Our Team

Anna S. Nam, MD - Principal Investigator

Assistant Professor of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, Weill Cornell Medicine

Assistant Professor of Cell and Developmental Biology, Weill Cornell Medicine

Assistant Pathologist, Molecular Hematopathology, New York Presbyterian Hospital

MD, University of Missouri, 2008 - 2014
HHMI-NIH Research Scholar, 2011 - 2013
Anatomic Pathology Resident, Weill Cornell Medicine, 2014 - 2018
Hematopathology Fellow, Weill Cornell Medicine, 2016 - 2017
Clinical Research Fellow, Weill Cornell Medicine and New York Genome Center, 2017 - 2018
Molecular Genetics Pathology Fellow, Weill Cornell Medicine, 2018 - 2019
Instructor of Pathology, Weill Cornell Medicine, 2019 - 2020

Sara Moein, PhD - Research Associate

Sara is experienced in developing and applying machine learning and optimization algorithms on genetics and healthcare data for knowledge discovery. Predicting the outcome of healthcare procedures, modeling gene behavior, and discovering associations between genetic defects and diseases are among her research interests.

Mirca Saras Saurty-Seerunghen, PhD - Post-doctoral Fellow

Mirca’s PhD work focused on single-cell transcriptomics data analysis and experimental validation for discovery of targetable metabolism enzymes in cancer. She is interested in uncovering the cell fate decisions in hematopoietic neoplasms by linking cell state and genetic lineage histories in single cells.

Minwoo Pak, PhD - Post-doctoral Fellow

Minwoo received his Ph.D. degree in Computer Science & Engineering, focusing on the development of machine learning and deep learning methods for analyzing multi-omics data. He hopes to further enhance his expertise in analyzing single-cell multi-omics data, aiming to build a strong foundation in this area. He has a strong passion for embracing new and innovative approaches, and he enjoys the process of working with new data and growing through it.

Ana Spajic, MD - Post-doctoral Fellow

Ana is currently an Anatomic Pathology resident at NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Weill Cornell Medicine. She will be heading to Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in 2027-2028 to complete a fellowship in dermatopathology. Ana was recently awarded the Tri-I StARR Award, which will enable her to spend her final year of residency investigating the genetics of acral melanoma. Outside of work, Ana enjoys playing tennis, running, and exploring New York City’s food scene.

Laura Alunno, PhD - Post-doctoral Fellow

Laura received her PhD from the University of Trento, in Italy, where she studied how genetic variants in the untranslated regions of mRNAs could regulate gene expression at the post-transcriptional level, ultimately shaping cancer evolutionary trajectories. Laura is passionate about understanding cancer through cutting-edge technologies and models to translate basic research findings into a tangible impact on human health in the future. Science is an intrinsic part of her life: she values communication, empathy, scientific rigor and constant learning. Figure skater, horse rider and photographer when not in the lab.

Ted Kang, BA - Computational Research Assistant

Ted is a graduate from Princeton University, where he earned his bachelor's degree in Computer Science. He is excited to gain research experience and learn more about immunology before eventually pursuing a graduate degree in Computational Biology. Outside of work, he enjoys playing basketball, cooking, and watching movies.

Justine Choi, BA - Research Assistant

Justine graduated with her bachelor’s degree in Biological Sciences from Cornell University, where she conducted undergraduate research in microbiology. In the Nam Lab, she is excited to learn more about cancer biology and immunology. Outside of the lab, she enjoys reading and spending time outdoors.

Leila Zaydon - Volunteer Research Assistant

Leila is a current undergraduate student at Barnard College, majoring in Biology on the pre-medical track. She is excited to explore her interests in molecular biology and hematopoiesis while in the lab. She plans to pursue an MD degree after graduation. Outside of the lab, she enjoys running, traveling, and spending time with family.

Laverna Yang - Volunteer Research Assistant

Laverna is a current undergraduate student at Johns Hopkins University majoring in biomedical engineering and computer science. She has experience in cardiology research and medical simulation design for surgical training. She is excited to learn more about single-cell transcriptomics data analysis and immunology. Outside of lab, she enjoys going to movies, concerts, and musicals.