President: Varun R. Bavda, Ph.D.

Postdoc Research Affiliate - Wadsworth Center, New York State Department of Health 

Varun is postdoc fellow at Paczkowski Lab at Department of Genetics, Wadsworth Center, New York State Department of Health. He is studying the process of bacterial communication called quorum sensing in pathogen Pseudomonas aeruginosa. Varun is originally from India and obtained his Ph.D. from Indian Institute of Science Education and Research- Bhopal, India in 2021. During his Ph.D., he studied the molecular mechanism of host cell lysis by bacteriophage lysis protein called Holin.

Outside of science Varun enjoys gardening, cooking and hiking-adventure with friends.

Vice-President: Samara Choudhury

 PhD Student - MCDN Biology Program at UAlbany

Samara is currently a Ph.D. student and Graduate Research Assistant at the Andam Lab in the Department of Biological Sciences, SUNY Albany. Her research focuses on bacterial evolution and infectious disease epidemiology, particularly examining the genomic diversification of Pseudomonas aeruginosa across different environments. Samara obtained her Master of Public Health in Epidemiology from Independent University, Bangladesh, in 2022, where she also worked on various research projects, guiding undergraduate students. During her Bachelor’s in Biochemistry, she explored molecular arms races in primates.

Outside of science Samara enjoys cooking, reading books, and watching tv shows and movies.

Treasurer: Antonia Oropallo

Undergraduate student - Albany College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences 

Antonia is a third year student in the microbiology program. Although not currently partaking in any active research, she was part of the first SEA-PHAGES program at ACPHS. There she was part of a team that discovered and genetically sequenced a bacteriophage. Antonia's dream is to go to medical school and become an orthopedic surgeon, eventually working for a professional sports team.

Some of her favorite things to do are to read, travel, and binge watch TV shows.

Secretary: Nimmy John

 PhD Candidate - MCDN Biology Program at UAlbany

Nimmy is currently a Ph.D. candidate and a Graduate Research Assistant at the Lee Lab in the Department of Biological Sciences, SUNY Albany. Her research focuses on elucidating the underlying mechanisms of environmental and physiological conditions and their effects on stem cell regulation in vivo. To do so, she uses the model organism, Caenorhabditis elegans, to investigate the effects of these conditions on the Notch transcriptional response, which is crucial to stem cell maintenance in the C. elegans germline. Nimmy obtained her master’s in Forensic biology, where she worked on chemically profiling toxic mushrooms using gas chromatography and mass spectrometry. 

Outside of science, Nimmy loves traveling, photography, watching TV, and learning languages.

Secretary: Nicholas de Mojana di Cologna

 Postdoctoral Associate - SUNY Albany / SUNY-RF

Nicholas is a postdoctoral researcher at the Valm lab in the Department of Biological Sciences, RNA Institute, SUNY Albany. His research interests include Proteins and Oral Microbiology. Originally from Brazil, he received his BSc in Biological Sciences and an MSc in Molecular Biology from the University of Brasília (UnB). During his Ph.D research, at the University of Florida (Lemos-Abranches laboratory, Department of Oral Biology), he studied surface adhesins from the main cavities-causing agent Streptococcus mutans focusing on their amyloidogenesis potential and glycosylation mechanism by a dedicated machinery. Currently, he is investigating the roles of surface adhesins in the organization of the architecture of multi-species oral biofilms. 

In his free time, Nicholas enjoys reading, playing video games, watching live musicals, and befriending new cats.