People

Current Lab Members

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  Farnoosh Kalantarnia

  Ph.D. Student

  Farnoosh is a third-year Ph.D. student in the Mechanical Engineering department at the University of Victoria. She completed her Bachelor’s degree in Bio-mechanical Engineering, followed by a Master’s degree in Mechanical Engineering. In May 2022, she joined Willerth lab in collaboration with MiNa Lab. Her current research focus involves bioprinting brain models using patient-derived stem cells for drug screening purposes. Apart from her academic pursuits, she enjoys cooking, biking, and gardening.

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  Victor Allison Da Silva

  Master Student, Former Mitacs Globalink Research Intern

  Victor is a Ph.D student in his third year in Mechanical Engineering at the University of Victoria, joining the Willerth Lab in January 2022. He got his BEng in Biomedical Engineering and BSc in Science and Technology, both at Universidade Federal do ABC (UFABC) - Brazil. Victor is currently studying alternatives to improve the designing new bioinks through machine learning.

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  Giselle Diaz

  Master student, former MITACS student

  Giselle Diaz, originally from Chihuahua, Mexico, completed a BEng in Biotechnology Engineering at Tecnologico de Monterrey, Mexico. Since 2019, she has had the opportunity to collaborate as an intern in the Willerth lab, where she witnessed the potential of regenerative therapies and the future of science through the utilization of 3D printing technology. In 2023, she began her MASc with a project focused on developing an innovative bioink to create artificial skin, aiming to enhance the efficacy of current skin wound treatments. Additionally, within the Willerth laboratory, she has been involved in various other areas, including entrepreneurship, as one of Dr. Willerth's visions is to translate research into market applications. Currently funded by lab2market/NSERC, she is working on revolutionizing cosmetology product testing to improve the quality and market launch of dermatological products. Outside the lab, she enjoys staying active with yoga and running, training to complete her first half marathon in 2024.

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  Ruchi Sharma

  Post-doctoral, former Mechanical Engineering Ph.D. Student

  Ruchi completed her PhD in Mechanical Engineering in April 2022 under the direction of Dr. Willerth. Ruchi's studies concentrated on 3D bioprinting tissue models of Parkinson's disease. She was awarded an MITACS Accelerate Postdoc Fellow Award for 8 months to create cardiac bioink alongside Dr. Elvira from the Department of Chemistry and Dr. Willerth from Axolotl Biosciences. Ruchi likes cooking and traveling with her family outside of the lab.

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  Amanda Orr

  Post-doctoral fellow

  Amanda received her PhD from Trent University in 2023 where her research focused on designing multi-functional human blood analogues (forensic blood substitutes) for applied research and training in forensic science. Her interest in designing functional biomaterials that mimic in vivo processes led her to the Willerth lab, where she joined as an awardee of the Michael Smith Health Research BC/CLEAR Foundation Research Trainee Award in January 2024. In her Post-Doctoral role, she is focusing on 3D bioprinting patient-derived neural tissues for screening potential treatments for Alzheimer's disease. Outside of the lab, Amanda enjoys playing and watching sports, hiking, and baking.

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  Kali Scheck

  Full-time Employee, former Volunteer

  Kali is a full-time employee at Axolotl Biosciences, based out of the Willerth Lab. Kali graduated with a BSc in Biology from the University of Victoria. Kali's research includes producing and conducting stability testing on bioink. Outside of the lab, Kali enjoys dancing, climbing, and running.

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  Dmitri Karaman

  Former directed study

  Dmitri is a full-time employee working between Axolotl Biosciences and the Willerth Lab. Dmitri graduated with a BSc in Computer Science and began a directed study in the Willerth lab in 2020. After this, he volunteered in the lab while TAing for Dr. Willerth has since been an employee for Axolotl Biosciences and the Willerth Lab. Some notable projects have included the creation of mock spinal cord lesions, artificial ureters, and a coaxial extruder. Outside of this, he works to maintain and fix lab equipment while designing new equipment. Outside of the lab he enjoys rock climbing, photography, 3D design, and hiking.

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  Bita Raeisi

  Lab manager- former directed study

  Bita graduated with a degree in Microbiology from the University of Victoria in May 2023. She joined the Willerth lab as a directed study student in spring 2023 where she worked on the nanocellulose project sponsored by the Forest Ministry. Post-graduation, her dedication to the project continued, leading her and the team into the field of bioprinting cartilage. She has been managing the Willerth laboratory since August 2023. In her free time, she enjoys cooking, reading, pottery, and hiking.

• Maria Hangad

  Honours Student, former Co-op Student

  Maria is a fifth year undergrad in a BSc Combined Honors in Biochemistry and Chemistry program at UVIC. She has completed 2 co-op terms under the Willerth Lab starting January 2022 working on collaborative projects with the Elvira Lab in the Department of Chemistry. Her research mainly consists of investigating and characterizing drug-releasing microparticles/microspheres as a component of the Willerth Lab's fibrin based bioinks for applications in 3D bioprinting tissue models. In her free time, Maria can be found at a karaoke night singing her heart out, longboarding near Dallas Road, or bouldering at local gyms in Victoria.

• Jasmine Navabi

  Directed Study

Alumni

PhD

• Nima Khadem Mohtaram

  Mechanical Engineering, Ph.D.

• Laura de la Vega

  Mechanical Engineering Ph.D. Student, Former Mitacs Globalink Research Intern

• Amanda Juraski

  Graduate Visiting Research Student

Masters

• Andrew Agbay

  Neuroscience Masters Student, Former NSERC USRA summer co-op and Honors thesis student

• Amy Montgomery

  Masters Student

• Henry Zheng

  Mechanical Engineering, M.Eng.

• Megan Hall

  Mathematics, Masters student Co-supervised with Dr. Edwards (Mathematics)

• Claire Benwood

  Masters Student

• Chris Lee

  Neuroscience, Masters student at UBC co-supervised with Dr. Nygaard. Former JCURA scholar, honors thesis student, co-op student, and directed study student

• Becka Kirish

  Masters student

• Lennard Shopperly

  Graduate Visiting Research Student

• Payton Bray

  Mechanical Engineering, M.Eng.

• Ekaterina Shteinberg

  Mechanical Engineering, M.Eng.

Undergrad

• Laila Abelseth

• Tara Styan

• Emily Abelseth

• Meghan Robinson

• Sukhi Singh

• Ollie McKee-Reid

• Ian Fraser

• Gillian Nixon

• Sarah Douglas

• Diego Gomez

• Evan Stefamek

• Karina Karmirian

• Marie Schultz

• Brendon Restall

• Parv Chapani

• Emma Bibault

• Hien Thu (Sarah) Luong

• Nathan Muller

• Ben Hoffman-Kipp

• Briana Dallinger

• Austyn Roelofs

• Jordan Watson

• Sarah Wong

• Craig King

• Michael Carlson

• Darcy Ippolito

• Stephanie Morrison

• Daniel Pedde

• Krista Wilson

• Tia Sojonky

• Azra Rajwani

• Otto Neumann

• Haydn MacLean

• Ali Shapka

• John Edgar

• Michaela Thomas

• Jose Gomez

• Amy Montgomery

• Antonio Ranaudo

• Misha Hasan

• Krya Teetzan

• Hannah Richards

• Josie Chrenek

• Kelsey Kalk

• Willem Schokking

• Josh Latimer

• Trevor Slack

• Zeina Maan

• Dixita Basumatary

• Logan O'Reilly

• Jess Thomson

• Tania Garay

• Sarah Keshvani

• Shannon Eley

• Evan Broome

Visiting Students

• Imke Smits

  Visiting Masters Student

• Cynthia Olivia Balderlamar Juarez

  Mitacs Globalink Research Intern

• Berta Diez Odriozola

  Visiting Ph.D. student

• Giselle Gonzalez

  Mitacs Globalink Research Intern

• Ita Guadalupe Olivo

  Mitacs Globalink Research Intern