुद को जिम्मेदार ठहराते हैं, स्वच्छता और ईमानदारी के साथ अनुसंधान करने में सबसे उच्च नैतिक और पेशेवर मानकों का पालन करते हैं।

टीमवर्क

हम स्थानीय और अंतरराष्ट्रीय साझेदारों के साथ मिलकर काम करते हैं, समान अवसर और मान्यता प्रदान करते हैं, हमारे साझे दृष्टिकोण को प्राप्त करने के हमारे मार्ग पर जटिल समस्याओं को हल करने के लिए चाहिए होने वाले कौशल और दृष्टिकोण की विविधता की खुशियां मनाते हैं।

Bioinformatics & Computational Biology

Our team has a synergistic balance of bioinformatics, statistics, and biological expertise. The broad set of skills within the team allows us to holistically approach projects and deliver high-quality scientific research. Through the power of collaboration, we strongly believe in pushing the boundaries of scientific discovery.

Specialties:

  • Bulk RNA-seq
  • Whole Genome Sequencing
  • ATAC-seq
  • Single-cell/Single Nuclear RNA-seq
  • Proteomics
  • Metabolomics
  • Pathway analysis
  • Statistics and data analysis
Sean Eddy, PhD
Associate Research Scientist | Co-Director, Bioinformatics and Computational Biology
Viji Nair, PhD
Associate Research Scientist | Co-Director, Bioinformatics and Computational Biology
Mathew Alaba
Bioinformatician/Computational Biologist Associate
Fadhl Alakwaa, PhD
Assistant Research Scientist
Celine Berthier, PhD
Associate Research Scientist | Computational Biologist
Felix Eichinger
Bioinformatics / Systems Biologist
Damian Fermin, PhD
Computational Biologist
John Hartman
Computational Biologist
Maria Larkina, MS
Sr. Statistician
Jenni Liu
Graduate Student Research Assistant
Phil McCown, PhD
Sr. Computational Biologist
Rajasree Menon, PhD
Associate Research Scientist
Abhijit Naik, MD
Clinical Associate Professor
Cathy Smith, PhD
Sr. Computational Biologist

Business Development / Project Management

We are experts in planning, organizing, and seeing projects through to their completion, ensuring that all deliverables meet the expected results efficiently, effectively, and within the stipulated timelines and budget. Our role is instrumental in ensuring smooth operations, timely delivery, and financial integrity, ultimately driving our organization's success.

Heather Ascani, PhD
Director of Business Strategy
Ruth Ann Buntin, MBA
Operations Manager
Hailey Desmond, MS
Clinical Trials Program Lead
Josette Gist
Administrative Assistant Intermediate
Tomas Mauricio
Sr. Project Manager
Lori Slowik
Administrative Business Partner
Lalita Subramanian
Scientific Writer
Extended operations team:
Allison Boissinot
HR Business Partner - Michigan Medicine
Jason Ceo
Division Administrator - Nephrology
Joe Johnson, JD
Office of Research and Sponsored Projects, University of Michigan
Sue MacFarlane
Lead Financial Analyst - Nephrology
June Wilson
Research Administration - Nephrology

Clinical & patient Cohorts

The Clinical Cohorts team is primarily interactive with our number one partner in research: our patients.

Our team designs and executes multi-site clinical cohort studies in a range of kidney diseases. We develop study protocols, supporting manuals of procedures, data collection systems, and biosample collection procedures and processing. We are responsible for regulatory planning and compliance for ethical, safe, and meaningful scientific work.

Our team in integral to ensuring high quality data from our clinical studies is collected with the utmost integrity and purpose.

Laura Mariani, MD
Associate Professor | Director, Clinical & Patient Cohorts
Sean Eddy, PhD
Associate Research Scientist | Co-Director, Bioinformatics and Computational Biology
Michael Arbit
App Programmer/Analyst Sr
Margaret Helmuth
Biostatistician Expert
Camille Hollins,
Research Coordinator
Bethany Klunder
Sr. Project Manager
Maria Larkina, MS
Sr. Statistician
Chrysta Lienczewski
Clinical Research Program Manager
Jennifer Schaub, MD
Associate Professor
Caroline Smerdon
Biostatistician Senior
Amanda Williams
Clinical Research Coordinator

Kidney organoid lab

Our team models kidney disease using kidney organoids generated from stem cells derived from individuals with kidney disease. We integrate state-of-the-art technologies including microphysiologic systems and single-cell RNA sequencing to push our modeling capabilities and use these technologies to identify mechanisms contributing to disease as well as potential therapeutics.

Interested in joining our team? Please email your CV to Dr. Harder.

Jennifer Harder, MD
Associate Professor | Director, Organoid Lab
Jamal El Saghir, MSC
Sr. Research Lab Specialist | Lab Manager, Organoid Lab
Celine Berthier, PhD
Associate Research Scientist | Computational Biologist
Holly Jacobs, PhD
Research Lab Specialist Intermediate
Virginia Vega-Warner, PhD
Lead Research Lab Specialist
Lab alumni
Matthew Fischer
(Research Lab Specialist)
Leah Guthrie, PhD
(Research Fellow, Stanford University)
Sabine Mears
(Intern)
Akihiro Minakawa, MD
(Research Fellow, Miyazaki University)

Molecular Nephropatholgy Core

Molecular Target Evaluation & Biomarker Research Lab

Our team is focused on identifying and assessing molecular pathways that are associated with chronic kidney disease (CKD) progression, and mechanism-based candidate biomarkers that predict risk of progression and/or drug treatment response. This process involves the integration of advanced techniques in molecular and cellular biology, multi-omics data, bioinformatic analysis, and prior knowledge. We characterize targets and validate biomarkers utilizing patient samples collected from observational and clinical trial patient cohorts. We facilitate drug discovery and the implementation of validated biomarkers to advance kidney precision medicine, thereby improving patient care.

Wenjun Ju, PhD
Research Scientist | Director, Molecular Target Evaluation & Biomarker Research Lab
Sulalita Chaki
Biomarker Lab Coordinator/Research Lab Specialist Senior
Edmond Lee
Research Lab Tech
Edgar Otto, PhD
Associate Research Scientist
Virginia Vega-Warner, PhD
Lead Research Lab Specialist
Yuee Wang
Research Tech

Software development

We focus on developing useful data analysis, sharing, and visualization platforms. Utilizing global insights and scientific expertise, the team performs data curation from a wide array of sources. Our strength lies in incorporating user research as part of the development process, ensuring that our software's UI/UX is tailored to researcher needs. We create unique solutions that are resonant with our diverse user base and uphold the prestige of the MiKTMC brand.

Functions/responsibilities:

  • Software development & operations
  • User-centered design
  • Data curation
  • Product & project management
Nikki Bonevich
IT Planning Manager
Nathan Creger
Software Engineer
Rachel Dull
Sr. Data Taxonomist
Joshua Hartley
Data Taxonomist
Becky Reamy
Lead Software Engineer | Product Manager
Michael Rose
Principal Designer
Haneen Tout
Software Engineer
Zach Wright, MSI
Lead Software Engineer

Collaborators

We collaborate with nephrologists, innovative researchers, and dedicated clinicians within Michigan Medicine. Our colleagues greatly enhance our core team's research capabilities, offering unique perspectives and invaluable expertise.

Markus Bitzer, MD, MS
Clinical Professor

Alumni

Collaborators

Matt Sampson, MD, MSCE
(Associate Professor, Pediatrics-Pediatric Nephrology)

Staff

Gabrielle Alter
(Clinical Research Coordinator)
Alex Barkell
(Software Engineer)
Jamie Bixler
(Clinical Research Coodinator)
Jeni Chapman
(Executive Assistant)
Emily Cichon
(Administrative Assistant)
Kennedi Cummings, MPA
(Administrative Healthcare Specialist)
Fred Fang
(Statistician)
Matthew Fischer
(Research Lab Specialist)
Jody Fisher
(Executive Assistant/Office Manager)
Chris Gates
(Lead Bioinformatics Software Developer)
Brandi Gizinski
(Project Manager)
Haley Gore
(Research Lab Technician)
Manu Gupta
(Computational Biologist)
Habib Hamidi, PhD
(Computational Biologist)
Jennifer Hawkins
(Clinical Subjects Coordinator)
Anna Hengar
(Research Lab Technician)
Huateng Huang
(Research Lab Specialist)
Lois Hunter
(Administrative Assistant)
Michael Hwang
(Intern, Web Lab)
Song Jiang
()
Tiffany Johnson
(Project Manager)
Patrick Kelly
(Project Senior Manager)
Sunitha Kogenaru
(Computational Biologist)
Daniela Koniczek, PhD
(Business Development Associate)
Tennille Leak-Johnson
(Computational Biologist)
Justin Leopold
(Sr. Project Manager)
Tina Mainieri
(Sr. Project Manager)
Matthew Manninen
(Research Lab Scientist)
Laurie McBride
(Sr. Administrative Assistant)
Ann Randolph
(Research Lab Technician)
Therese Roth, PhD
(Research Lab Technician)
Jharna Saha
(Research Lab Specialist)
Ciearra Smith,MSA
(Administrative Specialist)
Michelle Smith
(Research Lab Technician)
Becky Steck
(Director of Software Solutions)
Emily Tanner
(Sr. Research Lab Technician)
Denise Taylor-Moon
(Project Manager, NEPTUNE)
Mark Tomilo
(Project Manager)
Joseph Tychewicz
(Project Manager)
Eileen Whiteman
(Project Manager)
Noel Wys
(Research Lab Specialist)
Catherine Zhu
(Student)

Visiting Faculty/Students/Fellows

Leah Guthrie, PhD
(Research Fellow, Stanford University)
Claudiu Komorowsky
()
Jiahao (Joe) Liu
(Visiting Student)
Dorota Marchel
(Visiting Fellow)
Sebastian Martini
()
Toralf Melsom, MD, PhD
(Nephrologist, University Hospital of North Norway)
Akihiro Minakawa, MD
(Research Fellow, Miyazaki University)
Skander Mulder
(Research Fellow, University Medical Center Groningen)
Peter Nelson
(Faculty)
Takaya Ozeki, MD, PhD
(Research Fellow, Nagoya, Japan)
Saif Saddiqui
(UROP student)
Vidar Stefansson, MD
(Nephrologist, University Hospital of North Norway)
Thaddaeus (Ted) Struk
(Student)
Jon Viljar-Norvik, MD, PhD
(Nephrologist, University Hospital of North Norway)