Zichong was born in China. After an M.S. research on shrimp White Spot Syndrome Virus, Zichong did his PhD in UC Berkeley exploring the functions of the human transcription elongation machinery in HIV infection. With prior experience on genome wide genetic screens, in the Ott lab, his focus is to derive unbiased comprehensive networks of validated gene pairs supporting critical biological and pathological processes, including chronic HIV infection. Outside of the lab, he enjoys binge-reading research papers, thought experimenting, and eating cheese salad.
Archives: People
Person
Langdon
Quinn grew up in Alaska, but has been moving around the United States since undergrad. She did her PhD at University of Wisconsin – Madison researching natural diversity of wild yeast and the evolution of hybrid brewing yeasts. For her postdoc she switched from fungi to animals, using natural hybrids of freshwater tropical fish to study the repeatability of hybrid genome evolution. She’s excited to be stepping into the realm of viral evolution in the Ott lab, where she will be developing computational and machine learning approaches for viral genomes. In her free time she enjoys exploring the microclimates of the bay via hiking and biking and is always on the lookout for a new brewery to try.
Sreekumar
Hello my name is Bharath and I am a post doc in Dr. Ott’s lab. I am currently working on HIV and T-cell biology.
Zapatero Belinchon
Francisco (Fran) comes originally from Spain and obtained his PhD in Virology at Hannover Medical School in Germany. His main interests are the dissection of viral entry and host‑pathogen interactions of emerging and re-emerging pathogens using novel proteomics approaches. Outside the lab, he enjoys hiking, camping, playing video games, and tasting a good ol’ brew.
Prigann
Julia obtained her PhD in Germany at the Charité University Hospital in Berlin where she studied the interplay of innate immunity and viral pathogens like HIV-1 and SARS-CoV-2. In the Ott Lab, she investigates molecular mechanisms driving HIV persistence and develops new models to study HIV latency. Outside of work, Julia enjoys spending time with her family and friends, discovering the beautiful nature of the Bay area and trying to find the best place for coffee in town.
Sun
Hello everyone! I’m Limeng Sun, a new postdoc in the Ott lab. I am from China. I got my PhD from Huazhong Agricultural University.I focused on exploring the interaction mechanism between coronavirus and host factors, I’m also keen to explore unknown functional receptors for pandemic and emerging viruses performed by Crispr/Cas9 library and multi-omics. In the Ott lab, I will focus on research interesting and important phenotypes induced by virus protein depending on the virus protein library. Outside of the lab, I enjoy sports ( kinds of ball games and hiking) with friends , go to concerts and cook for new cuisines.
Zheludev
Hi everyone, I’m Vanya and I’m originally from the UK. I just finished a Ph.D. in biochemistry in Andy Fire’s lab at Stanford and now I’m in the Ott lab continuing my studies on funky RNA parasites of bacteria. Come find me to talk weirdo biology, sci-fi, and baking.
Rosecrans
My name is Julia and I recently graduated from Mills College with a BA in biology and a concentration in evolution ecology and behavior. I love being in the outdoors with my dog Buddy and I’m excited to be joining the Ott lab as an RA!
Wang
I grew up in Taiwan and studied at Wesleyan University. After graduating, I worked as a research technician at Sloan Kettering Institute, where I studied inflammasomes in the Bachovchin lab. In the Ott lab, I will be working with Ursula to test inhibitors of SARS-CoV-2 and HIV virus replication. Some of the activities I enjoy include being outdoors, biking, volleyball and tennis.
Pedrero Classen
Valentina is originally from Chile where she got her BA in journalism. After moving to San Francisco, she realized that she wanted to pursue a career in science so she started taking different STEM classes. She arrived at the Ott lab as a student intern while completing her AS in Biotechnology from CCSF and stayed as an RA. Outside of the lab, she enjoys hiking, taking care of her houseplants, watching anime, and listening to music.