CURRENT LAB MEMBERS
Tijana Ivanovic, Principal Investigator
tijana DOT ivanovic AT nih DOT gov
Assistant Professor of Biochemistry, Brandeis University, 2016-2023 Postdoc, Harvard University, 2015 Ph.D., Virology, Harvard University, 2008 B.S., Microbiology and Molecular Genetics, University of California, Los Angeles, 1999
Ed Partlow, Postdoctoral Fellow
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Ph.D., Biochemistry, Cornell University, 2022 B.S., Biochemistry, Worcester Polytechnic Institute, 2015
Antonio Santos, Postdoctoral Fellow
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Ph.D., Medical Research, Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich, 2024
M.S., Immunology, Imperial College London, 2019
B.S., Biochemistry, Autonomous University of Madrid, 2018
Callie Donahue, Postdoctoral Fellow
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Ph.D., Microbiology, Boston University, 2024
B.S., Biotechnology and Molecular Biosciences, Rochester Institute of Technology, 2018
Tongyu (Tony) Liu, Postdoctoral Fellow
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Ph.D., Microbiology, University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, 2024
B.S., Biological Science, China Agricultural University, 2019
Balindile Motsa, Postdoctoral Fellow
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Ph.D., Medicinal Chemistry and Molecular Pharmacology, Purdue University, 2024
B.S., Biochemistry and Molecular Biology/Biotechnology, Michigan State University, 2019
Steven Planitzer, Ph.D. Candidate, Physics
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B.S., Physics, minor in Applied Mathematics, Kent State University, 2019
Nick Berg, Ph.D. Candidate, Biochemistry and Biophysics
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M.S., Molecular Cell Biology, Brandeis University, 2022
B.S., Biology and Chemistry, Emory University, 2021
ANNUAL LAB PHOTOS
LAB ALUMNI
Anna Jaeggi-Wong
Postbaccalaureate fellow in the SVBBU from August 2023 to July 2025
Undergraduate researcher in the Ivanovic lab from July 2021 to May 2023
Current Position: Ph.D. student in the Molecular Microbiology and Microbial Pathogenesis program at Washington University in St. Louis
B.S., Biochemistry and Biology, Brandeis University, 2023
Received the 2025 Ann W. and Spencer T. Olin-Chancellor’s Fellowship
Received the NIH Postbaccalaureate Poster Day Award
Received the William P. Jencks Award in Biochemistry
Received the Division of Science Prize for Outstanding Research Accomplishment by a Senior
Received highest Honors in Biochemistry for her research in the Ivanovic lab
Received a MRSEC Summer Material Undergraduate Research Fellowship for summer of 2022
Ava Altenbern
Postbaccalaureate fellow in the SVBBU from August 2023 to June 2025
Current Position: M.A. student in the History of Art program at the Courtald Institute of Art in London
B.A., Biochemistry and Art History, University of Colorado – Boulder, 2023
Shivani Bhut
Undergraduate researcher in the Ivanovic lab from January 2021 to May 2023 Current Position: Ph.D. student in the Biology program at Texas A&M University B.S., Biology and Neuroscience, Brandeis University, 2023 Received high Honors in Biology for her research in the Ivanovic lab Received a Jerome A. Schiff Undergraduate Research Fellowship
Uddipan Kar
Postdoctoral fellow in the Ivanovic lab from July 2021 to January 2023 Current Position: Postdoctoral fellow at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai Ph.D., Molecular Biophysics, Indian Institute of Science, 2019 M.S., Chemistry, IIT Delhi, 2014 B.S., Chemistry, Calcutta University, 2012
Carol Xu
Undergraduate researcher in the Ivanovic lab from September 2021 to August 2022
Current Position: PhD student in the bioengineering program at University of Pennsylvania
B.S., Biomedical Engineering, Columbia University, 2024
B.S., Biochemistry, Brandeis University, 2024
Zhenyu Li
Postgraduate researcher in the Ivanovic lab from May 2020 to July 2022 Undergraduate researcher in the Ivanovic lab from February 2018 to May 2020 Current Position: Ph.D. candidate in the Division of Medical Sciences Virology program at Harvard University M.S., Biochemistry, Brandeis University, 2020 B.S., Biochemistry and Biology, Brandeis University, 2020 Received the Nathan O. Kaplan Prize in Biochemistry Received highest Honors in Biochemistry for his research in the Ivanovic lab Received a Summer Provost’s Undergraduate Research Fellowship for summer of 2019
Mengyang Zou
Undergraduate researcher in the Ivanovic lab from June 2020 to May 2022 Current Position: Ph.D. candidate in the BCMB Allied program at Weill Cornell Graduate School of Medical Sciences B.S., Biochemistry and Biology, Brandeis University, 2022 Received the Professor Dagmar Ringe Biochemistry Award Received high Honors in Biochemistry for her research in the Ivanovic lab Received a Blavatnik Summer Science Research Fellowship for summer of 2021
Rebecca Barrick
Undergraduate researcher in the Ivanovic lab from April 2020 to August 2021
Current Position: Ph.D. student in the Molecular Microbiology and Microbial Pathogenesis program at Washington University in St. Louis
Post-baccalaureate scholar at the Broad Institute
B.S., Biochemistry, Brandeis University, 2023
Received a MRSEC Summer Materials Undergraduate Research Fellowship for summer of 2021
Was a QBReC student during summer of 2020
Jonah Paasche-Orlow
Masters student in the Ivanovic lab from August 2020 to July 2021 M.S., Physics, Brandeis University, 2021 B.S., Physics, Boston University, 2018
Melissa Fornagiel
Undergraduate researcher in the Ivanovic lab from January to July 2021 B.S., Biology, Brandeis University, 2022
Miranda Gavitt
Undergraduate researcher in the Ivanovic lab from May 2018 to June 2021 Current Position: Ph.D. candidate in the Molecular and Cellular Biology Ph.D. program at Harvard University B.S., Biological Physics, Brandeis University, 2021 Received the Professor Dagmar Ringe Biochemistry Award Received highest Honors in Biological Physics for her research in the Ivanovic lab Received a Division of Science Undergraduate Research Fellowship for summer of 2020 Received a MRSEC Summer Materials Undergraduate Research Fellowship for summer of 2019 https://www.brandeis.edu/mrsec/education/people/miranda-gavitt-2019.html Was a QBReC student during summer of 2018
Harry Fruchtman
Research assistant in the Ivanovic lab from July 2020 to June 2021 Current Position: Medical student at New York Medical College B.S., Biology, Brandeis University, 2020
Tian Li
Postdoctoral fellow in the Ivanovic lab from June 2017 to September 2020 Current Position: Project Director at Keybio Ph.D., Microbiology, Wuhan University, 2014 B.S., Science of Biology, Soochow University, 2009 B. Com., International Economy and Trade, Soochow University, 2009
Colleen Hurley
Research assistant in the Ivanovic lab from August 2019 to July 2020 Current Position: Process Development Associate at The Broad Institute Waltham, MA B.S., Cell and Molecular Biology, Appalachian State University, 2019
Ellen Nguyen
Masters student in the Ivanovic lab from September 2019 to June 2020 M.S., Molecular and Cell Biology, Brandeis University, 2020 B.S., University of Massachusetts, Amherst College, 2019
Dhruv Dang
Undergraduate researcher (NSF REU) in the Ivanovic lab during summer of 2018 B.S., Molecular and Cell Biology, University of Connecticut, 2021 Participated in the MRSEC REU Program during summer of 2018 https://www.brandeis.edu/mrsec/education/people/dhruv-dang-2018.html
Meisui Liu
Undergraduate researcher in the Ivanovic lab from September 2016 to June 2018 Current Position: Medical student at the Pathways M.D. Program at Harvard Medical School B.S., Biology and Health: Science, Society, and Policy (HSSP), Brandeis University, 2018 Received the Charles K. Schiff Award in science Received highest Honors in Biology for her research in the Ivanovic lab Received a MRSEC Summer Materials Undergraduate Research Fellowship for summer of 2017 https://www.brandeis.edu/mrsec/education/people/meisui-liu-2017.html
Single Virion Biology and Biophysics Unit 