Muhammad Bilal
July 2016 - Dr. Muhammad Bilal is a Postdoctoral Researcher at UCLA. His research uses computational approaches to test the impact of nanomaterials in order to create a nanomaterial database for public use.  He discusses his scientific background and his motiviation for his work. Muhammad works in Theme 6 with CEIN Faculty Dr. Yoram Cohen.

Olivia Osborne
October 2015- Dr. Olivia Osborne is a Postdoctoral Researcher at UCLA. Her research is on the hazard assessment of nanomaterials in the environment and river systems, focusing on silver nanoparticles in zebrafish. She shares her first science experiment as a child and what experiences motivated her to pursue the work in her field. Olivia works in Theme 2 with CEIN Faculty Dr. Andre Nel.

Bingbing Sun
December 2014- Dr. Bingbing Sun is a Postdoctoral Researcher at UCLA. Bingbing discusses his research on nano immune detection and how the physical and chemical properties of nanomaterials affect immune response stimulation. He also shares a recent discovery regarding his research using aluminum oxyhydroxide nanomaterials.  Bingbing works in Theme 2 with CEIN Faculty Dr. Andre Nel and Dr. Tian Xia.

Jon Conway
July 2013- Jon Conway, Graduate Student at UC Santa Barbara under Dr. Arturo Keller, looks at how organisms can affect the movement of nanomaterials in the environment. He also discusses a recent discovery regarding his research using a species of wildflower. Jon works in Theme 3.

Huan Meng
July 2013- Dr. Huan Meng is a former Assistant Researcher and current Assistant Professor at UCLA.  In this researcher spotlight, Huan discusses his work as an Assistant Researcher on how studying the toxicity of different nanoparticle types with the same chemical composition demonstrates the diversity of the UC CEIN's innovative science.  Huan also shares his strict adherence to lab policy when asked what he would save from the burning lab. Huan works in Theme 2.

 back to top

Louise Stevenson
July 2013- Louise Stevenson, Graduate Student at UC Santa Barbara under Dr. Roger Nisbet,  discusses her research on the effects that engineered nanoparticles have on fresh water green algae and daphnia both individually and within the broader ecosystem.  You will also hear Louise's thoughts on what to save from the laboratory should it catch fire!  Louise works in Theme 5.

 back to top

Zhaoxia (Ivy) Ji
July 2013- Zhaoxia (Ivy) Ji, Staff Researcher at UCLA, describes her work in nanomaterial synthesis and chemical characterization.  Ivy's work focuses on characterizing the different physical and chemical properties of engineered nanomaterials so that UC CEIN's toxicologists and biologists can look at the effect these materials have on the environment.  You will also learn more about how Ivy came to work as a chemical engineer and what she enjoys about working with the UC CEIN.  Ivy works in Theme 1.

 back to top

Timothy Malloy
June 2013- Timothy Malloy, UCLA Law Professor and UCLA Sustainable Technology and Policy Program co-director, focuses on how the law interacts with scientific discoveries in CEIN, takes what is developed in CEIN, and tries to envision how that can be implemented in either mandatory regulation or private decision-making by businesses. Tim reveals his two most prized office possessions. Tim works in Theme 7.

 back to top

Suman Pokhrel
July 2013- Suman Pokhrel, CEIN staff researcher at Universität Bremen, explains how he uses flame spray pyrolysis to design nanoparticles for toxicity screening. In his research, he has also discovered a way to reduce zinc oxide toxicity. Outside of the lab, Suman is a family man. Suman works in Theme 1.

 back to top

Researcher Spotlights: Previous CEIN Members

Cyren Rico
October 2014- Cyren Rico, former CEIN Graduate Student at UTexas El Paso under Dr. Jorge Gardea-Torresdey (Theme 4), studied nanoparticle interactions with plants, especially food crops. He discussed a recent discovery regarding his research using cerium oxide nanoparticles and different cereals. Currently, Cyren is a Postdoctoral Fellow at the U.S. EPA.

John Priester
July 2013- John Priester, former CEIN UCSB staff researcher (Theme 4), discussed his work on evaluating the effects of nanoparticles on various organisms- everything from bacteria to plants. He also discussed one of his publications which focused on the effects of cerium and zinc nanoparticles on soybean plants grown in organic farm soil. Currently, John is a medical student at Tulane University of Medicine.

 back to top

Tyronne Martin
October 2012- Tyronne Martin, former CEIN graduate student at UC Santa Barbara under Dr. Hunter Lenihan (Theme 5), examined the impact of industrial chemicals on marine coastal algae species and looked for physiological markers that could point towards toxicity. He explained how his work contributes to society and shared his favorite thing about being a researcher. Currently, Tyronne is a Consultant at Martin Taggar.

 back to top

Shannon Hanna
July 2013- Shannon Hanna, former CEIN Postdoctoral Researcher at UC Santa Barbara under Dr. Hunter Lenihan (Theme 5), described his graduate ecotoxicology work looking at how nanomaterials impact the environment by conducting experiments where marine mussels are exposed to carbon nanotubes and nano copper. Shannon also shared what his life is like outside of the lab. Currently, Shannon has a Postdoctural Research Associatship at NIST.

 back to top

Susmita Bandyopadhyay
June 2013- Susmita Bandyopadhyay, former CEIN Graduate Student at UTexas El Paso under Dr. Jorge Gardea-Torresdey (Theme 4), shared her work on the fate and transport of nanomaterials as it relates to plant-bacterial interactions and the subsequent effects on nitrogen fixation. Susmita also discussed how she managed her time as a busy working mother. Currently, Susmita is a Chemist at Freeport-McMoran.

 back to top

Sijie Lin
July 2013- Dr. Sijie Lin, former CEIN Postdoctoral Researcher at UCLA (Theme 2), described the groundbreaking work on using zebrafish as a model to conduct safety assessment and hazard ranking for nanomaterials. This included a discussion on the robotics system for zebrafish embryonic screening processes. Sijie also shared how he was inspired to become a scientist. Currently, Sijie is a Professor at Tongji University (Shanghai, China).

 back to top

Courtney Thomas
July 2013- Courtney Thomas, former CEIN Graduate Student under Dr. Jeff Zink (Theme 1), discussed her work to design and develop engineered nanomaterials (ENMs) for various applications as well as study their potential toxic properties.  This was conducted through the UC CEIN's development of a "nanomaterial library" which makes slight variances to ENMs and pair that information with their toxic (or not) properties so as to ultimately work towards safer design of ENMs for commercial use. Currently, Courtney is a Postdoc at EPFL Switzerland.

 back to top