Members of the Stein Laboratory
Dr. Lisa Stein
Principal Investigator at the Stein Laboratory
Professor of Climate Change Microbiology
Associate Dean of Mentorship & Awards
Dr. Lisa Stein is a champion of climate change microbiology, carrying the message that microorganisms are capable of influencing atmospheric changes across the globe…
Marina Lazic, PhD
Laboratory Manager
Dr. Marina Lazic is a highly accomplished researcher and educator with a strong background in microbiology and biotechnology. She completed her PhD at the University of Alberta, where she also serves as an academic instructor and research associate. Dr. Lazic has extensive experience in laboratory coordination and teaching, specializing in microbial physiology, applied microbiology, and molecular biology techniques.
Dr. Lazic’s PhD thesis research focused on optimizing the production and detection of polyhydroxybutyrate (PHB) in the alphaproteobacterial methanotroph Methylocystis sp. Rockwell. Her study aimed to enhance PHB production by Methylocystis sp. Rockwell using different combinations of methane and methanol, with varying nitrogen sources. The results highlighted the significance of the methane/methanol combination for PHB production and introduced a novel, environmentally friendly approach for direct PHB detection in methanotrophic cells.
During her MS thesis research, Dr. Lazic focused on improving the properties of a synthetic module designed for controlling gene expression in mammals using near-infrared light (NIRW). Dr. Lazic engineered novel bacteriophytochrome diguanylate cyclases (DGC) that expresses higher activity under physiological conditions (at 37 ºC) and a slower reversion rate from the active to the inactive state compared to natural or earlier engineered enzymes.
Dr. Lazic has served as secodnary prinicipal investigator for the iGEM 2023 team at the University of Alberta. The team 2023 developed an innovative system for the automatized detection of infected crops. The developed system represents integration between synthetic biology, artificial intelligence (AI), mechanical, and software engineering to create a molecular diagnostic for crop pathogen detection. Currently, Dr. Lazic is developing climate change prevention – related i GEM 2024 project where the team will atempt to mitigate both, methane emission and traditional plastic release into the environment.
Brittany Sauter
Graduate Student
Brittany began working at the Stein laboratory as an undergraduate student researcher in the Ecology, Evolution and Environmental Biology Specialization program. Her undergraduate project involved researching aquaponics mini systems to determine what pH provides greater biomass of both fish and plants.
As a graduate student, Brittany has moved on to the study of invasive crabs
Cerrise Weiblen
Graduate Student
Cerrise is studying the intersection of methane, nitrogen, and oxygen cycling in methanotrophs. This work is fueled by the insight that the contribution of microorganisms to the global atmosphere has been wildly underestimated and disregarded in the past.
Their research includes proteomic and transcriptomic analysis of the bacterium Methylomonas denitrificans strain FJG1, which prompted an ecological survey for hypoxia-related genes unique to the Methylococcales order. These bacteria are an integral part of the Earth’s atmospheric regulation, capturing vast amounts of methane gas and responding to declining oxygen levels with the production of nitrous oxide.
Aaron Turner
Graduate Student
Aaron is looking to discover temperate and virulent bacteriophages infecting Ammonia-Oxidizing Bacteria (AOB). This work aims to develop a viral-based approach to control AOB-driven nitrification, ultimately to deplete greenhouse gas emissions in agriculture and increase soil fertility.
Elizabeth Arenas
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim
Maryssa Iacobelli
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim
Mehnaz Bushra Hamid
Graduate Student
Mehnaz is a graduate student pursuing a Master’s in Biological Science with a background in Biotechnology from Bangladesh. Her current research focuses on assessing the effect on biological nitrification inhibitors on ammonia oxidizing and methane oxidizing bacteria, to reduce emissions of greenhouse gases, specifically nitrous oxide and methane. Passionate about environmental conservation, she aims to contribute innovative solutions to combat climate change.
Nina Deschner
Nina started as an undergraduate researcher in the Stein lab working on isolating Methane-Oxidizing Bacteria (MOB) that produce polyhydroxybutyrate (PHB) from environmental samples. Her current research focuses on harnessing and advancing the genetic engineering potential of MOBs as a means to address greenhouse gas emissions and climate change. Nina is also passionate about the field of synthetic biology and served as the director of the laboratory for the 2023 UAlberta iGEM team and is an advisor for the 2024 team.
Rachel Rieberger
Rachael began in the Stein lab as an undergraduate researcher in the Molecular, Cellular, and Developmental Biology specialization program, investigating how different combinations of methane and methanol impact the growth and polyhydroxybutyrate (PHB) production in the methanotrophic bacteria Methylocystis sp. Rockwell. She also worked on a project growing and maintaining Ammonia-Oxidizing Bacteria (AOB). Her current research focuses on the adaptation of another methanotrophic bacteria Methylomicrobium album BG8 for growing in acidic conditions. Rachael also served as a laboratory member and lead administrator for the 2023 UAlberta iGEM team and is an advisor for the 2024 UAlberta iGEM team.
Liliana Van
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim
Fabián Rondon
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim
Youssef Mohamed
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim
Previous Lab Members
Phillip Sun, MSc 2023
Hem Sharma, PhD 2023
Peyman Derik Vand, PhD 2023
Shibashis Das, PhD 2023
Marc Waddingham, MSc 2023
Sujani Gomes, MSc 2022
Mariah Hermary, MSc 2022
Marina Lazic, PhD 2022
Yusheng Tan, PhD 2021
Fatemeh Zibiari, PhD 2020
Beatriz Cabral E Pacheco, PhD 2020
Miranda Stahn, MSc 2019
Kieran McDonald, MSc 2019
Scott Sugden, MSc 2019
Catherine Tays, PhD 2019
Kerim Kits, PhD 2016
Jessica Kozlowski, PhD 2016
Jorge Zaldívar-Carillo, MSc 2015
Mohammad Ghashghavi, MSc 2014
Misha Miazga-Rodriguez, MSc 2014
Lynnie Cua, PhD 2010
Gyorgyi Nyerges, PhD 2008
Miyuki Yamamoto, MSc 2008
Undergraduate Researchers
Youssef Mohamed, 2024-pres
Brittany Green, 2024-pres
Mofi Awoluyi, 2023-pres
Nina Deschner, 2023-pres
Rachael Rieberger, 2022-pres
Soren Skaret, 2023
Joseph Drake, 2023
Preston Tran, 2023
Umut Oktay, 2023-2023
Leeying Lau, 2022-2023
Tian Du, 2022-2023
Liye Fang, 2021-2022
Kai Jun Ma, 2020-2022
Liliana Van, 2020-2021
Sri Malika Vuyyuru, 2020
Dan Elmais, 2019-2020
Brittany Sauter, 2019-2020
Emily Marfleet, 2019-2020
Malena Szechman Pintos, 2019-2021
Luke Barretto, 2019-2020
Liam Rieder, 2019
Nigel Tan, 2019
Mujtaba Siddique, 2018-2019
Anushree Patel, 2018
Emily Johnson, 2018-2019
Yana Kibalnyk, 2018-2019
Mariah Hermary, 2017-2018
Sarah Almas, 2016-2017
Jordon Chan, 2016-2017
Phillip Sun, 2016-2017
Marc Waddingham, 2014-2015
Gauri Chaggar, 2014
Maria Cavaco, 2013
Catherine Tays, 2011-2012
Ariel Kangasneimi, 2010-2011
Misha Miazga-Rodriguez, 2010-2011
Kerry Wong, 2009-2010
Erin Ma, 2009-2010
Brian Yakiwchuk, 2009-2010
Kai Wei, 2009-2010
Trevor Blois, 2009-2010
Dustin Campbell, 2009-2010
Kerim Kits, 2007-2008
Saadia Tariq, 2007
Chris Villanueva, 2006-2007
Stuart Le, 2005-2006
Joshua Tietjen, 2004-2005
Sean Mathews, 2004-2005
Clinton Allison, 2002-2003