GRADUATE STUDENT
ROCCO POLICARPO
GRADUATE STUDENT
Originally from Mays Landing, New Jersey, Rocco moved to Cambridge to obtain his BS in Chemistry from MIT, where he worked in the lab of Prof. Brad Pentelute. Rocco is interested in the design, synthesis, and biological testing of small molecules.
JIM TUCKER
GRADUATE STUDENT
Jim was born and raised in St. Louis, Missouri. He earned his BS in chemistry at the University of Illinois, working in the lab of Prof. Marty Burke on the total synthesis of amphotericin B and the development of synthetic methodology. He moved to Harvard for his graduate studies in 2014. In his free time, Jim enjoys lifting, running, and playing guitar badly.
POSTDOCTORAL FELLOW
LUDOVIC DECULTOT
POSTDOCTORAL FELLOW
Ludovic is originally from Cannes, France. He received a M.Sci. in Organic Synthesis and Chemistry of Bioactive Molecules from the Université Claude Bernard Lyon 1 in 2012. He then moved to Scotland where he obtained his Ph.D. at the University of Glasgow in 2016, working on the total synthesis of amphidinolides C and F under the supervision of Prof. J. Stephen Clark.
MAHESH VISHE
POSTDOCTORAL FELLOW
Mahesh is a native of India. After securing a First Class Master’s Degree with distinction in organic chemistry, he joined as a junior research fellow at IIT Bombay in the lab of Prof. Kaliappan. There he focused on the total synthesis of callystatin A and spongidepsin. He subsequently moved to the University of Geneva in Switzerland and worked on the one step synthesis of functionalized macrocycles and their applications in the lab of Prof. Jérôme Lacour to obtain a Ph.D degree. In group of Prof. Jeffrey Johnston at Vanderbilt as a post doc Mahesh developed the first enantioselective double umpolung reaction and also enantioselective synthesis of carbamates using CO2capture. To broaden his interests he joined the group in 2019.
DANIEL JEFFRIES
POSTDOCTORAL FELLOW
Dan is originally from Tinley Park, IL. As an undergraduate at Northern Illinois University Dan completed a senior thesis centered on using ion-molecule reactions to measure gas phase reaction rates of radical damage to DNA/RNA nucleobases. After completion of his bachelor’s degree, Dan moved to Vanderbilt University to pursue a Ph.D. under the supervision of Dr. Craig Lindsley. Here, he was involved in several academic medicinal chemistry campaigns in addition to publishing on the synthesis of hybrubin A and a synthetic platform to access a group of dibenzybutane lignans. Dan works hard so his cat can have a better life and often wonders if the camper trailer he used to live in might actually be nicer than his first Cambridge apartment.
UNDERGRADUATE STUDENT
DANNY HUANG
UNDERGRADUATE RESEARCHER
Danny, originally from Jericho, New York, is an undergraduate at Harvard, concentrating in Chemistry and Mathematics. His previous research experiences include proton electric dipole moment (pEDM) experiment simulations and PET tracer kinetic modeling.
STAFF
HANNA TUKACHINSKY
RESEARCH ASSOCIATE
Hanna Tukachinsky is interested in the molecular mechanisms that underpin cell signaling pathways, as well as the diseases that result from deregulation of these pathways. She obtained her PhD at Harvard Medical School with Prof. Adrian Salic, studying Hedgehog signaling, and was a Postdoctoral Fellow with Prof. Tom Rapoport, studying the proteins involved in shaping the endoplasmic reticulum.
JINGPING GE
RESEARCH BIOLOGIST
Jingping Ge received her M.D. from China and obtained her Ph.D. in pathology from Indiana University before continuing her research training at Washington University in St. Louis and Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. Her general interest is the study of bone marrow diseases. Outside the lab, she enjoys writing travel stories.
MARLENE TAKLA
LABORATORY MANAGER/ADMINISTRATOR
Marlene has eighteen years of experience in Finance and Management. In 1998 she started her career at the University of Chicago Oriental Institute as Accountant & Administrator. Before joining Harvard University, she was the Financial and Business Manager for Point Care Technologies. Marlene is now the Laboratory Administrator for the Shair Lab in the Harvard Department of Chemistry & Chemical Biology.
