Lab Members

Robert H. Blelloch MD, PhD

Principal Investigator [email protected]

Stem cells exist both in the developing embryo and in many organs of the adult organism. Differentiation of these cells is tightly regulated so that their progeny become increasingly specialized and lose the potential to revert or transform into other cell types. This regulation is very important both to maintain organ function and to avoid the possibility of uncontrolled cell growth, the basis of cancer. Our laboratory is interested in determining the molecular mechanisms that direct and stabilize cellular differentiation with a focus on post-transcriptional regulation and epigenetics. The goal is to control the differentiation and de-differentiation of cells in order to regenerate tissues for replacement therapies as well as develop novel means for treating cancer.

Cassandra Belair

Researcher |[email protected]

Cassandra is currently a Researcher at UCSF studying the role of microRNAs in prostate cancer progression and their use as diagnostic markers. She began studying different aspects of cancer biology after her graduation from SUNY Plattsburgh by working as a technician at Cornell University in the laboratory of eminent biochemist Dr. Efraim Racker. She studied the earliest steps of bladder carcinogenesis under the mentorship of Dr. Catherine Reznikoff at the University of Wisconsin Madison, where she obtained her PhD in Molecular and Cellular Toxicology. She moved on to a post-doctoral project aimed at understanding the toxicology of dioxins, a prominent pollutant in the Great Lakes waterways, on developing organisms using the zebrafish as a model under the mentorship of Drs. Warren Heideman and Richard Peterson, also at UW Madison. There she discovered the beauty of development through watching the fertilized egg morph into a fully functioning fish in just 3 days. She accepted a position as an instructor/scientist in the HHMI laboratory of Dr. Leonord Zon at Harvard Children’s Hospital, Boston. While in the Zon lab, Cassandra managed the operations of the 5000-tank zebrafish facility and studied liver carcinogenesis using a cell cycle mutant that had been isolated in the lab.

Finally, she moved to UCSF in 2005 as a Researcher within the Blelloch Lab. Within the lab she has many roles but her primary focus is on understanding prostate cancer progression. She established a mouse model to study the roles of microRNAs in prostate cancer by combining a recently published model of prostate cancer, the PB-cre conditional PTEN deletion model with the conditional DGCR8 deletion model established by Robert. Her more recent interests are moving into the area of prognostic biomarkers and learning the bioinformatics tools to uncover serum microRNAs that will add value to the current UCSF nomograms. Cassandra is also working on a collaboration with the Fraser Lab to develop small molecule inhibitors of exosome release.  Outside of the lab Cassandra enjoys the fact that San Francisco has a climate conducive to year-round outdoor activities from hiking, biking and sailing locally to camping, hiking and skiing in the mountains. https://profiles.ucsf.edu/cassandra.belair

Deniz Goekbuget, PhD

Associate Specialist [email protected]

Deniz grew up in Frankfurt, Germany. He received a Master of Biochemistry from Goethe University Frankfurt, and then obtained his PhD from ETH Zurich where he discovered critical roles of roles of non-coding RNAs in the peripheral nervous system in the Suter lab. In the Blelloch lab, he is focused on how faithful cell cycle progression is coordinated with transcriptional identity at the level of chromatin. Outside lab he enjoys being in the mountains for hiking and skiing or playing golf. Deniz received a research fellowship from the German Research Foundation (DFG).  https://profiles.ucsf.edu/deniz.goekbuget

Huaigeng Xu, MD, PhD

Postdoctoral Fellow | [email protected]

Huaigeng Xu joined the Blelloch Lab as a Postdoctoral Fellow in March 2020 to study Cancer immunology and Exosomes. Huaigeng was born in China and grew up in Japan. He obtained his M.D. and Ph.D. in Japan. During his graduate studies at the Center for iPS cells Research and Application (CiRA), Kyoto University, he was tasked with generating low immunogenicity iPS cells by disrupting HLA genes via CRISPR-Cas9 based genome-editing (Xu et al, Cell Stem Cell, 2019). During this work, he learned iPS cell culture and differentiation to blood cells, CRISPR-Cas9 genome editing, immunology (e.g. T cells, NK cells and immune rejection) and basic mouse experiments. His personal interest is aging, and his ultimate goal in the future is to solve age-related health problems and manage his longevity. He speaks both Japanese and Chinese, and he is willing to interact with a lot of people. https://profiles.ucsf.edu/huaigeng.xu

Jiuling Yang, PhD

Postdoctoral Fellow | [email protected]

Jiuilng is a postdoc in the lab on the side of team cancer subgroup. She completed her M.D. and a B.S. in statistics as a double major at Peking University in China, before earning her PhD in Pharmacology at the University of Michigan - Ann Arbor, where she studied small-molecule targeted therapy for cancer. Later, she developed an interest in cancer immunotherapy. Since joining the lab in 2019, Jiuling’s research has focused on understanding the role of a Nectin family protein, PVRL2, that she discovered as a crucial immune checkpoint molecule, in suppressing anti-tumor immune responses, as well as the role of PD-L1 in regulating innate immunity. Her ongoing and future research interests involve identifying novel immune checkpoints, understanding their mechanisms of action, and assessing their potential as therapeutic targets. Outside of science, Jiuling is a proud dog mom who enjoys camping, hiking, and watching beautiful sunrises on beaches.

Ananya Ghosh, PhD

Postdoctoral Fellow | [email protected]

Ananya is a postdoc in the lab, working with the team on research in reproductive health and placental biology. She earned her M.Sc. in Biotechnology at Calcutta University in India and her PhD in Pathology at the University of Kansas Medical Center. During her PhD, she explored how GATA transcription factors influence placental development, making important discoveries about their roles in pregnancy conditions like preeclampsia and fetal growth restriction.
Since joining the lab in 2023, Ananya has been diving into the fascinating world of cytotrophoblast differentiation, looking at the differences between smooth chorion and villous chorion. She uses cool techniques like single-cell RNA sequencing, spatial transcriptomics, and 3D organoid culture to uncover the molecular mechanisms driving these processes. Her goal is to better understand placental development and find potential new treatments for pregnancy-related issues.
Outside the lab, Ananya loves exploring new places, restaurants, hiking and painting. She is passionate about pushing the boundaries of what we know in reproductive health through innovative research.

Hannah Driks, BS

Graduate Student, BMS | [email protected]

Hannah (she/her/hers) graduated from the University of Michigan (Go Blue), where she worked in various labs in the field of cancer drug discovery. She joined the Blelloch Lab as a BMS graduate student in 2021 to continue cancer research and currently studies how exosomes secreted by cancer cells suppress the immune system. Hannah is an active member of ImmunoX, the immunology initiative at UCSF, and a director of Immunologists for Gender Equity (IgEquity), an organization that promotes gender equity in immunology through outreach and annual events. Outside of the lab, she enjoys distance running, live music, and weekend roadtrips to nearby cities and parks. 

Li Wang, MS, BS

Graduate Student, BMS | [email protected]

Li obtained his BS and MS degrees in biology from UC San Diego in the sunny Southern California. During his undergraduate and master’s years, Li researched on the molecular mechanisms of cardiomyopathies using genetically engineered mouse models in Ju Chen lab in UCSD Department of Medicine. While remaining deeply interested in and fascinated by the heart, he is amazed by the evolutionary aspect of cancer biology and decided to explore this area in his PhD study. He joined the Blelloch lab as a BMS graduate student in 2022 to study cancer metastasis. Outside of the lab, Li enjoys photography (landscape and more recently cityscape and street), hiking, trying out coffee shops, and reading.

Rachel Jones, BS

Graduate Student, Tetrad | [email protected]

Rachel graduated from the University of Utah with BS in Cell Biology. During her time there, she studied the behavior of lysosomes and late endosomes during endoplasmic reticulum stress. Fascinated with the endolysosomal system, she joined the Blelloch Lab as a Tetrad graduate student in the Fall of 2023 to study exosome biogenesis. Since then, she has begun a project investigating how the immune system impacts exosome release. Outside of lab, Rachel enjoys running, attempting to surf, and enjoying the food and culture that San Francisco has to offer.

Chisato Kamei, MD

Vsiting Scientist | [email protected]

Chisato is a dermatologist from Japan who recently decided she wants to learn research, especially related to cancer immunotherapies given her clinical interest in melanoma. She joined the Blelloch lab in the fall of 2021 to learn basic techniques relevant to Cancer immunology and improve her English skills. In the March 2022, she also spent a month in CiRA, Kyoto University, Japan, to learn specific iPS cell culturing and differentiation techniques. After learning these skills, she is working in collaboration with Huaigeng and Jason to generate iPS cell-based anti-tumor immunotherapies.