Members
Current Members
Professor Jeeyon Jeong
Principal Investigator & Associate Professor of Biology
Prof. Jeong is from Seoul, Korea, but has been living in the cold and snowy regions of the US since graduate school. She studied iron homeostasis in plants as a PhD student, zinc homeostasis in mammalian cells and yeast for her postdoctoral research, and came back to her roots in plants and iron as a principal investigator at Amherst College. On campus, Prof. Jeong spends most of her time in the Science Center, but can also be seen among the audience at various student performances.
Ahmed Ali, Ph.D.
Post-Doc Research Assistant (Summer 2023-Present)
Ahmed Ali is a postdoc at Jeong Lab with a Ph.D. in Plant Biology from UMass Amherst, where he studied arsenic transporters in rice. Now, he focuses on iron homeostasis in Arabidopsis, using molecular and cellular biology tools to study genes involved in iron homeostasis. Outside the lab, Ahmed enjoys staying with his family, playing, and watching soccer.
Katelyn Hamasaki '24
BCBP Honors Thesis Student (Summer 2023-Present)
Katelyn Hamasaki is a Senior at Amherst College from Mililani, Hawaii. She is majoring in Biochemistry and is on the pre-med track. In the Jeong lab, she is working on the chromatin remodeling project in which chromatin remodeling is utilized to understand transcriptional regulation of iron in plants. Katelyn is on the varsity volleyball team and outside of academics and athletics, she enjoys painting, listening to music, and hanging out with friends.
Claire Macero '25
SURF Fellow (Summer 2022), Undergraduate Research Assistant (Fall 2022-January 2024), Special Topics Student (Spring 2024)
Claire Macero is a Biochemistry and French double major from Syracuse, New York. At Amherst, she is a cellist in the Amherst Symphony Orchestra, an editor for The Indicator literary magazine, and a member of rock climbing club. In her free time, she enjoys reading, listening to new music, and spending time with friends.
Carla Mattaliano '24
SURF Fellow (Summer 2022), Undergraduate Research Assistant (Fall 2022-Fall 2023), Special Topics Student (Spring 2023)
Carla is a biochemistry and economics double major on the pre-med track from Bridgewater, New Jersey. On campus, she is a coxswain and DEI rep on the women’s crew team and works as a peer career advisor for the Loeb Center. In her free time, she loves to bake, go on walks, and explore local ice cream shops.
Lydia Loof '24
Undergraduate Research Assistant (Fall 2022 -Present)
Lydia is a senior from Denver, Colorado. She is a biology major and on the pre-med track. At Amherst, she plays on the Women's Ultimate Frisbee team, for which she also serves as club co-president. Outside of school, Lydia enjoys running on the rail trail, riding her bike to local coffee shops, and playing Ticket to Ride with friends.
Rachel Hendrickson '25
Undergraduate Research Assistant (Spring 2023 -Present)
Rachel Hendrickson is a Junior BCBP and English Double Major at Amherst College from New York, New York. At Amherst, Rachel has served as a TA for the introductory biology lab and as a writer for the student literary magazine The Indicator. In her free time, she enjoys reading and writing fiction, going on walks with friends, and exploring Amherst.
Adetola Makun '26
SURF Fellow (Summer 2023), Undergraduate Research Assistant (Fall 2023 -Present)
Adetola is a prospective Biology major on the pre-medical track from Detroit, Michigan. At Amherst, she is the company manager for DASAC, a member of the Scholars of Finance, and contributes to the Amherst Stem Network. In her free time, she enjoys dancing, crocheting, and watching tv.
Anushka Patel '26
SURF Fellow (Summer 2023), Undergraduate Research Assistant (Fall 2023 -Present)
Anushka Patel is a rising sophomore from Albany, NY. She is a prospective biochemistry major on the pre-med track. At Amherst, she is a member of ACEMS and the rock climbing club. In her free time, she enjoys crocheting, dancing, and reading.
Former Members
Justin Su '24E
Greg Call Fellow (Summer 2021), Undergraduate Research Assistant (Fall 2020), BCBP Honors Thesis Student (2023)
Justin was a BCBP and English double major from the Bay Area. At Amherst, he worked for The Common and was involved with the Asian Students Association. He enjoys drinking iced coffee and spending hours in boba shops. Justin is currently working as a research assistant in the Weissman Lab at University of Pennsylvania, before pursuing a MD/PhD.
Sara Omer '23
SURF Fellow (Summer 2021), Special Topics Student (Fall 2021), Undergraduate Research Assistant (Fall 2020- Spring 2022); BCBP Honors Thesis Student (2022-23), Postbac Research Assistant (Summer 2023)
Sara Omer is Sudanese and from Cary, North Carolina. She was a Biochemistry major at Amherst. Sara worked on FPN3 in the Jeong Lab and received the Best Thesis Prize in BCBP. She also worked as a CA and part-time at the admission office. Outside of Amherst, she volunteered as a mentor for young girls through Science Club for Girls. During her free time, she enjoys making art and spending time with friends in Valintine Dining Hall. Sara is currently pursuing a Ph.D. at The Rockefeller University.
Tara Alahakoon '25
Undergraduate Research Assistant (January 2022-Spring 2023)
Tara is a prospective English and Biology double major on the pre-medical track from Columbus, Ohio, and Los Angeles, California. At Amherst, she is a staff writer for The Amherst Student’s Opinion Section and a violinist in the Amherst Symphony Orchestra. In her free time, she enjoys reading, writing, and violin performance.
Dayishaa Daga
Postbac Research Assistant (Summer 2022-23)
Dayishaa is an international student from Nepal and graduated from Mount Holyoke College with a degree in Biological Science and Data Science in 2022. During her time at Mount Holyoke, Dayishaa's research focused on fields of physiological ecology and infectious disease modeling. At Jeong lab, Dayishaa hopes to expand her research experience before entering graduate school. In her free time, she likes to read novels and spend time with her friends.
Jessica Gordon '23
Undergraduate Research Assistant (Spring 2022), BCBP Honors Thesis Student (2022-23)
Jess Gordon is from Rochester, New York, and majored in Biochemistry (BCBP). While at Amherst, she was the captain of the Women's Swim and Dive team and is a member of QAA and the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee. In her free time, she enjoys listening to music, taking walks on the bike path, and getting iced coffee with friends. Jess is currently working as a research assistant at Umass Medical Center.
Kelly Zheng '22
Undergraduate Research Assistant (2019-20), Biology Honors Thesis Student (2021-22)
Kelly was a biology and anthropology double major from Avon, Connecticut. At Amherst, she was the Co-President of GlobeMed, a Med-12 on ACEMS, volunteered for Reader to Reader, and worked as a Biology TA. In her free time, Kelly enjoys baking, painting, and gardening. Kelly is currently a research assistant in the Barrett Lab at Brigham and Women's Hospital/Harvard Medical School.
Maja Johnson '22
Undergraduate Research Assistant (2019-21), BCBP Honors Thesis Student (2021-22)
Maja was a Biochemistry and Asian Languages and Civilizations double major from Seattle, Washington. At Amherst, she was the captain of the Women’s ultimate frisbee team, a resident counselor, worked for the resource centers team, and was involved in the Multicultural Students’ Union. In her free time, she enjoys hiking and listening to music. Maja is currently a research assistant in the Vander Horst Lab, at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center/Harvard Medical School
Bella Han '22
BCBP Honors Thesis Student (2021-22)
Bella was a Biochemistry major from Chicago, Illinois. She worked in the Jeong Lab as a thesis student; her project focused on understanding transcriptional regulation of iron uptake in plants through chromatin remodeling. At Amherst, she was involved in Club Badminton and Health for Humanity. Outside of research and academics, she enjoys playing piano, badminton, and video games like League of Legends. Bella is currently a research assistant in the Shukla Lab, at Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University.
Noah Kim '23E
Undergraduate Research Assistant (Spring 2022), Gregory S. Call Research Fellow (Summer 2022), Special Topics Student (Fall 2022)
Noah was a Biology major at Amherst and an international student from Seoul, South Korea. On campus, he was elected Secretary of the Association of Amherst Students (AAS) and served on Student Government for two consecutive terms. He was also actively involved with the International Students Association to help other international students have a fulfilling Amherst experience. In his free time, he likes to read novels, listen to K-pop, and spend time with his friends.
Javier Londono '23
SURF Fellow (Summer 2020), Special Topics Student (2021), Undergraduate Research Assistant (Fall 2020-Spring 2021)
Javier was a biology major. He was a member of the DQ (the oldest acapella group on campus), Smash Club, and the Amherst QuestBridge Low-Income Community. When he’s not studying for his classes, you can probably catch him playing Smash or practicing flute.
Jake Kim '23
SURF Fellow (Summer 2020); Undergraduate Research Assistant (Fall 2020), Greg Call Fellow (Summer 2021)
Jake is a Junior at Amherst College and is from Thousand Oaks, California. He is undeclared and on the premedical track. At Amherst, he was a member of Terras Irradient and the Amherst Symphony Orchestra. In his free time, he loves to read and bake.
Brandon Kwon '23
SURF Fellow (Summer 2020), Special Topics Student (2022), Undergraduate Research Assistant (2019-2022)
Brandon is from Diamond Bar, California, and was a Statistics major, as well as on the Pre-Medical Track. He was on the Amherst College Emergency Medical Services team, and involved with Charles Drew Professional Health Society, Kidney Disease Social Awareness Program, and GlobeMed. In his free time, he enjoys attending Super Smash Bros. Club games, playing basketball in the gym, and getting boba with friends.
Grace Davenport '22E
Biology Thesis Student & Special Topics Student (Spring -Fall 2021)
Grace was a biology major from Hamilton, Montana. She is interested in agricultural research and hopes to work with and for small farmers in providing sustainable agriculture education and support. Grace enjoyed working at the Amherst College farm, Book and Plow, and walking around the college's woods and fields.
Daria Kim-Percy '22E
Special Topics Student (Spring 2021)
Daria was a senior Biology major from Los Angeles, California. At Amherst, she was involved with the Korean Student Association and worked at Phonathon. In her free time, she cares for her plants, works out, and plays Genshin Impact. She hopes to work at local farms and gardens to promote sustainable practices while combating food instability and the climate crisis.
Gwi Park '22
SURF Fellow (Summer 2019), Undergraduate Research Assistant (2019-20)
Gwi is from Burbank, California. She was on the pre-med track and a Biochemistry major. At Amherst, she played the flute in the Amherst Symphony Orchestra, was involved in the Korean Student Association, and volunteered at a nearby hospital. In her free time, she enjoys cooking and watching random youtube videos.
Hannah Goldberg '22
SURF Fellow (Summer 2019), Undergraduate Research Assistant (2019-20)
Hannah was a Biology major from Rochester, New York. At Amherst, she participated in the Amherst Symphony Orchestra as a clarinet player, worked at the Mead Art Museum, played on the women’s club ultimate frisbee team, and was a member of Amherst Women in Science. In her free time, Hannah enjoys listening to music, playing clarinet, and drinking coffee with friends.
Sam Park '22
Undergraduate Research Assistant (2019-Present), SURF Fellow (Summer 2020)
Sam was a biology major from Chicago, Illinois, and hopes to pursue biomedical research in the future. At Amherst, Sam was a part of Reader to Reader and the FBC Amherst Growth Group. In his free time, Sam enjoys playing the piano, lifting, and hanging out with friends.
Mariama-Alexis Camara '21
SURF Fellow (Summer 2018), Undergraduate Research Assistant (2018-20)
Mariama-Alexis was a Black studies major and a pre-med student. During her time at Amherst, she was a member of the Afro-Caribbean Student Union Dance group, as well as a member of the Black Student Union. In her free time she enjoyed reading, cooking, and dancing.
Shreya Venkat '21
Undergraduate Research Assistant (2019-20)
Shreya was a biology major from Greenville, DE. She was on the premedical track and hopes to provide care in underserved areas. During her time at Amherst, she was the Co-President of Globemed, involved with the Amherst Symphony Orchestra, and volunteered at local hospitals. Outside of lab, Shreya enjoyed running, playing the violin, and baking. Shreya will be attending UVA School of Medicine with a merit scholarship this fall.
John Hsu '21
Biology Honors Thesis Student (2020-21)
John was a Music and Biology double major from San Diego, CA. He was a member of ACEMS and played the piano at the local senior center. In his free time, John enjoyed jamming on guitar, playing Clash of Clans, and designing primers. John worked in the Lee Lab from 2018-2020, and finished up his thesis in the Jeong Lab. He is currently working as a patient care technician at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston, Massachusetts.
Jennifer Gallegos Iraheta '20
Biology Honors Thesis Student (2019-20), Undergraduate Research Assistant (2018-2019), SURF Fellow (Summer 2018)
Jenny graduated from Amherst College in the Spring of 2020 as a biology major. During her time in the Jeong lab, she started research in the lab with SURF in the summer of 2018 researching FPN3, eventually leading to her thesis research on fpn3 fer1-3-4 quadruple mutants which she finished amid the COVID-19 pandemic. She is currently a clinical technician at the Inova Health System Loudoun Hospital and plans to attend medical school in order to provide care for underserved communities.
Liz Parsons '20
Biology Honors Thesis Student (2019-20), Undergraduate Research Assistant (2017-19), SURF Fellow (Summer 2017)
Liz joined the Jeong Lab during the summer of 2017 through the Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship Program (SURF). During the program, she studied the differential induction of iron homeostasis genes in multiple lines of Arabidopsis thaliana. Over the next few years, she co-authored an article about iron biofortification and completed a senior honor thesis in 2020. Her thesis focused on the role of Histone 3 lysine 27 trimethylation as a regulator of the iron deficiency response. In 2020, Liz was awarded a Fulbright grant to teach English in South Korea, but COVID-19 travel restrictions required her to decline the award. After graduating, Liz continued to perform research at the Ragon Institute in Boston as a research technician. She will be attending the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine starting this fall.
Chris DaVeiga '20
Special Topics Student (2019), Undergraduate Research Assistant (2017-19), SURF Fellow (Summer 2017)
Christopher DaVeiga was a Biochemistry major who joined the Jeong lab in 2017. During his time with the lab, Christopher worked on the FPN3 and NRAMP3/4 projects in Arabidopsis and began preliminary work on the weedy rice project. One component of lab work that Christopher particularly enjoyed was science outreach. Christopher co-wrote a manuscript for young audiences focused on biofortification with Liz Parsons ’20. In addition, he has accompanied the lab on various outings to the local elementary school to help students to become interested in science and the research process. In the summer of 2018, Christopher was fortunate to attend the American Society of Plant Biologists conference in Montreal with the Jeong Lab as a co-presenter of the FPN3 project. Since graduating Amherst College, Christopher has been working as a clinical research coordinator at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute in Boston, Massachusetts.
Candace Chung '20
Special Topics Student (2017), Undergraduate Research Assistant (2018-20)
Candace is a recent graduate from Honolulu, HI. At Amherst, she was a music major on the pre-medical track, and a member of ACEMS and the volleyball team. She enjoys watching movies and K-dramas, rap music, and hanging with friends. After graduating from Amherst College, Candace began working as a clinical research assistant at Boston Children's Hospital in the Department of Urology.
Leah Kim '19
Postbac Research Assistant (2019-20), Biology Honors Thesis Student (2018-19), Undergraduate Research Assistant (2017)
Leah graduated from Amherst in 2019 as a Biology and Spanish double major. In the Jeong lab, she worked on the FPN3 project for her senior thesis and continued this work full-time in the lab during her gap year before medical school. Leah attended the American Society of Plant Biologists conference in Montreal, Canada (2018) and the Cell Biology of Metals Gordon Research Conference in Castelldefels, Spain (2019), where she presented her work. She is now attending the NYU Grossman School of Medicine. Outside of lab, Leah enjoys eating good food, running, spending time with friends, and traveling.
Emily Park '19
Postbac Research Assistant (2019-20), BCBP Honors Thesis Student (2018-19), Undergraduate Research Assistant (2016-18)
Emily graduated in 2019 as a Biochemistry & Biophysics major. As a student, she worked on characterizing H3K27me3 regulation of the iron deficiency response and received the Best Thesis Prize in BCBP. During her post-bac, Emily assisted on the FPN3 project. She is now a student at the Yale School of Medicine.
Fengling Hu '19
Undergraduate Research Assistant (2017-19)
Feng graduated in 2019 as a Biology and Statistics major. In the Jeong Lab, he was a Gregory S. Call Fellow, working on the FPN3 project in Arabidopsis and helping on various other projects. Over this time, he co-authored two papers and had the opportunity to attend the American Society of Plant Biologists conference in Montreal, Canada. Outside of lab, he was involved with ACEMS and the Statistics and Data Science Fellows. Feng is currently pursuing an MD-PhD, with the PhD in Biostatistics, at the University of Pennsylvania.
Daniel Chung '19
Undergraduate Research Assistant (2017-2019)
During his time in the Jeong Lab, Daniel assisted in characterizing Ferroportin 3, a mitochondrial iron exporter in Arabidopsis thaliana, by cloning reporter constructs using the Gateway system for expression. He also contributed to genotyping multiple higher order fpn3 mutants that were generated in the lab. Since graduating from Amherst, Daniel conducted pooled, genome-wide CRISPR/Cas9 screens as a Research Associate on the Genetics Perturbation Platform at the Broad Institute. He is currently attending medical school at UC San Diego.
Angie Kim '19
Undergraduate Research Assistant (2016-19)
Angie is from Pittsburgh, PA and was a Pre-med Biology major. At Amherst, she was the Co-President of the Public Health Collaborative, was a mentor for the Pre-Health mentoring program, and volunteered in the Pioneer Valley. She enjoys running, eating, and keeping up with her favorite K-Pop group, BTS. Angie is currently a medical student at USF Morsani College of Medicine.
Kaitlyn Tsuyuki '18
Postbac Research Assistant & Lab Manager (2018-2021), BCBP Honors Thesis Student (2017-18)
Originally from the San Francisco Bay Area, Kaitlyn graduated from Amherst College in 2018 as a Biochemistry & Biophysics and Asian Languages & Civilizations double major. After working on their thesis in the Jeong Lab, they served three years in the lab as a postbac research assistant and lab manager. Next up, Kaitlyn is teaching math at the Kent School in Kent, CT. They look forward to the excitement and challenge of teaching in a more formal setting.
Madeline Clyne '18
SURF Fellow (Summer 2016), Undergraduate Research Assistant (2016-18)
Madeline joined the Jeong Lab as a sophomore. Over four semesters and two summers, she worked to characterize the mitochondrial iron transport protein Ferroportin 3, found in the mustard weed A. thaliana, by studying its behavior in the model system S. cerevisiae (baker’s yeast). In particular, she focused on the directionality of iron movement across the mitochondrial membrane. Madeline also presented a poster at the 2017 American Society of Plant Biologists' conference in Honolulu, HI, and her interest in science communication led her to author an article for high school students on the evolutionary origins of CRISPR.
Outside of the lab, Madeline majored in Biology and English, played in the college orchestra, and danced around the Five College area. After graduating, she spent two years working in the Amherst admission office and giving tours of the Emily Dickinson Museum. She now works as a college counselor at the Schuler Scholar Program, a community-based organization in Milwaukee, WI.
Jingwen Zhang '18
Biology Honors Thesis Student (2017-18)
Jingwen Zhang conducted her undergraduate thesis with Professor Jeong, examining the properties and characteristics of Ferroportin 3, an Arabidopsis thaliana mitochondrial iron transport protein, and studying its interactions with other important plant proteins. The Jeong Lab traveled to the 2018 American Society of Plant Biologists (ASPB) conference in Montreal, Canada, where Jingwen presented a poster of her research and findings. After graduation, Jingwen worked for a year in Boston. She is currently a medical student at the Columbia University Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons.
Dakota Meredith '17
Undergraduate Research Assistant (Summer 2016)
Dakota Meredith graduated from Amherst in 2017 with degrees in Biochemistry and English. She spent her time in the Jeong lab analyzing iron absorption in Arabidopsis thaliana by analyzing primary literature and growing plants that were deficient in certain absorption pathways. After graduation, Dakota worked as a medical scribe in the Philadelphia area. Currently, she is a medical student at the Drexel University College of Medicine.
Aleks Merkovich '17
Undergraduate Research Assistant (2016-17)
While in the Jeong Lab, Aleks did it all: he spent a summer as Gregory S. Call Fellow working on a genetic suppressor screen in yeast, switched over to head-start the FPN3 project in Arabidopsis, co-authored a literature review about iron regulation in plants, presented data at the 2017 Plant Biology conference, and took on the unofficial role of lab DJ. After graduating from Amherst, Aleks continued to do biology research as a technician at Rockefeller University, but moved on to working on and specializing in online search engine optimization.
Veronica Voronina '17
Postbac Research Assistant & Lab Manager (2017-18)
Veronica was the lab manager of the Jeong Lab during the 2017-18 academic year. At Amherst, Veronica was a Biology and Russian double major, and she completed a Biology Thesis in the Miller Lab. Since August 2019, Veronica has been working as a research laboratory technician at the Massachusetts General Hospital Research Institute studying cardiovascular thrombosis in the Division of Pediatric Hemotology and Oncology.
Avery Tucker
Research Assistant & Lab Manager (2016-17)
Avery is currently a PhD Student at the University of Memphis in Tennessee specializing in microbial ecology and statistical analysis. His dissertation research is broadly focused on understanding the dynamics of alpine snow algae blooms that color snowfields beautiful reds and greens around the globe and have a historical record of several millennia. Not surprisingly, these algae live in concert with a complex and interactive community of archaea, bacteria, and fungi that may be strongly influenced by windblown organic and inorganic matter. Using genetic techniques, microscopy, bioinformatics and novel experimental designs for snow systems he and his advisor Dr. Shawn Brown are developing hypotheses about this unique community that has adapted to survive in cold, dry, radiative and nutrient poor environments. With this work Avery hopes to bring more attention and insight to an ecosystem and fascinating phenomenon that has been imperiled by climate change.
Joye Yang '17
Undergraduate Research Assitant (2015-17); Special Topics Student (2017)
Joye grew up in Los Angeles but journeyed to Amherst in her thirst for water and new experiences (only one of which is abundant in California). She majored in Biology and Economics, and cultivated yeast in the Jeong lab to investigate the effects of zinc deprivation on protein homeostasis. She continues to be fascinated by proteins, small RNA's, and their roles in regulating cellular processes, and their use and potential in therapeutic applications. She currently works on proteinaceous nanocapsules with the potential to facilitate in vivo biomolecule targeting and delivery in the Rome Lab at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA. In her free time, Joye enjoys painting, winter sports, visiting new places, and exploring other cultures, both human and yeast.
Claire Castellano '16
Biology Honors Thesis Student (2015-16)
Claire is proud to be Professor Jeong's first thesis student, graduating in 2016 as a Biology major. Her thesis concentrated on characterizing Ferroportin 3 from Arabidopsis thaliana. She worked with the model system Saccharomyces cerevisiae, focusing on elucidating the protein’s transport directionality across the mitochondrial membrane. After graduating, she returned to lab to continue experiments from her honors project, prepare a poster of her findings, and help transition new students into the lab.
In July 2016, she joined Professor Jeong and Joye Yang to the annual American Society of Plant Biologists (ASPB) conference in Austin, Texas to present a poster from her honors thesis work. Claire spent a year living in Malaysia with Fulbright English Teaching Assistantship fellowship following her graduation. She now is attending Emory Medical School in Atlanta.