Our Team
Principal Investigator
Marianna Trakala, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor, Genetics
Marianna Trakala is a cancer biologist whose research focuses on the biological and immunological consequences of chromosome instability and aneuploidy in vivo. Her laboratory integrates mouse genetics, single-cell genomics and immunology to uncover how chromosomal imbalances drive tumor evolution and immune evasion. Before joining UT MD Anderson in 2024, she trained as a postdoctoral fellow at the Koch Institute for Integrative Cancer Research at MIT and earned her Ph.D. from the Spanish National Cancer Research Center (CNIO).
Postdoctoral Fellows
Naresh Sah, Ph.D.
Research Staff
Ashleigh Ogg
Research Assistant I
Ashleigh supports ongoing animal studies and molecular assays aimed at characterizing immune responses to chromosomally unstable tumors. She also manages genotyping, colony maintenance and core facility coordination for the lab’s mouse models.
Omar Alyasin, B.S.
Research Technician
Omar analyzes data from mouse studies to support cancer research and better understand cancer biology.