Kathryn (Kate) Hamilton, PhD
​Principal Investigator

Originally from New Hampshire, Dr. Hamilton earned her BA from Assumption College (Worcester, MA), her PhD from University of North Carolina Chapel Hill (Chapel Hill, NC), and completed her postdoctoral fellowship at University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine (Philadelphia, PA). She is currently an Assistant Professor of Pediatrics and Co-Director of the Gastrointestinal Epithelium Modeling Program, Division of Gastroenterology, Liver, and Nutrition at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia and University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine. Her laboratory was established in July, 2017, and focuses on understanding new cellular and molecular processes in intestinal epithelial cells in the contexts of regenerative medicine and inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). As part of her research program, her lab uses patient-derived 3D organoids (enteroids and colonoids) to evaluate new mechanisms underlying pediatric and adult IBD. In addition to her scientific endeavors, she is committed to fostering diversity, equity, and inclusion in biomedical research (and beyond). Outside of lab, she enjoys hiking, cooking, biking, and exploring the beautiful city of Philadelphia with her family.

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Xianghui Ma, PhD
​Postdoctoral Researcher

Xianghui was born and raised in Henan province in China. He earned his BS and Masters in Animal Science (beef cattle) and then earned his PhD in Biological Chemistry (skin biology-mouse and human samples) at China Agricultural University in Beijing. After graduating, he completed a brief postdoctoral position at University of California, Irvine, working on psoriatic skin research before joining the Hamilton lab at CHOP in October, 2018. In his spare time he enjoys hiking, cooking, reading and playing pingpong.

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Charles Danan
​MD PhD Student

Charles was born in San Antonio, Texas and raised in Texas and Northern California. He has a BS in Biochemistry and Cell Biology from Rice University. He is a Cell and Molecular Biology (CAMB)/Genetics and Epigenetics PhD student in Penn's MD PhD program. He joined the Hamilton lab for his thesis work in January, 2020. Charles tells people he enjoys concerts, travel, and outdoor recreation, but he spends most of his time photographing his cat, practicing amateur meteorology, and maintaining his very large indoor plant collection.

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Noor Nema, MD
​GI Fellow

Noor was born in Connecticut but grew up in South Florida and Dhahran, Saudi Arabia. She attended Weill Cornell Medical College in Qatar and completed her pediatrics residency at UT Southwestern in Dallas, Texas. She is currently a fellow in the CHOP Division of GI, Hepatology, and Nutrition. She joined the Hamilton lab in July, 2021. In her free time, Noor enjoys traveling, exploring new restaurants and coffee shops, and spending time with family and friends.

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Daana Roach
VMD PhD Student

Daana is a VMD PhD student at the School of Veterinary Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania. She joined the lab as a NIH/BI summer research student in 2021 and 2022. Born and raised in Barbados, she completed her BSc degrees in the US and is interested in OneHealth and wildlife conservation. Daana loves to read, write, dance, and to cook and bake, especially if she can catch up on lectures while the water boils.

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Erik Hagan
​High School Student

Erik is a senior at Central High School in Philadelphia, PA. He joined the Hamilton lab in Fall, 2021 as part of a new program between CHOP and Central High School. Erik has a long-standing interest in entomology and environmental science. He will be attending the University of Delaware in Fall, 2022.

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Emily McMillan
Lab Manager

A native of Maryland, Emily earned her BS in Biological Sciences from the University of Maryland and her MS in Cellular and Molecular Biology from the University of Pennsylvania. Her career has taken her through various labs at the NIH, University of Pennsylvania, and Drexel University. She joined the Hamilton and Muir labs as lab manager in February 2022. In her free time, she volunteers in the community, battles her cats while knitting and cross stitching, and tries her hand at ambitious recipes.

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Yusen Zhou, PhD
Bioinformatician

Yusen was born and raised in Sichuan province in China. He earned his BS in Thermal Energy and Power Engineering at East China University of Science and Technology in Shanghai. Then he changed his major during the PhD program, and earned his PhD in Biological and Medical Engineering (glyco-informatics and systems glycobiology) at the State University of New York at Buffalo. Yusen joined the Hamilton lab as a bioinformatician in August, 2021. In his free time, he enjoys traveling, biking, cooking, swimming and playing video games.

Louis Parham
​PhD Student

Louis was born in New York and raised in Puerto Rico, where he earned his BS in Molecular and Cellular Biology. He is a Cell and Molecular Biology (CAMB)/ Cancer Biology PhD student at the University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine. Louis joined the Hamilton lab for his thesis work in 2018. In his free time, he enjoys cooking, listening to music, drinking beer, and biking.

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Tatiana Karakasheva, PhD
​Research Associate

Tatiana was recruited to CHOP as Associate Director of the CHOP Gastrointestinal Epithelium Biology Program in October, 2019. Born and raised in Moscow, Russia, Tatiana has spent most of her scientific life in Philadelphia. She has a long-standing interest in 3D tissue and organ modeling, as well as gastroenterology, oncology and translational research. Her main scientific aspiration is to make the use of patient-derived organoids a standard clinical tool for choosing an optimal therapeutic regimen. When she's not in the lab, Tatiana enjoys gardening, spending time with nature and cuddling cats.

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Gloria Soto
​Research Specialist

Gloria was born and raised in Delaware where she earned her BS in Nutritional and Medial Science. She joined the Gastrointestinal Epithelium Modeling Program, which resides in the Hamilton lab, in March, 2021 as a research technician. In her spare time, Gloria enjoys spending time with friends and family, cooking and outdoor recreation.

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Kaitlyn Naughton
​Research Specialist

Kaitlyn was born and raised in Boston, Massachusetts, and she attended Villanova University where she earned her BS in Biology and Spanish with a concentration in Ethics and Healthcare. She joined the Hamilton lab in June, 2021, as a research technician. In her free time, she enjoys spending time with friends and family, listening to music, hiking, traveling, practicing yoga, and painting. In the future, Kaitlyn plans on going to medical school to pursue her MD.

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Tiana Johnson
​High School Student

Tiana was born in Guangzhou, China, and now lives in Philadelphia, PA. She is a senior at Friends Select School and joined the Hamilton lab in November, 2021. In her free time, Tiana enjoys drawing, programming, and visiting museums. She will be attending UC Davis starting in Fall, 2022.

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Kay Katada
​PhD Student

Kay was born and raised in Los Angeles, CA, where she earned her B.S. in Biological Sciences and minored in Forensics and Criminality at the University of Southern California. She is a Cell and Molecular Biology (CAMB)/Cell Biology, Physiology, and Metabolism (CPM) PhD student at the University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine. She joined the Hamilton lab for her thesis work in 2022. Outside of lab, Kay enjoys running, dancing, drinking boba, thrift shopping, watching movies, and playing with her cats.

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Madison Stoltz
​Research Specialist

Madison was born and raised in Mountaintop, PA, right outside of Scranton (for any Office fans). She is currently a senior undergraduate student studying to earn her BA in health studies with a Certificate of Specialization in Spanish & Latinx Studies for the Health & Human Services Professions. She plans to attend Physician Assistant school in the future and to dedicate her future years practicing medicine in the US Military to share her skills with underserved areas within Central and South America. She joined the Gastrointestinal Epithelium Modeling Program for exposure into the amazing research CHOP is doing and hopes to use and apply the skills she is learning in the future! Outside of lab, Madison enjoys learning new languages, weight lighting, meditation, baking new breakfast meals, and enjoying time with friends.

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Lab Alumni

Lauren Simon,
​Lab Manager

Lauren is from a small town in south New Jersey and graduated from Rutgers University in 2015 with a B.S in Biochemistry. Since graduating, Lauren worked as a research technician at UPenn before joining the Hamilton lab at CHOP in 2017. While working at CHOP, she concurrently earned her BSN through a part-time accelerated program at Holy Family University. Upon completion of her BSN, Lauren accepted a nursing position at CHOP in December, 2021. In her spare time, she enjoys traveling, hiking, relaxing at the beach, reading, and spending time with her family and friends.

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Hritik Mehta, Summer Undergraduate Researcher

Hritik was born and raised in Chicago, Illinois, but has spent his more recent years living in South Jersey. He is currently an undergraduate biology and physics student at Rutgers University, where he plays soccer and is involved in Greek life. Hritik first joined the lab in February, 2020, and then as an undergraduate researcher in summer of 2021 through the Penn GI Division's NIH/NIDDK R25-funded Undergraduate Student Scholars Program. He hopes to pursue a dual degree (MD/PhD), with a particular interest in pediatrics and oncology. In his free time, he enjoys relaxing at the beach, playing soccer, drinking beer, and exploring the Philly nightlife with his friends.

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Michael Sun, Summer Undergraduate Researcher

Michael is a PA native completing his undergraduate degree from Johns Hopkins University. He spent the summer in the Hamilton lab as part of the Penn GI Division's NIH/NIDDK R25-funded Undergraduate Student Scholars Program. Michael is currently in Medical School at Drexel University School of Medicine. In his spare time, Michael designs and builds 3D puzzles (think complex Rubix cubes) and is interested in the therapeutic aspects of 3D puzzles for children.

Patrick Williams, PhD, Postdoctoral Researcher

Patrick was born and raised in Philadelphia, PA. He earned a B.S. in Biological Sciences and History and Philosophy of Science at the University of Pittsburgh and his PhD in Molecular, Cellular Biology, and Genetics at the Drexel University College of Medicine. He joined the Hamilton lab in January, 2018, as a postdoctoral researcher. In January, 2022, Patrick assumed his new role in the American Association for Cancer Research Executive Office as a Research Analyst. In his spare time he enjoys hiking, swimming, biking, and running.

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Brooke Boyer, MD,
​GI Fellow

Originally from Chagrin Falls, Ohio, Brooke went to Boston College and Northeast Ohio Medical University. She completed her pediatric residency at Lurie Children's Hospital of Chicago and is currently a fellow in the CHOP Division of Gastroenterology, Hepatology and Nutrition. Brooke enjoys running, reading, exploring the Philly dining scene, and houseplants.

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Laura Bryant, PhD,
​Postdoctoral Researcher

Laura is originally from western New York. She received her bachelor’s degree in Biochemistry from Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland, OH and earned her PhD in neuroscience from the University of Pennsylvania. Her research interests include the genetic dysregulation that occurs during chronic inflammation and the effect of monogenic and digenic mutations on inflammatory pathways. In her free time, she enjoys baking and playing board games. Laura is currently a postdoctoral fellow focusing on genetic defects in pediatric neurodegenerative disease at CHOP.

Catherine Kang,
Summer Undergraduate Researcher

Catherine is an undergraduate student majoring in biology at the University of California, Los Angeles. She joined the Hamilton Lab in Summer 2021 as part of the Virtual Summer Research Program by the American Physician Scientists Association. Having grown up in Southern California, she enjoys going to the beach, traveling, and playing the piano.

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Natalie Brown, Summer High School Researcher

Natalie Brown lives in Philadelphia, PA and is a senior at Philadelphia Girls High School. She joined the Hamilton lab in the summer of 2018 as part of the Penn Institute for Regenerative Medicine's Research Outreach Program, under Patrick Williams' mentorship. Natalie enjoys listening to music.

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Gabrielle Largoza, Summer Undergraduate Researcher

Gabrielle is a student at Trinity University in San Antonio, Texas. She joined the Hamilton lab for summer, 2018, as part of the Penn GI DIvision's NIH/NIDDK R25-funded Undergraduate Student Scholars Program and also in summer, 2019. She is currently a senior and hopes to pursue a dual degree (MD/PhD) in the future.

Jenna Radke,
Summer Undergraduate Researcher

Jenna is an undergraduate student at Elon University in Elon, North Carolina. She will graduate in December of 2021 and is originally from Arlington, Virginia. She joined the Hamilton lab in the summer of 2021 as a participant in the Virtual Summer Research Program by the American Physician Scientists Association for aspiring MD/PhD students. Jenna enjoys hiking, reading, and listening to music.

Maiah Dent,
​Research Specialist

Maiah worked in the Hamilton lab in collaboration with Dr. Judith Kelsen, Director of the CHOP VEO-IBD program, to understand cellular mechanisms of disease directly in patient organoids. Maiah is currently pursuing her Master's degree in Biotechnology at USciences in Philadelphia.

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Rithika Behera, Research Specialist

Rithika grew up in New Delhi, India and completed her B.E. in Biotechnology from VIT University. She loves exploring new places to eat and dancing. Rithika worked in the Hamilton lab as a research specialist and is now a PhD student at the University of Pittsburgh.