Matthew Chapman
Principle Investigator
chapmanm@umich.eduPh.D. Microbiology, Indiana University
Keck and NIH Fellow, Hultgren Lab, Washington University
Matt joined the MCDB faculty in September of 2003 after a post doc at Washington University in St. Louis. He did his graduate work at Indiana University where he studied RNA-dependent RNA replication. It was there that Matt became interested in the host-pathogen interaction and so he joined Scott Hultgren's lab at Washington University in order to study urinary tract infections. However, he quickly discovered that bacterial amyloid fiber formation and function were far more interesting and his group has worked on functional amyloids ever since.
His wife and two children keep him busy when he is out of the lab.
Kanna Nagamatsu
Research Laboratory Specialist Intermediate
nkanna@umich.eduM.S. University of Tokyo, Japan
Ph.D. University of Tokyo, Japan
Kanna joined the Chapman lab as a staff scientist in November 2016.
She spent 6 years studying interactions between uropathogenic Escherichia coli and host immune responses in Dr. Scott Hultgren's lab at Washington University in St. Louis School of Medicine.
Her current research is focused on bacterial amyloid (Curli) biogenesis to determine how and when curli are assembled.
She loves birds, especially her parrot, Mugi. Kanna also enjoys watching and playing tennis. She has been to NYC and watched the US Open Tennis in person many times.
Hema Swasthi
Post-Doc
hswas@umich.eduM.Sc. Pondicherry University, India
Ph.D. Indian Institute of Science Education and Research, Mohali (IISER Mohali), India
Hema joined the Chapman lab as a postdoc in November 2018 after completing PhD with Prof. Samrat Mukhopadhyay. She is interested in understanding the spatiotemporal regulation of curli assembly on the bacterial surface.
Kailyn Jessel
Graduate Student Researcher
kajessel@umich.eduB.S. Butler University
Kailyn is part of Michigan’s Biological Chemistry department and joined the Chapman lab during the spring of 2021. She is interested in identifying requirements for the formation of different subpopulations within E. coli biofilms.
Outside of the lab, Kailyn enjoys running, cheering on Wisconsin and Butler sports teams, puzzles and reading, and ALL things Marvel and Harry Potter.
Divya Kolli
Graduate Student Researcher
dkolli@umich.eduB.S. University of Texas at Austin
Divya is part of Michigan's Molecular, Cellular, Developmental Biology department and joined the Chapman Lab in 2022. She is interested in studying CsgA polymerization and curli formation. Outside of the lab, Divya loves plants, food, animals, and movies.
Rachael Lucero
Graduate Student Researcher
rlucero@umich.eduB.S. San Jose State University
M.S. San Jose State University
Rachael is part of Michigan’s Program in Chemical Biology and joined the Stockbridge and Chapman lab in 2019. Her research includes studying the the physiological role of Guanidinium (Gdm+) in bacteria, specially how it is made and how it affects biofilm formation.
In her spare time she loves anything Disney, sports, and traveling, but also loves to spend her time at home lounging on the couch with her fur baby.
Mark Gomulinski
Lab Technician
gomulins@umich.eduB.S. Michigan State University
Mark joined the lab as a research technician in early 2018. His efforts focus on testing novel compounds against amyloid cross seeding and fiber formation.
In his free time he plays strategy and simulation games.
Lily Kalcec
Undergraduate Researcher
lkalcec@umich.eduLily is a sophomore studying Molecular, Cellular, and Developmental Biology (MCDB). She joined the lab in early 2021 as a member of the University’s MCDB Horizons Summer Internship program, working under the guidance of Anthony on a multitude of projects to investigate the mechanism of action of CsgC. She has since joined the lab full-time. Outside of the lab, Lily enjoys baking new foods and spending time with her two cats.
Viraj Chegu
Undergraduate Researcher
vpchegu@umich.eduViraj is a sophomore planning to major in Molecular, Cellular, and Developmental Biology. He is currently working on a project with Hema where the goal is to create a plasmid with the N terminal of CsgF attached to CsgA in order to study protein expression. He has experience working at the National Cancer Institute where he studied the Warburg Effect on different cancer cell lines. He loves cooking, hiking, and everything football.
Samuel Mackinnon
Undergraduate Researcher
sammacki@umich.eduSam is a junior planning to major in Molecular, Cellular, and Developmental Biology. He joined the lab in May of 2023 and works under Dr. Taylor Nye on the characterization of novel antibiotics against gram-positive bacteria.
He’s never seen a beluga whale in real life, though he aspires to, some day.
Chaitra Moolaveesala
Undergraduate Researcher
mchaitra@umich.eduChaitra is a senior majoring in Molecular, Cellular, and Developmental biology. She joined the lab in June of 2023 as part of the Beckman Scholars program. She is working with Kailyn to study how genes associated with anaerobic respiration affect biofilm formation and stratification in E. coli UTI89. She has previously worked in Dr. Harry Mobley’s lab studying sequence conservation of the urease promoter in Proteus mirabilis.
In her free time, Chaitra enjoys watching kdramas, cooking, and traveling.
Allen Mai
Work Study Student
allenmai@umich.eduAllen is a sophomore planning to major in Biology, Health, and Society. He joined the lab in September 2021 and is currently working as a work study. In his free time, he enjoys cooking, watching movies/shows, and playing volleyball with friends.
