Group Members

Graduate Students:

	Katelyn (Katie) Derr: Katie received her B.S. in Biomedical Engineering (May, 2024) from the University of South Carolina and is now a doctoral student in the Interdisciplinary Materials Science program at Vanderbilt. Her research involves developing a microfluidic model to investigate the role of chemokine signaling in diabetic retinopathy pathogenesis. Outside of the lab, Katie enjoys reading, spending time with friends, and hiking.
	Johanna (Jojo) Pearson: Jojo is pursuing a PhD as part of the Interdisciplinary Material Science and Engineering program. Her research pulls from her undergraduate degree in Neuroscience (Case Western Reserve University, 2023) and builds on lab motifs of materials and microfluidics to develop induced pluripotent stem cell derived model of neurovascular coupling (NVC). NVC refers to the complex signaling process employing neurons, glial cells, mural cells, and endothelium to link lumen diameter of blood vessels (and thus local blood flow) to nearby levels of neuronal activity. Such micro-physiological models have applications to the development of treatments for diseases linked to dysfunction of the NVC like Alzheimer’s Disease. Outside of the Jojo can be found surfing, racing jet skis, going to concerts, at the beach, on a boat or a rooftop.
	Mark Mc Veigh: Mark received his B.S. and M.S. in Chemical Engineering (May, 2022) from Northeastern University and is now pursuing his Ph.D. as part of the Interdisciplinary Materials Science program at Vanderbilt. His research is focused on developing a microfluidic platform to inexpensively synthesize radiotracers used in positron emission tomography (PET). Outside of the lab, Mark enjoys playing golf, supporting all of Boston’s sports teams, and attending concerts.
	Victoria Vest: Victoria received her B.S. in Biomedical Engineering (May, 2014) from the University of Tennessee at Knoxville, and is now a doctoral student in the Mechanical Engineering program at Vanderbilt. Her research involves microfabrication techniques and mechanical stimulation to direct organization of biomimetic vasculature in engineered tissue. Outside of the lab, Victoria enjoys Olympic Weightlifting, hiking, and cycling.

Undergraduate Students:

	Cindy Ho: Cindy is a biomedical engineering student working on developing microvasculature models to support the growth and organization of vascular cells. Her research centers on engineering physiologically relevant vessel structures and characterizing their behavior under different mechanical conditions. Outside of the lab, Cindy likes swimming, running, doing pottery, exploring new restaurants, and traveling.
	Charlie Frech: Charlie is working on concurrently completing his MS and BE in biomedical engineering. His research involves using 3D printing to spatially pattern cells in biomaterials. Outside the lab, Charlie enjoys playing soccer, cooking, and skiing.
	Katherine Young: Katherine is a Biomedical Engineering student at Vanderbilt on the pre-MD/PhD track. Her current research involves fabricating artificial microvasculature and conducting mechanical testing of these structures. Outside of the lab, she enjoys working out, participating in musicals, and spending time at the beach.
	Isabella Holtz : Bella is a cognitive studies and medicine, health, and society student at Vanderbilt University. She is investigating microfabrication techniques to direct organization of biomimetic vasculature in engineered tissue. Outside of lab, Bella enjoys reading, embroidering, and golfing.

Openings: We are currently recruiting highly motivated graduate students and postdocs to work on projects related to engineering microvasculature (functional exchange vessels and resistance vessels), applications of thermoresponsive polymers, and microfluidic production of radiotracers. Please contact us for more information.

Lab Alumni:

Name	Bellan Lab Position	Current Position
Dr. Todd Lagus	Postdoctoral Researcher	ExxonMobil
Dr. Xintong Wang	Postdoctoral Researcher	Engineer at Informa Investment Solutions
Matthew Richardson	Undergraduate Researcher	Epic
Quinlan Monk	Undergraduate Researcher	SpaceX
Dominic Ghilardi	Undergraduate Researcher	Lockheed Martin
Bradly Baer	Masters Student	Science Teacher at Metro Nashville Public Schools
Dr. Jung Bok Lee	Postdoctoral Researcher	Yonsei University – Department of Medical Engineering
Jason Wang	Undergraduate Researcher	Graduate Student at UIUC (Bioengineering)
Callie Weber	Undergraduate Researcher	Postdoctoral Researcher at Stanford
Dr. Brian O’Grady	PhD Student	Assistant Professor at Vanderbilt University Medical Center
Dr. Xin Zhang	PhD Student	Amazon
Dr. Shannon Faley	Postdoctoral Researcher	Research Assistant Professor in Biomedical Engineering at Vanderbilt
Lucas McBride	Undergraduate Researcher	Northrop Grumman
Dr. Romario Lobban	Graduate Student	Technology Marketing Fellow at University of Michigan Innovation Partnerships
Reese Popkin	Masters Student	R&D Engineer I at DCIDS Tissue Bank
David Guiracocha	Undergraduate Researcher	Product Industrialization Engineer @ Hankook Tire
Kira Grossman	Undergraduate Researcher	Duke Amgen Scholar
Michael Carroll	Undergraduate Researcher	Majoring in engineering science and English with a minor in engineering management