Lab Members

Francesca Cole, Ph.D. 

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

Parijat Chakraborty, Ph.D.

Postdoctoral Fellow
pchakraborty@mdanderson.org
B.S. in Zoology, Presidency College, University of Calcutta, India
M.S. in Zoology, Banaras Hindu University, India
Ph.D. Indian Institute of Science Education and Research Thiruvananthapuram , India
Research Interests: Age-dependent regulation of meiotic recombination
Other Interests: Music, cooking  

Laura Denton

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

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

Julie Ontiveros

Research Assistant I
jaontiveros@mdanderson.org
B.S. in Biology, University of Houston - Downtown
Research Interests: Homologous recombination 
Other Interests: Baking and sports 
Favorite PCR Machine: Mercury

Aastha Pandey, Ph.D.

apandey@mdanderson.org
Postdoctoral Fellow
B.S. in Biological Sciences, Dr. RML Avadh University, Faizabad, India
M.S. in Biotechnology, HNB Gharwal University, Srinagar, India
Ph.D., Biological Sciences, Jawahar Lal Nehru University, India
Research Interests: Meiosis and homologous recombination
Other Interests: Gardening and music

Lakshmi Paniker, Ph.D.

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

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

Lisa M. Shriver, CAP

Senior Administrative Assistant
Administrative Contact
lmshriver@mdanderson.org
Laboratory Focus: Educational Appointments, Summer Program in Cancer Research
Other Interests: Cooking, baking, crafting