Our Members

Current Members

Karl Willert, PhD

Principal Investigator
kwillert@health.ucsd.edu

Karl received his Ph.D. from UCSF, did his post-doctoral research at Stanford, and joined UCSD as an Assistant Professor in 2008. He is currently a Professor of Cellular and Molecular Medicine.

Christina C. N. Wu, PhD

Project Scientist
c5wu@health.ucsd.edu

Naycari De Luna

Lab Manager
n1deluna@health.ucsd.edu

Erin D. Jeffs, MS

Staff Research Associate
erjeffs@health.ucsd.edu

Erin earned her graduate degree through Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo’s Regenerative Medicine Program and is thrilled to be a member of the Willert Lab.  Her research is focused on the role of FZD7 as both a cancer stem cell marker and therapeutic target for mammary tumors.  Erin’s work involves both in vitro mammary organoid studies as well as in vivo cell transplantation studies in a murine model.  When not in lab, Erin enjoys playing video games, hiking, and rock climbing.

Sakshi Pradhan

Master’s Student
spradhan3408@sdsu.edu

Rylee Start

Ph.D. Student
rstart@ucsd.edu

Rylee completed his Bachelor of Science in Molecular and Cell Biology at the University of California – San Diego. He joined the Willert lab in March 2021 as an undergraduate student and he has since joined the lab as a Staff Research Associate. He has been working on protein purification and studying WNT9A/FZD9 signaling in HSC development. In his free time, Rylee enjoys card games, cooking, and exploring San Diego.

Ashley Key

Staff Research Associate
arkey@health.ucsd.edu

Ashley was a visiting undergraduate from the CIRM Bridges to Stem Cell Research Internship Program, and she has since joined the lab as a Staff Research Associate.  Her research focuses on exploring FZD7 as an exosomal biomarker for early and non-invasive cancer detection in vitro in ovarian cancer cell lines and in vivo in murine mammary cancer models.  Her own experiences as a stage 3 cancer survivor ignited her interest in research and drives her passion behind her work.  Outside of the lab, Ashley loves playing tabletop games, spending quality time with her husband, dog, and cat, strength training, and learning how to play bass guitar.

Meghana Krishnan

Undergraduate Student
mkrishnan@ucsd.edu

Erin Hairston

CIRM Undergraduate Student