Team
Principal Investigator (PI)
Ruixuan Gao Ph.D., Harvard University B.S., UC Berkeley Email: [email protected] Ruixuan (“Rui”) Gao is an Assistant Professor of Chemistry and Biological Sciences at the University of Illinois Chicago (UIC). His research interests lie at the interface of chemistry and biology, with a primary focus on nanoscale imaging and sensing of cells and tissues. He received his Ph.D. in Chemistry from Harvard University and completed his postdoctoral training at MIT and HHMI Janelia Research Campus. |
Postdoctoral Research Associates
Graduate Students
Jamuna Tandukar
B.S., University of Louisiana Monroe Email: [email protected] Jamuna Tandukar is currently a graduate student in the MCDBN (Molecular Cellular Developmental Biology and Neuroscience) program in the Department of Biological Sciences at UIC. She completed her undergraduate degree in Biological Sciences from the University of Louisiana Monroe. She did her undergraduate research on Drosophila Boundary Element Associated Factor (BEAF) in Louisiana State University. |
Wei Wang
M.S., China Pharmaceutical University B.S., Shenyang Pharmaceutical University Email: [email protected] Wei Wang is a Ph.D. candidate at Gao lab in the Department of Chemistry at the University of Illinois Chicago (UIC). He obtained his Master's degree in Pharmacognosy from China Pharmaceutical University, where he performed research on natural products (saponin from soybeans and camellia fruits) using various microorganism strains. Currently, his research interests focus on advanced analytical methods of bio-samples and the relationships between biological structures and functions. |
Yat Ho Chan
B.S., The Chinese University of Hong Kong Email: [email protected] Yat Ho ("Horace") Chan is a Ph.D. student in the Department of Chemistry at the University of Illinois Chicago (UIC). He received his Bachelor of Science in Chemistry from the Chinese University of Hong Kong. |
Maddison Hibbard
B.S., University of Wisconsin–Madison Email: [email protected] Maddie Hibbard is a Ph.D. student in the Department of Chemistry at the University of Illinois Chicago (UIC). She received her Bachelor of Science in Chemistry at the University of Wisconsin–Madison. She did her undergraduate research studying nanomaterial interactions in model biological systems. |
Helen Dobbelmann
B.S., Loyola University Chicago Email: [email protected] Helen Dobbelmann is a Ph.D. student in the Department of Chemistry at the University of Illinois Chicago (UIC). She received her Bachelor of Science in Forensic Science from Loyola University Chicago. She did her undergraduate research studying alcohol biomarkers in the blood. |
Visiting Scientists and Affiliates
Undergraduate Research Assistants
Arij Ahmed
B.S. in Biochemistry, UIC (2025) Email: [email protected] Arij Ahmed is currently an undergraduate student at the University of Illinois Chicago (UIC). Arij is majoring in Biochemistry and is on the pre-med track, due to her desire to pursue forensic pathology. A fun fact about Arij is that she has been playing the viola for 6 years. |
Bisma Afzal
B.S. in Neuroscience, UIC (2026) Email: [email protected] Bisma Afzal is an undergraduate student at the University of Illinois Chicago (UIC), majoring in Neuroscience and minoring in Chemistry and Chinese. She is pursuing an MD-PhD with interests in neurodegeneration and cognition. An interesting fact about Bisma is that she is passionate about photography and loves the aesthetic inspired by Wong Kar Wai. |