Our Team

Our Team

Ya-Wen Chen Ph.D.

 Principal Investigator

Ya-Wen is an Isidore Friesner Associate Professor in the Department of Otolaryngology, Department of Cell, Developmental and Regenerative Biology, and Department of Pathology, Molecular and Cell-based Medicine at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai. She serves as the Co-Scientific Director of the Center for Epithelial and Airway Biology and Regeneration and is the Director of Basic Science Research for the Department of Otolaryngology. Additionally, Ya-Wen is a member of the Institute for Regenerative Medicine, the Black Family Stem Cell Institute, and the Institute for Airway Science at Mount Sinai.

She pioneered the work in lung organoid development and directed differentiation from human pluripotent stem cells to respiratory epithelial cells.

Ya-Wen received her Ph.D. in Molecular Medicine from the University of Maryland, Baltimore. She completed her postdoctoral work at the Columbia Center for Translational Immunology and the Columbia Center for Human Development at Columbia University Irving Medical Center. She was a Parker B. Francis Fellow, Baxter Faculty Fellow, the Catalyst Awardee, and the Isidore Friesner Scholar. 

Ya-Wen is an active advocator for gender equality and LGBTQ rights!

Ya-Wen Chen Ph.D.

 Principle Investigator

Ya-Wen is an Isidore Friesner Associate Professor in the Department of Otolaryngology, Department of Cell, Developmental and Regenerative Biology, and Department of Pathology, Molecular and Cell-based Medicine at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai. She serves as the Co-Scientific Director of the Center for Epithelial and Airway Biology and Regeneration and is the Director of Basic Science Research for the Department of Otolaryngology. Additionally, Ya-Wen is a member of the Institute for Regenerative Medicine, the Black Family Stem Cell Institute, and the Institute for Airway Science at Mount Sinai.

She pioneered the work in lung organoid development and directed differentiation from human pluripotent stem cells to respiratory epithelial cells.

Ya-Wen received her Ph.D. in Molecular Medicine from the University of Maryland, Baltimore. She completed her postdoctoral work at the Columbia Center for Translational Immunology and the Columbia Center for Human Development at Columbia University Irving Medical Center. She was a Parker B. Francis Fellow, Baxter Faculty Fellow, the Catalyst Awardee, and the Isidore Friesner Scholar. 

Ya-Wen is an active advocator for gender equality and LGBTQ rights!

Ya-Wen Chen Ph.D.

 

 Principle Investigator

Ya-Wen is an Isidore Friesner Associate Professor in the Department of Otolaryngology, Department of Cell, Developmental and Regenerative Biology, and Department of Pathology, Molecular and Cell-based Medicine at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai. She serves as the Co-Scientific Director of the Center for Epithelial and Airway Biology and Regeneration and is the Director of Basic Science Research for the Department of Otolaryngology. Additionally, Ya-Wen is a member of the Institute for Regenerative Medicine, the Black Family Stem Cell Institute, and the Institute for Airway Science at Mount Sinai.

She pioneered the work in lung organoid development and directed differentiation from human pluripotent stem cells to respiratory epithelial cells.

Ya-Wen received her Ph.D. in Molecular Medicine from the University of Maryland, Baltimore. She completed her postdoctoral work at the Columbia Center for Translational Immunology and the Columbia Center for Human Development at Columbia University Irving Medical Center. She was a Parker B. Francis Fellow, Baxter Faculty Fellow, the Catalyst Awardee, and the Isidore Friesner Scholar. 

Ya-Wen is an active advocator for gender equality and LGBTQ rights!

Postdoctoral Fellows

Jaden J.A. Hastings Ph.D.

Jaden J.A. Hastings Ph.D.

Postdoctoral Fellow

PhD, University of Melbourne, Australia

MA, Central Saint Martins

MS,  Bioinformatics, University of Oxford

MA, Harvard University

BA, New York University

Graduate Students

Aaron (Po-Jen) Yun M.D.

Aaron (Po-Jen) Yun M.D.

Ph.D. Candidate

MD, National Defense Medical Center,

Taiwan

Helena Bugacov Ph.D.

Helena Bugacov Ph.D.

Medical Student

Ph.D., University of Southern California,

Los Angeles, CA

BA, University of California, Berkeley.

Martha Rea-Moreno

Martha Rea-Moreno

Master Student

 

CoA, Pasadena City College

BS, University of California, San Diego

Alessandra Moscatello

Alessandra Moscatello

Medical Student

BA, University of Southern California,

Los Angeles, CA

 

Shubham Gulati

Shubham Gulati

Medical Student

MS, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN

BE, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN

Associate Researchers

Min-Chi Yang

Min-Chi Yang

Associate Researcher

 

 

MS, National Taiwan University, Taiwan

BS, Kaohsiung Medical University, Taiwan

Pamela Cruz-Encarnacion

Pamela Cruz-Encarnacion

Associate Researcher

 

 

 

Mikal Kizilbash

Mikal Kizilbash

Associate Researcher

 

 

BS and BA, Brandeis University

Tara N. Tavakol

Tara N. Tavakol

Associate Researcher

 

 

BS, University of Virginia

Volunteers

Hanks Tsai

Hanks Tsai

Volunteer

 

 

The Bronx High School of Science

Jessica Hui

Jessica Hui

Volunteer

 

 

Colgate University, Hamilton, NY

Olam Ho

Olam Ho

Volunteer

 

 

Hunter College High School, New York, NY

Clinical Collaborators

Caterina Tiozzo Ph.D., M.D.

Caterina Tiozzo Ph.D., M.D.

Associate Professor

NICU Attending

Mount Sinai

Susan Kim, M.D.

Susan Kim, M.D.

Clinical Fellow

NICU Fellow

Mount Sinai

Alumni

Lu Tian Ph.D.

Lu Tian Ph.D.

Postdoctoral Fellow

PhD, University of Lille, France

MS, Sorbonne University, France

BS, University of Paris-Saclay, France

Now: Scientist, 858 Therapeutics

San Diego, CA

Irving Garcia

Irving Garcia

Lab Manager

Now: Lab Manager, USC

Viktoriia Goriainova, M.D.

Viktoriia Goriainova, M.D.

Associate Researcher

 

 

MS, New York University

MD, Belgorod State National Research

University, Russia

Now: Ph.D. student, New York University