AFONIN LAB
UNC CHARLOTTE
EST. 2015
A l u m n i
Graduate and Post-Doctoral Researchers
Elizabeth Skelly-Miles
Chemistry & Nanoscale Science Ph.D. (2022-2026)
Dissertation: The Use of DNA-Templated Silver Nanoclusters as a Broad-Spectrum Antibacterial Agent and Pedigogical Tool
Current Position: NIH Biosafety and Biocontainment Fellow
Yasmine Radwan
Chemistry & Nanoscale Science Ph.D. (2020-2026)
Dissertation: Development, Characterization, and Delivery of Functional Nucleic Acid Nanoparticles Designed for Biomedical Applications
Current Position:
Leyla Danai
Chemistry & Nanoscale Science Ph.D. (2021-2026)
Dissertation: New Materials for Combating Pathogenic Microorganisms
Yelixza I. Avila
Nanoscale Science Ph.D. (2019-2024)
Dissertation: Exploring Carrier Impact on Immune Response to Nucleic Acid Nanoparticles and Insights Into Conditionally Activated Therapeutic Nucleic Acids
Current Position: iCURE fellow at the NCI
Damian Beasock
Nanoscale Science Ph.D. (2019-2023)
Dissertation: Characterization of Dynamic and Functional Nucleic Acid Based Systems
Current Position: Application Engineer at JEOL
Lewis Rolband
Nanoscale Science Ph.D. (2019-2023)
Dissertation: Assessing the Biological Activities of DNA-Templated Silver Nanoclusters and Furthering the Characterization of Nucleic Acid Nanoparticles
Current Position: Patent Specialist, K&L Gates
Morgan Chandler
Nanoscale Science Ph.D. (2016-2021)
Dissertation: Dynamic and Conditionally Activated Nucleic Acid Nanoparticles
Current Position: Director US at MIMETAS
Brittany Johnson
Post-Doctoral Researcher (2018-2020)
Research Assistant Professor (2020-2021)
Current Position: Tenure track Assistant Professor at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte
Jessica McMillan
Biology M.S. (2019-2021)
Current Position: Behavioral Health Technician at Abacus Therapies
Justin Halman
Nanoscale Science Ph.D. (2015-2020)
Dissertation: Immunostimulatory Properties of Nucleic Acid Nanoparticles
Current Position: Scientist at FDA
Weina Ke
Nanoscale Science Ph.D. (2015-2020)
Dissertation: Functional Nucleic Acid Nanoparticles and Their Delivery Using
Current Position: Scientist II, Data in the Biomedical Informatics and Data Science at the Frederick National Laboratory for Cancer Research (FNLCR)
Sameer Sajja
Chemistry M.S. (2016-2019)
Thesis: Organization of Biomolecules in a 3-Dimensional Space
Current Position: Health Data Analyst, Aqurate Health Data Management, Inc
Ridhima Juneja
Post-Doctoral Researcher (2017-2018)
Current Position: Leading Career Development Team, VPI Employment Services
Anna Ivanina
Post-Doctoral Researcher (2015-2016)
Current Position: Assistant Professor, Levine Cancer Institute, Charlotte, North Carolina
Brandon Kyle Roark
Chemistry M.S. (2015-2017)
Thesis: Nucleic Acid-Driven Quantum Dot-Based Lattice Formations for Biomedical Applications
Current Position: Forensic Chemist, City of Columbia Police Department
Undergraduate Students
Emma Crawford
Biology and Chemistry B.S. with Chemistry Honors (2026)
Current Position: Certified Nurse Aide 1 at Atrium Health
Raam Raghav
Biology B.S. - Biochem conc. (2026)
Brandon Rawlins
Biology B.S. (2024)
Current Position: Medical Student at Wake Forest School of Medicine
Jose Reyna
Biology B.S. - Biochem conc. (2024)
Melina Richardson
Biology B.S. (2021)
Current Position: Biological and Biomedical Ph.D. Student at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in the Moody lab
Alora Dunnavant
Chemistry B.S. - Biochem conc. (2023)
Current Position: Bioanalaytical Chemistry Ph.D. student at NC State University
Allison Tran
Biology B.S. (2020)
Current Position: PA/MPH (graduated form School of Public Health at Yale University)
Sandra Arroyo-Becker
Biology B.S., Chemistry B.A., French Language B.A. (2020)
Nguyen Truong
Biology B.S. (2020)
Current Position: DDS candidate at UNC Adams School of Dentistry
Dana Elasmar
Biology B.A. (2020)
Current Position: Certified Nursing Assistant at Brian Center Health and Rehabilitation
Morriah Striplin
Computer Science (Software, Systems, and Networks Concentration) B.S. (2016-2020)
Current Position: Software developer at Camelot 3PL Software
Lauren Rackley
Biology B.S., Chemistry B.A. (2016-2018)
Current Position: Supervisor at Core Laboratory Technical Operations at Atrium Health
Dylan Dang
Biology B.S. (2017-2018)
Current Position: Senior IT Security Analyst at USAMCO
Jared Dahl
Biology B.S. (2017)
Lauren Lee
Biology B.S. (2015-2018)
Current Position: Emergency Medical Technician
Steven Woods
Biology B.S. (2016-2017)
Current Position: Clinic Operations Coordinator at Healthgram
Strahinja Talic
Honors Biology B.S., Chemistry B.A. (2016-2018)
Current Position: M.D. from the Edward Via College of Osteopathic Medicine
Emily Satterwhite
Biology B.S. (2015-2017)
Current Position: Postdoctoral fellow at NCSU
Vaishu Jawahar
Biology B.S. (2015-2017)
Physiology M.S., Georgetown University
Current Position: Director of Policy Programs at Protect Our Care
Jaclyn Smollett
Biology B.S. (2016-2017)
Current Position: Doctor of Medicine in Dentistry, periodontology residency at the UNC Adams School of Dentistry
Ram Jawahar
Biology B.S. (2015-2016)
Current Position: Medical Student at Ross University School of Medicine
Kenya Joseph
Biology B.S. (2015-2017)
Current Position: Chair, Charlotte-Mecklenburg Food Policy Council
International Students
Nathalia Leal Santos
Oncology Ph.D. Candidate (2024-2025)
Visiting student from the University of São Paulo Medical School/Sao Paulo Cancer Institute in São Paulo, Brazil.
Ekaterina Goncharova
Chemistry M.S. (2019)
ITMO University (Saint Petersburg, Russia)
Shota Hanyu
M.D. (2016)
Kyoto University (Kyoto, Japan)
Tatiana Lyalina
Chemistry M.S. (2018)
ITMO University (Saint Petersburg, Russia)