Keynote Speaker
Santiago Schnell, D.Phil.
Santiago Schnell earned his undergraduate degree in biology from Universidad Simón Bolívar in Venezuela and a doctorate in mathematical biology from the University of Oxford. He previously led the University of Michigan Medical School’s Department of Molecular and Integrative Physiology, making it one of the top NIH-funded physiology departments in the U.S., while also boosting its operating revenue and endowment. He served as the John A. Jacquez Professor of Physiology and was a professor of molecular and integrative physiology as well as computational medicine and bioinformatics. In September 2021, Schnell was appointed the William K. Warren Foundation Dean of the College of Science at the University of Notre Dame, where he also serves as a tenured professor in the Department of Biological Sciences, guiding the college’s mission to prepare future scientific leaders and solve global challenges.
Faculty
David Umulis
David M. Umulis is the Senior Vice Provost for Purdue University in Indianapolis and a professor of Biomedical Engineering, with a courtesy appointment in Agricultural and Biological Engineering. He earned his BSE in Chemical Engineering from the University of Michigan (2002) and his PhD in Chemical Engineering & Materials Science from the University of Minnesota (2007). His research focuses on early embryonic development, multi-dimensional gene expression modeling, microscopy, image analysis, and finite-element computer modeling. Umulis is also the Director of the Emergent Mechanisms in Biology of Robustness, Integration, and Organization (EMBRIO) Institute.
Jeremiah Zartman
Jeremiah Zartman is an Associate Professor of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering. He earned his Ph.D. (2009) and M.A. (2006) in Chemical Engineering from Princeton University, and a B.S. in Chemical Engineering and Engineering Physics from the University of Colorado at Boulder (2004). His research focuses on building tissues and treating degenerative diseases by investigating animal development from an engineering perspective. The Zartman lab analyzes chemical and mechanical signaling at the tissue scale, using computational models and experiments in systems like Drosophila. His team also explores tissue growth, morphogenesis, and regeneration, utilizing tools such as computational models, microfluidics, and genetics.
David Medvigy
David Medvigy is an Associate Professor in the Department of Biological Sciences at the University of Notre Dame, with a concurrent appointment in Civil and Environmental Engineering and Earth Sciences. He earned his Ph.D. from Harvard University and his B.S. from Rutgers University. His research focuses on terrestrial ecosystems’ structure, composition, and functioning, particularly how they respond to climate variability and change. He specializes in ecosystem modeling, vegetation-climate interactions, terrestrial carbon cycles, and forest dynamics. Medvigy leads the Terrestrial Ecosystems and Climate Modeling Lab, using numerical models to predict ecosystem responses to environmental changes.
Cristian Koepfli
Cristian Koepfli is an Associate Professor in the Department of Biological Sciences at the University of Notre Dame. He earned his Ph.D. from the Swiss Tropical and Public Health Institute and his M.Sc. from the University of Basel. His research focuses on the epidemiology, transmission, and control of malaria, with a particular emphasis on molecular surveillance and the dynamics of Plasmodium species. He specializes in using molecular and genomic tools to study parasite population structure, detect drug resistance, and understand transmission patterns. Koepfli leads a research group that collaborates with partners across the globe to support malaria elimination efforts through innovative and data-driven approaches.
Robert Rosenbaum
Robert Rosenbaum is an Associate Professor in the Department of Applied and Computational Mathematics and Statistics at the University of Notre Dame. He earned his Ph.D. in Mathematics from the University of Pittsburgh and his B.A. in Mathematics from Pomona College. His research focuses on computational neuroscience, with an emphasis on mathematical modeling of neural dynamics and information processing in the brain. He specializes in the development of analytical and numerical methods to study large-scale neuronal networks, stochastic neural activity, and the interplay between structure and function in neural circuits. Rosenbaum leads the Computational Neuroscience and Dynamics Lab, which aims to bridge theoretical and experimental neuroscience through advanced mathematical modeling.
Research Scientists
Linlin Li
LinLin Li is a Research Scientist at the Umulis Laboratory. Her research focuses on understanding the mechanisms of early embryonic development using multi-dimensional modeling and image analysis. She specializes in computational biology and finite-element modeling to study gene expression in response to dynamic extracellular signaling. Li’s work contributes to the lab’s mission of uncovering the emergent mechanisms underlying biological robustness and organization.
Nilay Kumar
Nilay Kumar is a Senior Research Scientist in the Pienaar and Buganza Tepole Laboratories. His research focuses on treating infectious diseases using a systems pharmacology approach. He develops multi-scale computational models to understand host immune responses, pathogen behavior, and drug dynamics within infected patients. By integrating these models with experimental data, Kumar aims to predict drug efficacy, optimize treatments, identify new drug targets, and guide future experiments, addressing challenges like drug resistance and complex host-pathogen interactions.
Weiwei Zhang
Weiwei Zhang is a Plant Cell Biologist in the Staiger Lab at Purdue University’s Department of Botany & Plant Pathology. Her research focuses on the actin cytoskeleton’s role in cellular morphogenesis and plant responses to environmental stimuli. The lab investigates cytoskeletal proteins involved in processes like pollen development, self-incompatibility, and abiotic stress responses.
Trainees
Lauren Mayer
Lauren Mayer is a graduate student in the Integrated Biomedical Sciences (IBMS) program at the University of Notre Dame. She has participated in lab rotations within the Department of Biological Sciences, including the Lu Lab in November 2021. Mayer is currently conducting research in the Boone Lab, where she contributes to studies on host-pathogen interactions and the molecular mechanisms of infectious diseases.
Stephen Cini
Stephen Cini is a Ph.D. student in the Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering at the University of Notre Dame, having begun his doctoral studies in 2022. He earned his Bachelor of Science in Chemical Engineering from the University of South Florida. His research focuses on uncertainty quantification and the design of experiments, particularly in the development of digital twins in systems biology. Cini has presented his work at conferences such as the Midwest Drosophila Conference. Beyond his research, he serves as a Social Chair for the Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering Graduate Student Organization (CBEGSO) for the 2024–2025 academic year.
Dailin Gan
Dailin Gan is a graduate of the University of Notre Dame, having earned a Master of Science in Applied and Computational Mathematics and Statistics in 2024. During his studies, he conducted research under the guidance of Professor Jun Li, contributing to projects that integrated statistical methodologies with biological data analysis. Gan’s collaborative work has been recognized in publications focusing on metastatic breast cancer research.
Alexander Simmons
Alexander Simmons is a Ph.D. candidate in the Biophysics program at the University of Notre Dame. He is a recipient of the Arthur J. Schmitt Presidential Fellowship. Simmons serves as a department representative for Biophysics in the Graduate Student Government for the 2024–2025 academic year. His research focuses on the application of complex systems analysis to biological phenomena.