We are slowly making the transition over to Bluesky - this account will still be active for the time being, but we hope that if you’re also active on Bluesky you’ll follow us there (gerechtlab.bsky) to stay in contact and keep up with what we’re working on! 🦋.

We’re thrilled to welcome Dr. Julian Nicenboim as a Research Assistant Professor! Julian earned his PhD from the Weizmann Institute, followed by 8 years in the biotech industry. He is interested in immune-endothelial cell crosstalk and enjoys sailing, cooking and photography

Congratulations to our newly hooded PhDs, Dr. Dimitris Ntekoumes and Dr. Danielle Yarbrough! We are so proud!

We’re welcoming new MD-PhD student Eli Lawrence. He received his bachelors from UC San Diego and is interested in cell fate, angiogenesis, and cellular response to hypoxia in the context of human disease. He also enjoys playing guitar, saltwater aquariums, cats, & weight lifting!

We’re welcoming new post-doc Yaqing Huang 🧪🎉 .She received her PhD from Yale University and is interested in the aging microenvironment and endothelial cell interactions. She also loves hiking, tennis, boardgames, and exploring new places and food!

🚨Check out our latest work! Led by @YaGuan7, we use an engineered matrix to show that stiffening induces M2 macrophage polarization in 3D, mediated by CaMKK2, with implications for tumor development and wound healing. #biomaterials #macrophage .

We're celebrating the newly minted Dr. Yarbrough! A masterful defense and beautiful work. We're so proud! Congratulations!

Introducing Dr. Ntekoumes! So proud of all you've accomplished and congratulations on an amazing defense! @DNtekoumes

We're welcoming new postdoc @JennHammel11 to the lab 👩‍🔬🧪 She received her PhD from Virginia Tech and is interested in exploring the impact of the ECM in innate and adaptive immunity, sex differences, and metabolism. She also loves fantasy/sci-fi books, museums and hockey!

Enjoying our week in Galveston at the NASA HRP IWS! @EssweinParker presented a poster about our blood-retinal-barrier work and @Danie11eYarb gave a talk about simulated space radiation effects on our tissue engineered small arteries #SpaceHealth #IWS2025

November Journal Club!! 👇.

Supporting AHA’s mission is a privilege. So honored for being a fellow. Thank you! ♥️.

Yesterday and today at #BMES2024 : poster presentations by postoc Jiyeon, PhD student Claudia, and undergraduate Roy, along with two more talks by PhD students Danielle and Emma. We had a great showing as a lab!!

RT @qw2002: Academic family reunion lunch at #BMES2024.@GVNlab @milicaruoft @GraysonLab @gerechtlab

First full day of sessions at BMES 2024 has gotten off to a great start with @DNtekoumes presenting work on our on-demand hypoxic hydrogels! Looking forward to the rest of our time here in Baltimore!

RT @DukeUBME: Our booth at #BMES2024 is up and running! Come by and say hi 👋

Welcome to Kate Katsouleas who is joining us as a first year PhD student! Kate graduated from @UCLA and is interested in studying microenvironment and materials that guide cell fate and direct tissue regeneration. She enjoys reading, watching movies/F1, and camping.

We are excited to have Colter Oroke joining as one of our 1st year PhD students! Colter graduated from @CUBoulder and is a Pratt-Gardner fellow interested in researching the interface between functional materials and cells. He likes running, hiking and playing sports.

Our lab's first outing of the semester was a hit! We cheered for the Durham Bulls and ended the night with an amazing fireworks show.⚾️🧢🎆

Welcome to our new Associate in Research/Lab Management, Makenzie Bushold! She's from Philadelphia, PA and studied Human Factors Engineering at @WestPoint_USMA. We're excited to have her join the lab!!