Principal Investigator
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Prof. Bil Clemons (CV Sep 2025)
Arthur and Marian Hanisch Memorial Professor of Biochemistry Post Doc, Harvard Medical School (2001-2005) Advisors: Tom Rapoport & Stephen Harrison Ph.D. Biochemistry, University of Utah (2000) Advisor: Venki Ramakrishnan Visiting Student, MRC-LMB, Cambridge, UK (1999-2001) B.S. Biochemistry, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, Virginia (1995) x1796, clemons@ |
Professor Bil Clemons received his PhD from the University of Utah working under professor Venki Ramakrishnan. During this time he spent two years as a visiting scientist at the Laboratory of Molecular Biology in Cambridge, England. The most notable achievement during his graduate work was that he was part of the team that solved the first atomic resolution structure of a small ribosomal subunit. This work led to a fundamental understanding of the translation of the genetic code and provided molecular details of the mechanism of a number of antibiotics. He then took a post-doctoral position at Harvard Medical School working for professors Tom Rapoport and Steve Harrison. During this time, he solved the structure of the ubiquitous protein translocation channel. This membrane protein structure allowed for a clear model of how this fundamentally important complex could perform its unique function. Arriving at Caltech in 2006, the Clemons Lab has continued its focus on structurally characterizing important biological systems. Bil’s favorite amino acid is proline.
Staff
Tiffany Safar Research Technician Clemons/Rees Lab Manager x1729 tsafar@ Tiffany grew up in Burbank, California, and completed her undergraduate studies at Pasadena City College and UC San Diego. In her free time, she enjoys wandering museums, exercising, and cafe-hopping in LA. Her favorite amino acid is cysteine.
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Ann Mao Clemons/Rees Lab Administrative Assistant x6524 annjmao@ Ann grew up in our very own Pasadena, before receiving her undergraduate degree at UCLA. When not keeping the lab afloat, Ann enjoys looking at plants, watching television dramas, and translating from Korean/Chinese to English (she’s very good at picking up languages)! Her favorite amino acid is glutamine.
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Mila
Ambassador of Happiness
available by appointment for pets and scratches
Ambassador of Happiness
available by appointment for pets and scratches
Postdoctoral Scholars
Yan Zhang
Postdoctoral Scholar (2022-Present) Ph.D. Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology (2022) Advisor: Mark Styczynski B.S. Chemical Engineering, Cornell University (2017) x1729, yz473@ Originally from Queens, New York, Yan completed her undergraduate studies at Cornell University and her doctoral degree at the Georgia Institute of Technology. Yan came to Caltech to use cell-free synthetic biology approaches to engineer bacteriophages with novel functions. In her free time, she enjoys running, baking, and cooking.
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Jacob Kirsh
Postdoctoral Scholar (2024-Present) Ph.D. Chemistry, Stanford University (2024) Advisor: Steven Boxer B.A. Chemistry and Math, Swarthmore College (2017) Advisor: Chris Graves x1729, jkirsh@ Hailing from Cleveland, Ohio, Jacob received his undergraduate degree from Swarthmore College before completing his Ph.D. at Stanford University. Jacob joined the lab to investigate the catalytic mechanism of N-linked glycosylation enzymes. In his free time, Jacob likes to read novels, exercise, hike with his wife, and play their with pet rabbit. His favorite amino acid is arginine.
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Graduate Students
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Victor Garcia-Ruiz
Graduate Student (2019-Present) B.S. Biochemistry, UC Riverside (2019) Advisor: Dr. Gregor Blaha x1729, vgarciar@ |
Yancheng (Evelyn) Li
Graduate Student (2020-Present) B.S. Biochemistry, University of Toronto (2020) Advisor: Dr. Trevor F. Moraes and Dr. P. Lynne Howell x1729, yancheng@ |
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Victor graduated from UC Riverside with a degree in biochemistry. Victor focuses on understanding the diverse protein-protein interactions in the GET pathway. When Victor is not in the lab, you can find him at the gym. His favorite amino acid is glutamine because it is Q-ute.
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After growing up in Chengdu, Evelyn completed her undergraduate degree at the University of Toronto. Using cryo-EM, Evelyn studies the inhibition mechanism of peptidoglycan biosynthesis. You can often find Evelyn scootering around campus. Her favorite amino acid is tyrosine.
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Shivansh Mahajan
Graduate Student (2020-2025) B.S. Chemistry, Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis (2020) Advisor: Michael J. McLeish x1729, smahajan@ |
Isabel Hernandez-Rodriguez
Graduate Student (2021-Present) B.S. Chemistry, Barnard College (2021) Advisor: Latha Venkataraman x1729, ihernan2@ |
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Originally from New Delhi, Shivansh studied chemistry at IUPUI. Shivansh uses structural approaches to study the mechanisms of Intradimeric Walker A (IWA) ATPases, a family of proteins which includes the TA protein chaperone Get3 and the bacterial arsenic detoxification pump ATPase ArsA. In his free time, Shivansh enjoys going to concerts, surfing, and road biking on the PCH. His favorite amino acid is histidine.
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Isabel grew up in both Seattle and Mexico and completed her undergraduate studies at Barnard College. She is working on using cryo-EM to study peptidoglycan biosynthesis and the cyanobacterial GET pathway. Isabel likes to play with her cat Mr. Bean, knit, and play the clarinet! Her favorite amino acid is lysine.
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Juliet Lee
Graduate Student (2021-Present) B.A. Chemistry, Barnard College (2021) Advisor: Rachel Austin x1729, juliet@ |
Beebee Yusrah Kaudeer
Graduate Student (2021-Present) B.A. Chemistry and Mathematics, Amherst College (2021) Advisor: Patricia O'Hara x1729, bkaudeer@ |
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Originally from northern California, Juliet studied metalloproteins at Barnard College. Juliet studies the mechanism and conformational changes of tail-anchored protein targeting in the human GET pathway, with a focus on its potential inhibition. Outside of lab, she plays guitar in a band, eats a lot of Korean food, and wanders around LA. Juliet’s favorite amino acid is histidine.
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Yusrah grew up in Souillac, Mauritius and received her undergraduate degree from Amherst College, also studying engineering at Dartmouth. Yusrah’s goal is to develop a structural and mechanistic understanding of MraY, a key enzyme in peptidoglycan biosynthesis. Outside of lab, she enjoys cooking new cuisines, hiking, seeing live music, and photography. Her favorite amino acid is aspartic acid.
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Conner Wells
Graduate Student (2021-Present) B.A. Chemistry, Pitzer College (2021) Advisor: Anna Wenzel x1729, cwwells@ |
Grace Baron
Graduate Student (2023-Present) B.S. Chemistry, Univ. of Massachusetts, Amherst (2023) Advisor: Jeanne Hardy x1729, gbaron@ |
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Originally from Santa Cruz, California, Conner studied chemistry at Pitzer College. Conner focuses on studying GET pathway components from photosynthetic organisms. In his free time, Conner enjoys cycling, indoor climbing, and photography. His favorite amino acid is cysteine.
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Grace grew up in Ashby, Massachusetts. She completed her undergraduate degree at UMass Amherst. Grace works on uncovering targets for phage single gene lysis proteins and characterizing the essential flippase involved in PG biosynthesis. Outside of lab, she enjoys baking, crafting, and finding cool vintage stores and estate sales. Her favorite amino acid is leucine.
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Roujon Nowzari
Graduate Student (2023-Present) B.S. Biophysical Chemistry, James Madison University (2023) Advisor: Nathan Wright x1729, rnowzari@ |
Angham Ahmed
Graduate Student (2023-Present) B.S. Biochemistry, California State University, Fresno (2017) Advisor: Krish Krishnan M.S. Biology, California State University, Fresno, (2022) Advisor: Cory L. Brooks x1729, amahmed@ |
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Hailing from Leesburg, Virginia, Roujon studied biophysical chemistry at James Madison University. Their research focuses on the single gene lysis protein A2 from the phage QBeta. Outside of the lab, Roujon enjoys reading, dancing, painting, and playing Dungeons and Dragons. Their favorite amino acid is cysteine.
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Angham grew up in Yemen before moving to Reedley, California. She completed her undergraduate and masters studies at California State University in Fresno. Angham’s research focuses on generating and characterizing custom bacterial virus particles for biomedical applications. In her free time, Angham enjoys walking, playing soccer, and listening to classical Arab music. Her favorite amino acid is alanine.
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Vida (Storm) Robertson
Graduate Student (2024-Present)
B.S. Biological Sciences, East Texas A&M (2022)
Advisor: Allan D. Headley
M.S. Chemistry, Fisk University, Nashville (2024)
Advisor: Steven Damo
x1729, vroberts@
Graduate Student (2024-Present)
B.S. Biological Sciences, East Texas A&M (2022)
Advisor: Allan D. Headley
M.S. Chemistry, Fisk University, Nashville (2024)
Advisor: Steven Damo
x1729, vroberts@
Originally from Sugar Land, Texas, Vida studied biology at East Texas A&M before completing his masters in chemistry and structural biology at Fisk University in Nashville, Tennessee. His research now focuses on investigating Get3, its clients, and its enzymatic processes in detail. When not in lab, you can find Vida reading, writing, or at the gym lifting. His favorite amino acid is tryptophan.
Undergraduates |
Visiting Scholars |
Květa Trávníčková
Visiting PhD Candidate (Mar-May 2025, Nov-Dec 2025) B.S., M.S., PhD. Institute of Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Charles University, Prague Advisor: Kvido Stříšovský |
Volunteers
► Lab Alumni
Phone numbers start with 626-395-
Email addresses are @caltech.edu
Email addresses are @caltech.edu