Lab Members

Francesca Cole 

Principal Investigator
fcole@mdanderson.org
B.A., in Biological Sciences, Hunter College of the City University of New York
Ph.D., in Biomedical Sciences, Mount Sinai School of Medicine of New York University
Research Interests: Homologous recombination and germ line mutagenesis
Other Interests: Snorkeling
Favorite PCR machine: Medusa

Maciej (Maciek) Zelazowski

Instructor
mjzelazowski@mdanderson.org
M.S. in Plant Biotechnology, University of Lodz, Poland
Ph.D. in Molecular Medicine, Medical University of Lodz, Poland
Research Interests: Crossover and noncrossover pathways in mouse meiosis
Other Interests: Photography
Favorite PCR machine: Beelzebub

Rhea Kang

GSBS Ph.D. Student
rskang@mdanderson.org
B.A. in Biology, B.S. in Nutritional Sciences, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX
Research Interests: Temporal and molecular mechanisms of homologous recombination
Other Interests: Live theatre
Favorite PCR machine: Genie

Tolkappiyan Premkumar

GSBS Ph.D. Student
tpremkumar@mdanderson.org
B.tech and M.tech in Biotechnology, Indian Institute of Technology Madras, Chennai, India
Research Interests: Homologous recombination 
Other Interests: Cycling, robotics and programming
Favorite PCR Machine(s): The ones in the lower rack

Melissa Frasca

GSBS Ph.D. Student
mnfrasca1@mdanderson.org
B.S. in Biology, Saginaw Valley State University,  University Center, Michigan 
Research Interests: Homologous recombination and homolog pairing
Other Interests: Music and attending concerts
Favorite PCR Machine: Athena

Lakshmi Paniker

Research Investigator
lpaniker@mdanderson.org
B.S. and M.S. in Zoology, University of Kerala, India
M.S. in Biology, Florida Atlantic University, Boca Raton, FL
Ph.D. in Aquatic Biology and Fisheries, University of Kerala, India
Research Interests: Double-strand break repair and meiotic hot spot characterization
Other Interests: Gardening
Favorite PCR machine: Mojo

Ericka Humphrey

Research Assistant I
eshumphrey@mdanderson.org
B.S. in Animal Science, Texas A&M University-Kingsville, Kingsville, TX
M.S. in Biology, Tuskegee University, Tuskegee, AL
Research Interests: DNA repair and recombination in relation to cancer progression
Other Interests: Painting
Favorite PCR machine: Jackpot

Isabella Ferranti

Research Assistant I
ibferranti@mdanderson.org
B.S. in Physics, Southwestern University, Georgetown, TX
Research Interests: Homologous recombination and DNA repair
Other Interests: Creative technology and interactive art
Favorite PCR machine: Captain

Laura Denton

Senior Administrative Assistant
lmdenton@mdanderson.org 
Research Interests: Grant and fellowship submission and compliance  
Other Interests: Dancing  
Favorite PCR machine: Venus