current lab members
Dr. Lena Hileman, PI, [email protected]
Lena received her Ph.D. in Organismic and Evolutionary Biology from Harvard University. After completing her Ph.D.,she spent three years in Dr. Vivian Irish's lab at Yale University as a postdoctoral researcher before starting up her own lab in 2005 at the University of Kansas. She is a proud alum (both Bachelor's and Master's degrees) of San Francisco State University!
Dr. Hileman's CV (last updated February 2022)
Lena received her Ph.D. in Organismic and Evolutionary Biology from Harvard University. After completing her Ph.D.,she spent three years in Dr. Vivian Irish's lab at Yale University as a postdoctoral researcher before starting up her own lab in 2005 at the University of Kansas. She is a proud alum (both Bachelor's and Master's degrees) of San Francisco State University!
Dr. Hileman's CV (last updated February 2022)
Amanda Katzer, PhD student, [email protected]
Amanda received her Bachelor's degree from the University of Kansas. She worked as a technician in the Hileman Lab for a year and a half before joining us as a graduate student. Amanda is using transcriptomic and morphometric approaches to study nectary evolution in Penstemon. Here's a link to Amanda's website. 
Haylee Nedblake, Ph.D. student, [email protected]
Haylee received her Bachelor's degree from Park University. She also studied at the University of Hawaii (very cool!). Haylee is studying the genetic basis for differences in floral pigment intensity and flower shape between bee and hummingbird-adapted Penstemon species. 
Taylor Michael, Masters student, [email protected]
Taylor received her Bachelor's degree from Pittsburg State University in Kansas. In the Hileman lab, she is exploring the development of heterostyly and its effects on mating system in one of our beautiful prairie Penstemon species, P. cobeae. 
Lane Anaya, technician, [email protected]
Lane completed most of her Bachelor's degree from College of the Ozarks, finishing just her last year at the University of Kansas (due to the COVID pandemic). Lane is supporting our quantitative genetic work in Penstemon and developing/optimizing protocols for gene expression and functional (e.g., CRISPR) tools in Mimulus and Penstemon. 
Percy Macek, undergraduate researcher
Percy is is contributing to our quantitative genetic work in Penstemon, and as an independent project is exploring the genetic basis of the trait "flowers per node" in Penstemon which strongly affects overall showiness of the inflorescences. 
Aphid Sylvester, undergraduate researcher, former Emerging Scholar
Aphid is contributing to our quantitative genetic work in Penstemon, and is using microscopy and imageJ to collect and analyze Penstemon nectary trait data that contribute to Amanda's project on nectary genetics and evolution. 
Aspen Thomas, undergraduate researcher, BESST program
Aspen is contributing to our efforts to optimize gene functional studies in Mimulus lewisii and Penstemon, both by exploring ways to optimize Pemstemon stable transformation, and by generating M. lewisii CRISPR lines. 
Analin Escalante Pablo, undergraduate researcher, Emerging Scholar program
Analin is contributing to our quantitative genetic research in Penstemon. previous lab membersMasters student: Noelle Schlenk (2021-2023)
Noelle carried out excellent bioinformatic work in the Hileman lab to confirm proper assembly of one of our newest genomes, Penstemon kunthii, by linking the physical assembly to a genetic map derived from a cross between P. kunthii and P. amphorellae. She also putatively identified centromeres based upon DNA sequence characteristics. She is now a bioinformatics technician at Stanford University. Technician: Kaylee Livingston (2020-2022)
In the Hileman lab, Kaylee contributed to dissecting the roles of flower symmetry genes in Mimulus lewisii, and our quantitative genetic work on Penstemon. She is considering graduate school in plant genetics as a next step. Masters student: Taryn Dunivant (2018-2021)
In the Hileman Lab, Taryn determined the function of CYCLOIDEA paralogs in Mimulus lewisii through both gene expression and functional (RNAi) studies. She was instrumental in brining M. lewisii stable transformation to the Hileman lab. She is now a Ph.D. student in Botany & Plant Sciences at U.C. Riverside. Postdoc: Dr. Carolyn Wessinger (2014-2020)
In the Hileman Lab, Carrie was instrumental in developing Penstemon as a model system. She determined macroevolutionary patterns associated with pollination syndrome transition in the context of a newly established phylogeny and she discovered the genetic architecture of trait transitions between bee- and hummingbird-adapted species. Carrie is now an assistant professor at the University of South Carolina. Here's a link to Carrie at USC. Ph.D. student: Aniket Sengupta (2012-2019)
In the Hileman, Aniket demonstrated that the flower symmetry program likely functions as an integrated module in fruit development. And that it is from this ancestral function that the program was recruited for its role in establishing bilateral flower symmetry. Aniket is now a postdoc at St. John's University with Dr. Dianella Haworth. Here is a link to Aniket's website Postdoc: Dr. Vibhuti Singh (2018)
In the Hileman's lab, Vibhuti investigated the role CYCLOIDEA in Mimulus lewisii. She was instrumental in establishing M. lewisii stable transformation protocols in the lab. Ph.D. Student: Jack Colicchio: (2011-2016)
In the Hileman lab, and in collaboration with John Kelly, Jack determined how gene expression and DNA methylation is altered by variation in parental environment. He additionally demonstrated through field experiments that plastic responses to variation in parental environment can have important fitness consequences. Jack is now a postdoc at UC Berkeley with Dr. Ben Blackman. Here's a link to Jack's website. Postdoc: Dr. Jill Preston (2007-2012)
In the Hileman lab, Jill determined patterns of conservation and diversification in both floral and flowering time developmental networks. Jill is now an associate professor at the University of Vermont. Here’s the link to Jill at UVM. Technician: Rebecca Orozco (2011-2012)
In the Hileman lab, Rebecca worked on evolution in the flowering time pathway. After leaving the lab, Rebecca completed her Master's in Library Science in Minnesota. Master’s Student: Jacob Landis (2009-2011)
In the Hileman lab, Jacob investigated the developmental genetics of floral organ identity and petal cell shape in close relatives of snapdragon. He went on to receive his PhD working with Dr. Pam Soltis at The University of Florida, and is now a postdoc in the Koenig Lab at UC Riverside. Technician: Laryssa Barnett (2006-2010)
Laryssa joined the Hileman lab as an undergraduate researcher her Senior year at KU, and stayed on as a technician in the lab for three years. Laryssa contributed significantly to many projects in the lab, primarily determining the genetic basis for epigenetic inheritance of trichome density in Mimulus and developing VIGS for Plantaginaceae species, Laryssa received her PhD working with Dr. John Willis at Duke University. Technician: Matthew Kost (2005-2008)
Matthew joined the lab as an undergraduate, his Senior year at KU, and stayed on in the lab as a technician for two years. Matthews work in the lab was instrumental towards our goals of isolating symmetry genes from various non-model species, and in applying VIGS technology to various non-model species. Matthew received his PhD working with Dr. Kristin Mercer at Ohio State University. Post-bacheloreate student (PREP program at KU): Ciera Martinez (2008-2009)
Ciera joined the lab after finishing her Bachelor's Degree in Biology from Northeastern Illinois University. She participated in the PREP program at KU and her main research focus was determining how the symmetry developmental network is functioning in Plantago. Ciera received her PhD working with Dr. Neelima Sinha at UC Davis, and is now a postdoc in the UC Berkeley Institute for Data Science. Undergraduate researchers:
2022-2023. Meghan Tidwell, Independent research 2021-2023 Kate Oppold, Independent research 2021-2023 Jack Ross, Independent research 2020-2021 Noelle Schlenk, Honor's thesis project 2019-2020 Alex Martin, Independent research 2019 Alexis Ramos, McNair Scholars Program, Independent research 2017-2019 Natacha Namphengsone, McNair Scholars Program, Independent research 2017-2018 Karla Arias-Ramos, KU Emerging Scholars Program 2017 Hester Hall, KU-EEB summer REU program 2017 Mara Schlichting, Initiative to Maximize Student Diversity, independent research 2016-2017 Jonathon Russell, Independent research 2016-2017 Kristen Manion, Initiative to Maximize Student Diversity, independent research 2015-present Nicolas Nolte, Independent study and undergraduate researcher 2015-2016 Nizhoni Woodie, Haskell University Bridge Program and KU-EEB summer REU program 2015 Anatole Telegin, KU-EEB summer REU program 2014-2015 Jesse Kaighin, Independent study and undergraduate researcher 2013-2015 Sukhindervir Sandhu, Honor’s thesis project 2014 Alayna Mead, KU-EEB summer REU program 2014 Alexander Langley, Undergraduate researcher 2012-2014 David Stone, Independent study and undergraduate researcher 2013 Taylor Blodgett, Undergraduate researcher 2010-2013 (2015) Kima Scott, Independent study and undergraduate researcher 2011 Alejandra Rodriguez, Haskell University Bridge Program 2009-2011 Elijah Burton, Independent study and undergraduate researcher 2010 Jessica Doidge, undergraduate researcher 2010 Ashley Stiffarm, Haskell University Bridge Program 2010 Tim Muetz, undergraduate researcher 2009-2010 Kory Kirkegaard, Independent study and undergraduate researcher 2009 Michelle Metzger, Independent study through KU Office for Diversity in Science Training 2009 Nicole Nebitsi, Haskell University Bridge Program 2008-2009 Nathan Oborny, Independent study and undergraduate researcher 2008 Jared Suppasansathorn, Independent study 2006-2008 Fikri Birey, Honor’s thesis project 2006-2007 Laryssa Barnett (née Baldridge), Independent study and undergraduate researcher, technician in my lab 2007-2010 2006 Gizem Tel, 2006, Independent study 2006 Brett Thompson, Independent study 2005-2006 Matthew Kost, Independent study and undergraduate researcher, technician in my lab 2006-2008. |