Education

• Thesis: "AI-Enabled Platform for the Creation and Optimization of Novel DNA Transcriptional Units in Synthetic Biology"
• Committee: Dr. Chris Myers, Dr. Thomas Cech, Dr. Jerome Fox, Dr. Ryan Layer, Dr. Aaron Adler
• NSF NRT Graduate Training Program in Integrated Data Science
• Interdisciplinary Quantitative Biology Certification

• Thesis: "DNA Assembly Automation to Speed Up the Design, Build, Test, Learn Cycle"

• Techniques in Biomedical Engineering, Plant Developmental Biology, and Cellular Regulation and Control

Fellowships, Funding & Honors

• Recognized for authoring a Biomedical Engineering teaching assistant mentoring handbook, strengthening TA training, and serving as President of the BME Graduate Student Organization, where I implemented a graduate student mentoring program for incoming students

Publications

Journal Articles

Book Chapters

Manuscripts Under Review and in Preparation

Research Experience

• Built ExpressionCassetteBuilder to automate the design of assembly-ready transcriptional units from natural language inputs, closing the gap between design intent and bench-compatible SBOL genetic constructs
• Built BioPartCurator to address annotation inconsistency in genetic part databases, applying machine-learning-based extraction and verification to produce curated, reusable part libraries for downstream genetic design
• Improved Excel-to-SBOL Converter v2 to enable FAIR data standards in laboratory practice, converting researcher-maintained spreadsheets into SBOL-compliant records for registry upload and cross-lab reuse
• Contributed to BuildPlanner to automate the translation of SBOL genetic designs into bench-ready assembly protocols, streamlining the design-to-build transition in DBTL workflows
• Developing wet lab validation experiments using dual reporter plasmids and plate reader assays to close the loop between design prediction and experimental characterization
• Supported the Army Center for Synthetic Biology through data infrastructure and synthetic biology workflow development

• Led a multidisciplinary crew during simulated extravehicular activities, rover operations, emergency triage, and mission planning in an analog Mars habitat
• Coordinated crew schedules, safety protocols, and operational objectives during a field deployment focused on space medicine and surface operations

• Worked with cyanobacterial chassis, including transformation of Synechococcus sp. PCC 7002
• Designed plasmids to adapt T7-based expression around toxicity constraints in cyanobacterial genetic engineering

• Researched microfluidics and developed the curriculum for the Synthetic Biology and Prototyping course

• Extended Flapjack and LOICA to full SBOL3 compliance

• Contributed to front-end development of Flapjack and to data visualization and simulation pipelines for LOICA

• Delivered a DNA assembly automated protocol using a liquid-handling robot (Opentrons OT-2)
• Python programming, thermocycler handling for PCR execution, bacterial transformation, and Molecular Biology protocols

• Molecular Biology laboratory techniques: vector and primer generation, culture media preparation, and PCR

Teaching Experience

• Delivered lectures and hands-on labs on genetic circuit design, DNA assembly techniques, and synthetic biology principles for mixed undergraduate/graduate enrollment
• Authored complete lab guides, problem sets, and assignments; graded exams with calibrated rubrics and returned timely feedback
• Integrated widely used synthetic biology tools, including SBOL, SynBioHub, and iBioSim, into design, build, and test workflows
• Coached project teams through full design cycles from genetic part characterization to circuit-level validation
• Collaborated with course instructor on curriculum planning, learning objectives, and assessment design

• Conducted practical demonstrations on laboratory automation and synthetic biology workflows using the Opentrons OT-2 liquid-handling robot

• Helped develop the online version of the course, integrating advanced computational tools for genetic design into a self-paced format
• Designed and quality-assured quizzes and programming exercises to enhance student understanding of circuit engineering concepts

• Delivered lectures covering synthetic biology design principles, molecular biology techniques, and engineering approaches to biological systems
• Designed comprehensive teaching materials: lectures, quizzes, lab guides, projects, and computational exercises for interdisciplinary learning
• Led hands-on lab sessions on DNA assembly and genetic circuit design
• Mentored students on research and project development, guiding application of synthetic biology methodologies to real-world problems

• Introduced synthetic biology concepts like DNA assembly and circuit optimization to interdisciplinary audiences of students and professionals

• Led hands-on workshops on designing and building hardware with Arduino microcontrollers for medical and scientific applications
• Taught programming fundamentals, sensor integration, and real-time data acquisition and analysis

• Guided students through molecular and cellular processes underlying plant growth and development
• Clarified complex topics on plant hormone regulation and stress responses during office hours

• Supported students in mathematical optimization principles applied to biological and engineering systems
• Developed supplementary Python materials for linear and non-linear optimization, including ready-to-run scripts

Mentoring

Academic Service

• Implemented a peer mentoring program connecting incoming Biomedical Engineering graduate students with current students to support transition, community building, and long-term student relationships

• Led training and mentoring for Biomedical Engineering teaching assistants across the program
• Authored a BME teaching assistant handbook to standardize expectations, clarify teaching practices, and support new teaching assistants
• Served as a program-level resource for teaching assistants, supporting grading practices, office hours, lab support, student communication, and course logistics

• Evaluated undergraduate space research presentations for the 2026 COSGC Undergraduate Space Research Symposium, a NASA-funded statewide space education and research program

• Contributed to committee-level work on synthetic biology engineering practice, measurement and calibration standards, biological device predictability, and design-build-test-learn guidance for the global iGEM competition

• Contacted speakers worldwide; organized a conference attended by 300 participants

Conferences and Invited Presentations

• Speaker: "The Art of the Scientific Poster: Typography, Color, Layout, and Visual Storytelling"

• (Talk) BuildPlanner
• (Talk) Excel-SBOL Converter Version 2

• (Poster) Synthetic Biology Open Language: Standardizing Design Representation and Enabling Interoperability

• Invited Speaker: "One Nucleotide at a Time: AI and the Future of Synthetic Biology"

• (Talk) PUMA: Promoter Unraveling through Machine-learning Algorithms
• (Workshop) SBOL Notebooks

• (Poster) PUMA: Promoter Unraveling through Machine-learning Algorithms

• (Poster) Designing, Characterizing, and Optimizing Synthetic Genetic Circuits

• Representing the Synthetic Biology Open Language

• (Talk) PUMA: Promoter Unraveling through Machine-learning Algorithms
• (Workshop) SBOL Visual Hackathon
• (Workshop) SBOL Visual Font

• A Data Management Plan for the Army Center for Synthetic Biology

• Representing the Synthetic Biology Open Language

• (Workshop) Programmatic genetic design automation using LOICA
• (Talk) A Report on SynBio Data Management Practices
• (Talk) Software for Synthetic Biology Workflows: How to Improve Your Productivity
• (Talk) PUDU: Simple Liquid Handling Robot Control for Synthetic Biology Workflows

• (Workshop) Software for Synthetic Biology Workflows: How to Improve Your Productivity and Impact

• SBOL Hackathon · SEED Tutorial Preparation

• (Talk) Connecting Up the DBTL Cycle Using SBOL3

• (Workshop) Software Tools Workshop: Describing a complete workflow of the DBTL cycle
• (Poster) LOICA 1.2: Genetic Network Design Automation for Spatio-Temporal Patterns

• (Talk) LOICA: Logical Operators for Integrated Cell Algorithms

• (Workshop) Flapjack Workshop
• (Talk) LOICA: Logical Operators for Integrated Cell Algorithms

• (Talk) Flapjack: A Data Management and Analysis Tool for Genetic Circuit Characterization

• (Talk) Flapjack: A Data Management and Analysis Tool for Genetic Circuit Characterization

• (Talk) Flapjack: A Data Management and Analysis Tool for Genetic Circuit Characterization

Skills

Certifications and Field Training

Technology Transfer

• First place in the Sustainable Entrepreneurship course before the Chilean Government Jury

• Delivered a solution to address iodine deficiency in the food supply

Software Engineering Experience

• Python backend with a cross-platform GUI; core design engine uses a fine-tuned large language model to generate assembly-ready SBOL transcriptional units from natural language design requests
• Accepts chassis selection, assembly standard (MoClo, BioBrick, or Free Assembly), and optional SynBioHub authentication; outputs SBOL files with human- and robot-readable lab assembly protocols

• Python backend with a cross-platform GUI; applies classification and named entity recognition to annotate and verify genetic parts extracted from GenBank records
• Outputs curated part data as CSV and Excel files directly compatible with Excel-to-SBOL for downstream SBOL library construction

• Python backend with a cross-platform GUI; outputs SBOL2 and SBOL3; BSD-3 Clause license; deployed on GitHub
• Four-template architecture (Resources, Strains, Sample Design, Study) with VBA macro validation and a layered error-reporting framework distinguishing critical errors from non-fatal warnings
• SynBioHub REST API integration for authentication and duplicate prevention; validated at DARPA TELLUS scale with 1,246+ parts

• Tool takes SBOL assembly design specifications as input and outputs human- and robot-readable lab assembly protocols; contributed validation logic for SBOL structure and assembly metadata

• Contributed UI components to this web-based platform for linking plate reader measurements to SBOL-described designs and experimental metadata across DBTL cycles

• Built genetic network graph visualizations using NetworkX and Matplotlib; ran continuous and stochastic ODE simulations for experimental validation of genetic circuit models

• Delivered a brand-new nationwide web-based customer attention system

Volunteering