Honors & Awards


  • Cardinal Ventures Technical Founders Fellowship, Stanford University (2024)
  • Fellow, Summer Opportunities in Engineering Research and Leadership, Stanford University (2023)
  • Graduate Fellowship in Science & Engineering, Stanford University (2023-2028)
  • Graduate Research Fellowship Program, National Science Foundation (2023-2027)
  • Tau Beta Pi Fellowship, The Engineering Honor Society (2023-2024)

Education & Certifications


  • BS, Cornell University, Mechanical Engineering, Biological Engineering (2023)

All Publications


  • Neutrophils bearing adhesive polymer micropatches as a drug-free cancer immunotherapy. Nature biomedical engineering Kumbhojkar, N., Prakash, S., Fukuta, T., Adu-Berchie, K., Kapate, N., An, R., Darko, S., Chandran Suja, V., Park, K. S., Gottlieb, A. P., Bibbey, M. G., Mukherji, M., Wang, L. L., Mooney, D. J., Mitragotri, S. 2024

    Abstract

    Tumour-associated neutrophils can exert antitumour effects but can also assume a pro-tumoural phenotype in the immunosuppressive tumour microenvironment. Here we show that neutrophils can be polarized towards the antitumour phenotype by discoidal polymer micrometric 'patches' that adhere to the neutrophils' surfaces without being internalized. Intravenously administered micropatch-loaded neutrophils accumulated in the spleen and in tumour-draining lymph nodes, and activated splenic natural killer cells and T cells, increasing the accumulation of dendritic cells and natural killer cells. In mice bearing subcutaneous B16F10 tumours or orthotopic 4T1 tumours, intravenous injection of the micropatch-loaded neutrophils led to robust systemic immune responses, a reduction in tumour burden and improvements in survival rates. Micropatch-activated neutrophils combined with the checkpoint inhibitor anti-cytotoxic T-lymphocyte-associated protein 4 resulted in strong inhibition of the growth of B16F10 tumours, and in complete tumour regression in one-third of the treated mice. Micropatch-loaded neutrophils could provide a potent, scalable and drug-free approach for neutrophil-based cancer immunotherapy.

    View details for DOI 10.1038/s41551-024-01180-z

    View details for PubMedID 38424352

    View details for PubMedCentralID 8126820

  • Novel requirements for HAP2-mediated gamete fusion in Tetrahymena. Research square Pinello, J., Loidl, J., Seltz, E., Cassidy-Hanley, D., Kolbin, D., Abdelatif, A., Rey, F., An, R., Newberger, N., Bisharyan, Y., Papoyan, H., Byun, H., Aguilar, H., Cole, E., Clark, T. 2023

    Abstract

    The ancestral gamete fusion protein, HAP2/GCS1 catalyzes sperm-egg fusion in a broad range of taxa dating to the last eukaryotic common ancestor. Remarkably, HAP2/GCS1 orthologs are structurally related to the class II fusogens of modern-day viruses, and recent studies make clear that these proteins utilize similar mechanisms to achieve membrane merger. To identify factors that may regulate HAP2/GCS1 activity, we screened mutants of the ciliate Tetrahymena thermophila for behaviors that mimic Δhap2/gcs1 knockout phenotypes in this species. Using this approach, we identified two new genes, GFU1 and GFU2, whose products are necessary for the formation of membrane pores during fertilization and show that the product of a third gene, namely ZFR1, may be involved in pore maintenance and/or expansion. Finally, we propose a model that explains cooperativity between the fusion machinery on apposed membranes of mating cells and accounts for successful fertilization in T. thermophila's multiple mating type system.

    View details for DOI 10.21203/rs.3.rs-2928984/v1

    View details for PubMedID 37292678

    View details for PubMedCentralID PMC10246275

  • MRTF may be the missing link in a multiscale mechanobiology approach toward macrophage dysfunction in space FRONTIERS IN CELL AND DEVELOPMENTAL BIOLOGY An, R. 2022; 10

    View details for DOI 10.3389/fcell.2022.997365

    View details for Web of Science ID 000860781800001

    View details for PubMedID 36172272

  • CAMDLES: CFD-DEM Simulation of Microbial Communities in Spaceflight and Artificial Microgravity LIFE-BASEL An, R., Lee, J. 2022; 12 (5)

    View details for DOI 10.3390/life12050660

    View details for Web of Science ID 000804910100001

    View details for PubMedID 35629329