Past Trainees

Monica Akre, PhD

Dr. Akre's work focused on the use of cell line expression data and corresponding drug responsiveness with the goal of identifying predictive expression profiles to better direct use of effective therapeutics and avoid ineffective options.

Josiah Allen, PharmD

Dr. Allen has led precision medicine efforts in research, industry, and clinical practice for over 15 years. Dr. Allen started his career in clinical research in the Department of Psychiatry & Psychology at the Mayo Clinic and helped to launch the GeneSight pharmacogenomic test, one of the fastest growing molecular diagnostic tests in history. He later served as director of medical affairs at OneOme and currently works as a pharmacogenomics pharmacist at St. Elizabeth Healthcare in the Cincinnati metro area.

Tiana Butler, PharmD

Dr. Butler is a 2018 College of Pharmacy (Duluth) PharmD graduate. After graduation, she completed her post-graduate year one residency training at St. Luke's Hospital in Duluth, MN. She then completed a fellowship in the College of Pharmacy and Essentia Health in Duluth. Her research focused on bringing a pharmacist-managed pharmacogenomics service to a large, rural health system. She is now a pharmacogenomics pharmacist at Fairview MHealth in Brainerd, Minnesota.

Samuel Callisto, PhD

Dr. Callisto received a PhD in Experimental and Clinical Pharmacology at the University of Minnesota College of Pharmacy. During his time in the program he pursued various avenues of research related to precision medicine in neuropharmacology with a focus on anti-seizure drugs. Projects included the effect of patient demographics on likelihood of experiencing side effects from topiramate, the pharmacogenomic underpinnings of lamotrigine clearance changes during pregnancy, and clinical applications of pharmacogenomics to epilepsy treatment. Dr. Callisto is a Senior Scientist at Metrum Research Group.

Hyeong Joo (Bryan) Cho, PharmD

Dr. Cho graduated with a PharmD (2022) from the University of Minnesota. Dr Cho is a medical writer with experience in writing pharmacotherapy and drug information content that has been utilized by practicing clinicians and health professional students. He is now a Medical Information Specialist at Pyrls.

Elise Durgin, PharmD

Dr. Durgin graduated from the University of Minnesota PharmD program. She then completed a PGY-1 residency in Pharmacy Practice at the University of Minnesota. She was the first PGY-2 resident in Clinical Pharmacogenomics at Children’s Minnesota, where her residency focused on developing expert skills providing clinical pharmacogenomic consultations to health-care providers and patients/families. In addition she gained experience developing the educational and EHR resources necessary to implement new clinical services by participating in ongoing pharmacogenomics program expansion at Children’s Minnesota. Dr. Durgin's research evaluated the association of CYP2D6 genotype on treatment outcomes with atomoxetine in patients with ADHD treated at Children's Minnesota. She is now a pharmacogenomics pharmacist at Cuyuna Regional Medical Center in Crosby, Minnesota.

Seenae Eum, PharmD

Dr. Eum earned her B.S. and M.S. in clinical pharmacy at Seoul National University. Subsequently, she completed her Pharm.D. degree and fellowship in clinical psychopharmacology and pharmacogenetics at the University of Minnesota. She is currently a teaching assistant professor at University of Missouri-Kansas City (UMKC) School of Pharmacy. There she conducts discovery research in psychopharmacology and clinically applied pharmacogenomics research.

Katelyn France, PharmD

Dr. France received her PharmD (2025) from the University of Minnesota. She completed a B.S. in Biochemistry and a B.A. in German Studies at the University of Minnesota Duluth. She is the founder and CEO of Scientists Making Your Life Easier (SMYLE) LLC, a medical technologies and mentorship-focused company that produces accessible life-saving medical equipment while also providing opportunities for networking and assistance for students pursuing STEM projects and careers.

Taylor Harding, PhD

Dr. Harding graduated from the PhD program in Biological Sciences at the University of Minnesota. He used pre-clinical modeling to identify transcriptomic signatures that accurately predict drug resistance in multiple myeloma. Additionally, he worked to test new chemotherapeutic approaches to target unique features of the myeloma epigenome and improve the efficacy of current therapies. He is currently a computational biologist at Tempus labs.

Jiayin Huang, BS, MS, PhD

Dr Huang received a PhD (2008) in Experimental and Clinical Pharmacology from the University of Minnesota. He is now a Senior Director - Clinical Pharmacology Modeling & Simulation at Amgen in Deerfield, Ill.

Yingbo Huang, Ms, PhD

Dr. Huang received his PhD from the University of Minnesota. He received his BS in Pharmaceutical Science at China Pharmaceutical University and his MS at the University of the Pacific. As a student, he was interested in developing in vitro and in vivo translational models for cancer research, specifically in bridging the molecular features of cancers and the drug response together. His research focused on analyzing sex differences on genomic & transcriptomic levels of both malignant and healthy tissue, and exploring the pharmacogenomic relevance of these differences. He is currently a postdoctoral fellow at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute.

Megan Hundertmark, PharmD

Dr. Hundertmark graduated from the PharmD program (2020) at the University of Minnesota Duluth campus. During her training, she published a survey, Primary Care Clinicians Attitudes and Knowledge of Pharmacogenetics in a Large, Multi-state, Healthcare System, which showed that primary care clinicians think pharmacogenomics is important for practice and that pharmacists are the best suited to take on the task. She is currently a pharmacist at Hudson Hospital and Clinics.

Gregory Laffen, PharmD

Dr. Laffen graduated from the University of Minnesota PharmD program. He studied pharmacogenomic determinants of the serum uric acid lowering effects of the drug fenofibrate. He worked to determine if genetic markers can be used as predictors of drug response and serum uric acid levels and if they can be used to guide clinical decisions in improving the treatment of gout and help ease the burden of comorbid cardiovascular disease.

Lauren Lemke, PharmD

Dr. Lemke is a clinical pharmacist specialist in charge of implementing and managing the pharmacogenomics service at all Brown University Health hospitals and clinics. Dr. Lemke is an adjunct clinical assistant professor at the University of Rhode Island College of Pharmacy and a clinical pharmacist implementing Pharmacogenomics at Brown University Health, Providence. RI.

Feng Li, PhD

Dr. Li is currently an Associate Professor in theDepartment of Pathology & Immunology Center for Drug Discovery at the Baylor College of Medicine and an Associate Professor Department of Pharmacology and Chemical Biology at the Baylor College of Medicine.

Alex Ling, PhD

Dr. Ling received his PhD from the University of Chicago. Prior to that, he received his BS in Biochemistry at Northern Michigan University. As a student, his research is focused on developing algorithms that use data from cancer cell line monotherapy screens to predict the clinical effectiveness of combination therapies. He is currently an instructor in the Department of Neurosurgery at Brigham’s Women’s hospital.

Janel Long-Boyle, BS, PharmD

Dr. Long-Boyle graduated from the PharmD (2006) program at the University of Minnesota College of Pharmacy. He then received a PhD (2009) in Experimental and Clinical Pharmacology also from the University of Minnesota.Her research interests include pediatric cancer therapeutics, pharmacokinetics, pharmacodynamics, pharmacogenomics, and clinical trial design. The majority of her research resides within the complex setting of hematopoietic cell transplantation (HCT) and is focused around chemotherapeutic and immunosuppressive agents used in the preparative regimens of pediatric HCT. Dr. Long-Boyle is a professor at the University of California, San Francisco.

Danielle Maeser Stover, PhD

Danielle received herPhD in Bioinformatics and Computational Biology (BICB) in the Fall of 2019.

Joshua Mentzer, MS

Joshua Mentzer received his MS (2021) from the University of Minnesota. He has an undergraduate education in Genetics from Iowa State University.

Aritro Nath, PhD

Dr. Nath is a cancer biologist with expertise in both experimental and computational biology. Through the integration of bioinformatics and artificial intelligence/machine learning (AI/ML) tools, his research aims to unravel the underlying mechanisms of tumor progression and establish cutting-edge biomarkers for improving the clinical outcomes of patients with cancer.

Tam Nguyen, PharmD

Dr. Nguyen completed a Doctor of Pharmacy Degree (2021) at the University of Minnesota, College of Pharmacy in 2021. She received a Bachelor of Science in Genetics, Cells Biology, and Development at the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities - College of Biological Science in May 2017. Dr. Nguyed completed a USC pharmacy fellowship and is now Senior Clinical Scientist at Allergan Aesthetic, an AbbVie Company, Irvine, CA.

Malek Okour, PhD

Dr. Okour completed his PhD in Experimental and Clinical Pharmacology. He studied pharmacometrics, and specifically, the pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics analysis of mycophenolic acid (MPA) in kidney transplant recipients. The goal was to individualize therapy while keeping in mind exposure relation to acute rejection and side effects. Dr. Okour is now a director of Clinical Pharmacology, Modeling and Simulation at Servier Pharmaceuticals.

Christopher Olson, PharmD

Dr. Olson graduated from the University of Minnesota PharmD program. As a student, he studied pharmacogenomics of psychotropic medications. His work aimed to analyze various dopamine receptor and transporter single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in relation to participant’s antipsychotic dosing.

Siddhika Pareek, PhD

Dr. Pareek is currently at postdoctoral scholar at the Center for Craniofacial Molecular Biology at Herman Ostrow School of Dentistry at the University of Southern California.

Chaitali Passey, BS, PhD

Dr Passey received a PhD (2012) in Experimental and Clinical Pharmacology from the University of Minnesota with a focus on PK/PD modeling and pharmacogenetics. Dr. Passey is currently a senior director at Genmab in Monmouth Junction, New Jersey.

Rachael Pearson, PharmD

Dr. Pearson graduated from the University of Minnesota PharmD program in 2021. She holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Genetics, Cell Biology, and Development also from the University of Minnesota. She gained experience in basic, translational, and clinical research settings during her PharmD and was in the Experimental and Clinical Pharmacology Research Emphasis Track. Dr. Pearson's research involved determining the frequency of actionable pharmacogenomic variants in a large transplant cohort as well as evaluating the role of pharmacogenomics in the response to post-transplantation medications in human subjects. She now works in Commercial Strategy, OptumRx at UnitedHealth Group.

Rebecca Pulk, PharmD

Dr. Pulk graduated from the University of Minnesota PharmD (2016) program. As a student, she worked to improve the ability to select an optimized tacrolimus dose for kidney transplant patients based on their individual clinical and genetic factors to decrease time to optimal coverage and improve clinical outcomes. She then completed a postdoctoral fellowship at Geisinger Health Systems. She is now the Pharmacogenomics Clinical Coordinator at Yale New Haven Health.

Zach Rivers, PharmD, PhD

Dr. Rivers graduated from the PharmD (2016) program at the University of Minnesota College of Pharmacy. He then received a PhD (2021) in Social and Administrative Pharmacy, also from the University of Minnesota. His research focused on identifying and translating clinically valid pharmacogenomic data into patient care, with an emphasis on overcoming financial and reimbursement barriers. He is now a Senior Scientist, Health Economics and Outcomes Researcher at Tempus AI.

Youssef Roman, PharmD, PhD

Dr. Roman completed his PharmD (2012) from Oregon State University and from the PhD (2017) in Experimental and Clinical Pharmacology at the University of Minnesota. He is now an Associate Professor of Pharmacy Practice and Administrative Sciences at Idaho State University, College of Pharmacy.

Kinjal Sanghavi, PhD

Dr. Sanghavi completed a PhD (2016) in Experimental and Clinical Pharmacology at the University of Minnesota. She studied immunosuppressive therapy in transplantation using population pharmacokinetic and pharmacogenetic approaches to optimize dosing for tacrolimus (for kidney transplant recipients) and fludarabine (for hematopoietic stem cell transplant recipients). She is now Associate Director in Clinical Pharmacology and Pharmacometrics at Genmab.

Abdelrahman Saqr, BS, MS, PhD

Dr. Saqr is a registered pharmacist from Egypt who obtained his bachelor's degree in Pharmaceutical Science from Misr International University in Cairo. He was awarded a Fulbright Scholarship and pursued his academic career by completing a Master's (2022) and a PhD (2025) in Experimental and Clinical Pharmacology at the University of Minnesota. His research interests are centered around the use of pharmacometric approaches, pharmacogenomics, and microbiome in the study of immunosuppressants. In recognition of his academic achievements, he was awarded the Hadsall Uden Award for Pharmacy Advancement and an ASCPT Presidential Training award. He is now a Senior Clinical Pharmacology Manager in the Pharmacometrics Group at Gilead Science in Foster City, CA.

Aileen Scheibner, PharmD

Scheibner graduated from the University of Minnesota PharmD (2019) program. She then completed a PGY-1 residency at University Health System in San Antonio, followed by a PGY2 residency in critical care at Barnes Jewish Hospital. As a student, Dr. Scheibner studied the relationship between fludarabine and cyclophosphamide pharmacokinetics, single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs), and non-relapse mortality, neutrophil engraftment, overall survival and acute graft-versus-host disease in patients undergoing allogeneic nonmyeloablative HCT. Dr. Scheibner is now a critical care clinical pharmacist at the University of New Mexico hospital system.

Stephan Seibert, PharmD

Dr. Seibert graduated from the University of Minnesota PharmD (2018) program. As a student, Dr. Seibert studied the associations between intra-patient tacrolimus pharmacokinetic variability, CYP3A5 loss of function alleles, and acute rejection in a large cohort of African American and European American kidney transplant recipients. He is the Owner and CEO of Marien Apotheke Dorfen.

Tyler Stevens, PharmD

Dr. Stevens is a graduate of the University of Minnesota PharmD (2019) program. He completed a PGY2 residency in Clinical Pharmacogenomics at Children’s Minnesota. His residency focused on enhancing clinical skills in pharmacogenomics and developing expertise in clinical implementation of pharmacogenomics into the electronic health record. Specifically, he helped with implementation of the recent Clinical Pharmacogenetics Implementation Consortium Guideline for CYP2C9 and nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs. Prior to his residency at Children’s Minnesota, Dr. Stevens completed a PGY-1 at CentraCare through the University of Minnesota College of Pharmacy Residency Program. He is now an ambulatory care and pharmacogenomics pharmacist at Essentia Health.

Mei-Chi (Judy) Su, PhD

Dr. Su received her PhD (2024) at the University of Minnesota College of Pharmacy in Experimental and Clinical Pharmacology. She received her Bachelor degree in Pharmacy at Taipei Medical University and Master degree at National Taiwan University. After graduation, she worked in a pharmaceutical company in Taiwan for about 3 years before entering the PhD program. Her current research is finding efficacious drugs for prostate cancer based on the corresponding cancer progression mechanism. She is currently a Scientist - Clinical Pharmacology and Pharmacometrics at BioNTech SE.

Boguang Sun, PharmD, PhD

Dr. Sun graduated from the PharmD program at the University of Minnesota College of Pharmacy. He then received a PhD in Experimental and Clinical Pharmacology also from the University of Minnesota. Dr. Sun is currently at Abbvie.

Takuto Takahashi, MD, PhD

Dr. Takahashi received his MD from the University of Yamanashi in Japan. He completed pediatric residency at SUNY Downstate Medical Center, and a pediatric hematology/oncology fellowship at the University of Minnesota, where he also completed a PhD (2022) in Experimental and Clinical Pharmacology with a focus on PKPD modeling and pharmacogenetics. He joined Dana-Farber Cancer Institute in 2021 as a stem cell transplantation fellow before he became a faculty member in 2022 at Boston Children's Hospital.

Tou Thao, PharmD

Dr Thao graduated from the PharmD program at the University of Minnesota, Dr. Thao is currently completing a PGY1 residency.

Wenyi Wang, MS

Wang completed her Master’s in the Molecular Pharmacology and Therapeutics Program (MPaT). In 2023, she graduated from Zhejiang Gongshang University with a bachelor's degree in finance. During her training, her research focused on developing computer models to predict drug sensitivity in patients using proteomics data.

Jay (Ya-Feng) Wen, PharmD, PhD

Dr. Wen graduated from the PharmD (2017) program at the University of Minnesota College of Pharmacy. He then received a PhD (2021) in Experimental and Clinical Pharmacology also from the University of Minnesota. His research was in clinical implementation of pharmacogenomics in special populations, and microbiome contribution to drug effects. Dr. Wen is now Associate Director in Clinical Pharmacology at Gilead Sciences.

Laylia Yang, PharmD

Dr. Yang has secured a PGY1 residency position at the Madison VA Hospital, with hopes to pursue a PGY2 specialty in mental health, a natural extension of her longstanding interest in psychiatric pharmacy. She plans to remain in the VA system, valuing its continuity and opportunities for patient care.

Mingyi Zhang, PharmD

Dr, Zhang grew up in Tianjin, China, and came to the United States in 2016 to pursue her college education. She earned a Bachelor of Science in Medical Laboratory Sciences from the University of Minnesota–Twin Cities and later completed her PharmD degree (2024) at the University of Minnesota College of Pharmacy. During pharmacy school, she completed two research projects focused on pharmacogenomics and oncology—fields that continue to shape her passion for translational medicine and clinical trials. She is especially interested in bridging scientific discoveries with real-world applications in pharmacy practice, with a growing focus on oncology and infectious diseases. She is now a pharmacy resident at Abbott Northwestern Hospital, Minneapolis.

Weijie Zhang, PhD

Dr. Zhang received his PhD student in the Bioinformatics and Computational Biology program at the U of Minnesota. He also received his M.S. degree in Biostatistics from the School of Public Health at the University of Minnesota, as well. He completed his undergraduate study in biological science at Zhejiang University. He currently works at Moderna.

Yuqi Zhou, MS, PharmD

Dr. Zhou was born and raised in China and graduated with a PharmD (2022) and MS in Health Informatics (2022) from the University of Minnesota. She is now an impatient pharmacist at Allina Health.