Meet the team
Diana K. Morales, Ph.D.
Principal Investigator
Key questions that I am interested in answering: How do non-motile bacteria invade surfaces such as human tissues? What factors are involved in promoting this movement or invasion? What are the underlying physiological and molecular mechanisms? How do specific members within microbial communities interact with each other to modulate their ecological and pathological behavior? What pathways do bacteria dysregulate in the host to facilitate their movement across diverse epithelial barriers?
About Diana: Originally from Bogota, Colombia, I moved to New Hampshire to pursue my Ph.D. at Dartmouth Medical School. After completing my postdoctoral training at Harvard Medical School, I joined WCM as an Assistant Professor in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology. Besides the lab, I love illustrating unique microbial phenotypes in my paintings. I also enjoy traveling, exploring new places, and pampering my doggies.Current Members
Wiam A.M. Madani
PhD Student, IMP Graduate Program
“I received my B.A. in Biology and Neuroscience from St. Olaf College in 2021. During my undergraduate studies, I explored mechanisms of nutrient uptake in the bacterium Caulobacter crescentus. Following that, I joined Dr. Bob Langer’s lab at MIT, where I contributed to the development of novel gastrointestinal devices for drug delivery. I then worked in Dr. Leigh Goedeke’s lab at Mount Sinai, focusing on the role of ubiquitin ligases in cholesterol metabolism and atherosclerosis. In 2023, I joined the IMP graduate program at Weill Cornell.
My current project, co-mentored by Dr. Morales and Dr. Cubillos-Ruiz, centers on understanding how non-motile pathobionts manipulate adaptive stress pathways in host cells to exit the gastrointestinal tract. Additionally, I am investigating how this microbial translocation affects immune cell function in distant tissues, influencing inflammation and overall host physiology. Outside the lab, I enjoy listening to music, cooking, staying active, and exploring new restaurants.” Project: Systemic Immunoregulatory Consequences of Gut Microbial Translocation.Reditha Yousafo
High School Senior Student
Haoyu Zheng
Research Technician
Chen Tan, Ph.D.
Research Specialist and Lab Manager
Former Members
Kylie Huber.
Period: June – August 2024
Position/Site: Undergraduate student, Cornell University.
Project: Investigating the Mechanisms of Gut Barrier Translocation by Enterococcus faecalis.
Yusibeska Ramos, Ph.D.
Period: 2017 – April 2024
Position/Site: Postdoctoral Fellow and Research Associate
Project: Molecular programs driving surface invasion by Enterococcal multicellular communities.
Ashley Llenas.
Period: June 2023
Position/Site: Traveller Research Fellow
Project: Investigating the Mechanisms of Gut Barrier Translocation by Enterococcus faecalis.
Stephanie Sansone, M.D.
Period: January 2021 – June 2023
Position/Site: Urology Clinical Fellow
Project: Tissue penetration and invasion by Enterococci: Implications for the female reproductive tract.
Recipient of the June Allyson Memorial Fund Research Award Grant
Current Position: Urologist at the Hackensack Meridian Health.
Melanie Collana
Period: June 2019 – September 2019
Position/Site: High School Summer Research Program
Project: Exopolysaccharides as drivers of surface penetration by Enterococcus faecalis.
Current Position: Undergraduate student at Stony Brook University.