Team

Our lab is committed to providing an inclusive and supportive environment for all members. We strive to realize each individual’s potential, to support a diverse research group and career goals, and to contribute to society through scientific advancement.

Yolanda Huang, PI

Yolanda completed her PhD at Harvard University in Chemical Biology and was a postdoctoral fellow at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory in systems biology before starting her lab at UB. Throughout her scientific journey, she has been fascinated by microbial diversity and their ability to colonize all habitats. This includes the human gut, a nutrient-rich environment that supports densely populated, complex microbial communities. She is excited to build a research program to tackle long-standing challenges in microbiology and advance the field through a molecular lens and by developing new tools.

Allison Hanna, PhD student, Microbiology and Immunology

Allie graduated with her BSc in Biochemistry with a minor in Chemistry from University at Buffalo. Her undergraduate research focused on repurposing anti-viral and chemotherapeutic drugs for combination therapy against multi-drug resistant P. aeruginosa clinical isolates. She joined the lab through the PPBS program, where she’s gained a fascination for microbial genetics and the complex interactions of microbes and their environments. Her long-term research goals are centered on antibiotic resistance mechanisms and antibiotic development.

Krushe Mundru, Research Technician

Krushe earned her Master's degree in Microbiology and Immunology from University at Buffalo. Her research focused on isolating and characterizing bacteriophages against multi-drug-resistant Acinetobacter strains. Fascinated by the intricate relationships between microbes and their hosts, she is drawn to the role of gut anaerobes in human health and disease. At the Huang lab, she is excited to work on characterizing the bacteriophages that infect Bacteriodales and study their interactions with their bacterial hosts.

Sharaf Maisha, Research Technician

Sharaf Maisha earned her B.S. in Biochemistry with Honors from the University at Buffalo in 2023. She recently completed a two-year research fellowship at the NIH as part of the prestigious Undergraduate Scholarship Program (UGSP), where she investigated KRAB-zinc finger proteins and their role in genome regulation and mammalian development. Her research experience spans molecular biology, immunology, biochemistry, genetics, mouse embryology, and bioinformatics. In the Huang Lab, Sharaf is passionate about characterizing a phase-variable system in Bacteroides thetaiotaomicron.

Sasha Sazonova, Undergraduate Student

Sasha is a freshman Pharmacy student at the University at Buffalo in the Early Assurance program, which combines 2 years of undergraduate courses with 4 years of PharmD degree. She is a student assistant helping out in the lab. She is fascinated with the human body and how it processes different drugs. Microbiology is an important part of pharmacology, so she is excited to gain lab experience. She wishes to get a job in the pharmacy field.