Meet the Students
Introducing the students participating in the PDP 2024/2025
We are proud to present the talented PhD students who form the 2024/2025 cohort of our Professional Development Program. Each member of this diverse group brings unique perspectives and skills, contributing to a vibrant and collaborative learning environment.
Below, you will find detailed information about each member, highlighting their academic backgrounds and research interests:
Abigail Altman
Pereira Group | %20abigail [dot] altman [at] med [dot] lu [dot] se (abigail[dot]altman[at]med[dot]lu[dot]se)
Abby is currently a PhD student in the Cell Reprogramming in Hematopoiesis and Immunity research group. Her project uses direct reprogramming to better understand lineage specification of immune cells, with a special interest in dendritic cell diversity. She hopes her efforts will help not only to better understand immune cell fate decisions but can also be repurposed towards patient-specific immunotherapies.
Alice Hägg
Falk Group | alice [dot] hagg [at] med [dot] lu [dot] se (alice[dot]hagg[at]med[dot]lu[dot]se)
As an industrial biotechnology engineer, Alice began her scientific journey at AstraZeneca's Cell Therapy Department, contributing to diverse translational projects addressing heart failure, autoimmune diseases, and biliary disease. Currently, Alice is pursuing a PhD in the Neural Stem Cells research group. There, she participates in the IndiCell innovation project, exploring the use of microfluidic reprogramming to sustainably generate induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSC) – with the ultimate goal of making iPSC-based therapies affordable on an industrial scale.
Carrie Davis-Hansson
Jakobsson Group | carrie [dot] davis-hansson [at] med [dot] lu [dot] se (carrie[dot]davis-hansson[at]med[dot]lu[dot]se)
Carrie, originally from Missouri Ozarks in the U.S. and has lived in Sweden for a good portion of her adult life. She has a Bachelor’s in Biological Sciences from the University of Missouri, as well as a Master’s in Molecular Biology from Lund University. Carrie is currently a PhD student in the Laboratory of Molecular Neurogenetics where she is investigating the role of transposable elements in psychiatric disorders.
Chandramouli Muralidharan
Pircs/ Jakobsson Group | chandramouli [dot] muralidharan [at] med [dot] lu [dot] se (chandramouli[dot]muralidharan[at]med[dot]lu[dot]se)
Chandramouli is a PhD student in the Molecular Neurogenetics Laboratory, where using multiomic data analysis, he studies the role of transposable elements and autophagy in the human brain during ageing. Overall, Chandramouli passionate about developing therapies promoting healthy ageing and combating age-related diseases, apart from being curious about new techniques in the field.
Chimezie Harrison Umeano
Leigh Group | chimezie [dot] harrison_umeano [at] med [dot] lu [dot] se (chimezie[dot]harrison_umeano[at]med[dot]lu[dot]se)
Chimezie, a curious biomedical scientist, holds a degree in applied biochemistry and a Master's Degree in Biomedicine from the University of Skövde in Sweden. With a subliminal perception to conservation of various life forms and sustainability, he is exploring as a graduate student in the Regenerative Immunology research group, how the immune system affects limb regeneration in salamanders.
Christina-Anastasia Stamouli
Ottosson Group | christina-anastasia [dot] stamouli [at] med [dot] lu [dot] se (christina-anastasia[dot]stamouli[at]med[dot]lu[dot]se)
Always fascinated by the field of biology and research, Christina, originally from Greece, completed her bachelor studies in Molecular Biology and Genetics there. In 2019, Christina moved to Sweden to study a Master's degree in Biomedicine at Lund University and stayed for her PhD studies as well. As a doctoral student in the Regenerative Neurophysiology research group, she focuses on neuronal reprogramming as cell replacement strategy and disease modelling.
Fereshteh Dorazehi
Douse Group | Fereshteh [dot] Dorazehi [at] med [dot] lu [dot] se (Fereshteh[dot]Dorazehi[at]med[dot]lu[dot]se)
Fereshteh moved to Sweden to pursue a second master's in molecular medicine at Uppsala university and moved to Lund for her master's thesis project. Currently, Fereshteh is a PhD student in the in Epigenetics and Chromatin Dynamics research group. She is interested in understanding the underlying molecular events during healthy and diseased human brain development with a focus on epigenetic changes.
Hanna Eriksson
Larsson Group | hanna [dot] eriksson [at] med [dot] lu [dot] se (hanna[dot]eriksson[at]med[dot]lu[dot]se)
Hanna originally from the city of Lund, moved to Scotland to study Molecular and Cellular Biology at the University of Glasgow. Her studies included a yearlong internship at Institut de la Vision (Paris), studying CRISPR delivery. After earning a master's degree, Hanna returned to Sweden to continue pursuing research. She is currently a PhD student in Stem Cell Regulators research group, where she is studying pathways that regulate hematopoietic stem cells.
Jana Bonsberger
Parmar Group | Jana [dot] Bonsberger [at] med [dot] lu [dot] se (Jana[dot]Bonsberger[at]med[dot]lu[dot]se)
Jana is a neuroscientist interested in neurodegeneration, neurological disorders, brain development and cell fate specification. Currently, Jana is a PhD Student in the Developmental and Regenerative Neurobiology research group. Her PhD project investigates the therapeutic potentials of a patient-specific cell replacement therapy for Parkinson´s disease. Prior to her PhD, Jana earned a M.Sc. in Biomedical Science from the University of Veterinary Medicine Hannover, Germany before heading to the US to work as an intern in an early-stage biotechnology company.
Kerstin Laurin
Parmar Group | kerstin [dot] laurin [at] med [dot] lu [dot] se (kerstin[dot]laurin[at]med[dot]lu[dot]se)
Kerstin Laurin moved to Lund to study a Bachelors in Biomedicine and then attended the Master program in Biomedicine also at the Lund University Faculty of Medicine. It was during her Bachelor's studies that she became interested in neuroscience and stem cell therapies, which is what she works with today. As a doctoral student in the Developmental and Regenerative Neurobiology research group, her PhD project focuses on the use of direct reprogramming to develop new cell replacement therapies for Parkinson’s Disease.
Maria Tsalkitzidou
Falk Group | maria [dot] tsalkitzidou [at] med [dot] lu [dot] se (maria[dot]tsalkitzidou[at]med[dot]lu[dot]se)
Maria, originally from Greece, earned a Bachelor’s degree in Biology and a master's degree in Bioinformatics from Lund University. As a PhD student within the Neural Stem Cells research group, her research focuses on studying mechanisms that play an important role in early neurogenesis during human brain development using induced pluripotent stem cell (iPSC) models.
Marlene Johanna Oesterle
Leigh Group | marlene [dot] oesterle [at] med [dot] lu [dot] se (marlene[dot]oesterle[at]med[dot]lu[dot]se)
Marlene grew up in Germany, where she obtained a master's degree in Molecular Medicine from FSU Jena. Following the completion of an internship at the IMP in Vienna, Marlene joined the Regenerative Immunology research group in Lund as a PhD student. There, her research revolves around investigating the intricate regulatory mechanisms by which the immune system influences epimorphic regeneration in salamanders.
Ninoslav Pandiloski
Jakobsson/ Douse Group | ninoslav [dot] pandiloski [at] med [dot] lu [dot] se (ninoslav[dot]pandiloski[at]med[dot]lu[dot]se)
Studying Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, sparked a genuine interest in Nino to understand human biology on a deeper level, specifically focusing on comparative bioinformatic analyses. Thus, Nino pursued that interest to Lund University, where he completed his Master's degree in Bioinformatics, and soon afterwards began his PhD degree as well. Currently, he is a bioinformatics PhD student investigating the epigenetic regulation of transposable elements in human neural stem cells jointly in the Epigenetics and Chromatin research group and the Laboratory of Molecular Neurogenetics.
Ofelia Karlsson
Jakobsson Group | ofelia [dot] karlsson [at] med [dot] lu [dot] se (ofelia[dot]karlsson[at]med[dot]lu[dot]se)
Ofelia is originally from Kalmar, Sweden and moved to Lund to study both her Bachelor's and Master's in Biomedicine at Lund university. Currently, Ofelia is a PhD student in the Laboratory of Molecular Neurogenetics. In her research, she uses different CRISPR strategies to study molecular mechanisms that control the activity of transposable elements in the human brain.
Stina Andersson
Mohlin Group | stina [dot] andersson [at] med [dot] lu [dot] se (stina[dot]andersson[at]med[dot]lu[dot]se)
Stina is a doctoral student in the Molecular Physiology research group, where he research revolves around neuroblastoma – a cancer affecting young children. Stina's aim is to identify the signals that trigger the transformation of normal embryonic cells into cancerous ones. Additionally, Stina is exploring intra-tumor heterogeneity to understand the characteristics of cancer cells resisting therapies.
Tyra Bremborg
Larsson Group | tyra [dot] bremborg [at] med [dot] lu [dot] se (tyra[dot]bremborg[at]med[dot]lu[dot]se)
Tyra is a Lund native and earned both her Bachelor’s and Master’s in Biomedicine from Lund University. Currently, Tyra is a PhD student in the Stem Cell Regulators research group where she is using a nano-based delivery system to deliver siRNA into cord blood-derived stem cells, in order to study regulators of hematopoietic stem cell expansion.
Yuwen Xie
Nilsson Group | yuwen [dot] xie [at] med [dot] lu [dot] se (yuwen[dot]xie[at]med[dot]lu[dot]se)
Yuwen is a doctoral student in the Nilsson Research Group which focuses on genetic variation influencing blood cell formation and blood cancer risk in humans. Her PhD studies aim to identify DNA sequence variants that influence hematopoietic stem and progenitor cell levels in adults and explore their function.
About the Professional Development Program:
The Research School’s Professional Development Program is a one-year complementary educational program that brings together PhD students from diverse laboratories at Lund Stem Cell Center. The program promotes PhD student success by providing academic and career support, coaching, and extra-curricular activities. The program’s professional development activities are built on a collaborative learning model that helps students develop a foundation for long-term career success.