MEET THE LAB

Carrie Partch (CV)
Principal Investigator
Email Address:
Superpower: Prolific consumption of caffeinated beverages
I graduated from the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill with a Ph.D. in Biochemistry and Biophysics, where I worked with Aziz Sancar to study the molecular basis of circadian rhythmicity. I went to the 'dark side' for my postdoctoral fellowship, training in biophysical techniques including solution NMR spectroscopy at UT Southwestern Medical Center. I worked with Kevin Gardner to identify novel structural regulatory motifs on the hypoxia-inducible transcription factor, HIF, and with Joe Takahashi, to study the related bHLH-PAS transcription factor that drives circadian rhythmicity, CLOCK:BMAL1. In our lab, we strive to address these questions: How do animals measure time and use it to control biology on a daily basis?

Maria Ayala
Undergraduate research assistant | UCSC STEM Diversity Dreamer's Program
Superpower: Capturing nature's beauty in a photograph

Priya Crosby
EMBO Long-Term Postdoctoral Fellow
Ph.D., MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology
Email address:
Superpower: I have an encyclopedic knowledge of 'The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy'
I graduated from St. Catharine's College, Cambridge in 2013 with a BA in Natural Sciences (Pharmacology). I subsequently completed my PhD - entitled 'Metabolic regulation of circadian timekeeping' - at the MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology, also in Cambridge, under the supervision of Dr. John O'Neill. Having decided that there were far too many interesting questions in circadian biology to stop quite yet, I joined the Partch Lab in 2018

Diana Etwaru
Undergraduate research assistant
Superpower: Painting everything from landscapes to memes

Alfred Freeberg
Undergraduate research assistant
Superpower: Orchestrating elaborate venmo payments

Jennifer Fribourgh
UCSC Chancellor's Postdoctoral Fellow
Ph.D., Yale University
Email address:
Superpower: Zen master of chromatography
I graduated from Yale University with a Ph.D. in Molecular Biophysics and Biochemistry. There I worked with Yong Xiong to investigate the innate immune response to HIV infection. In the Partch lab, I am working on elucidating structural and biochemical characteristics of the core clock proteins.

Crystal Garcia
Undergraduate research assistant | California Alliance for Minority Participation (CAMP) Scholar
Superpower: If it's not labeled, it will be once I get my hands on it

Adriana Gracia
Undergraduate research assistant
Superpower: Knowing all the lyrics to most Disney songs

Ray Harold
Graduate student
Superpower: Whipping floppy protein tails into line
I graduated from the University of Montevallo with a B.S. in Biology and a minor in Chemistry.

Taylor Holt
Undergraduate research assistant
Superpower: Chasing down post-translational modifications

Joseph Palacios
Undergraduate research assistant | NIH IMSD Scholar
Superpower: The patience to handle proteins, long lab experiments, and your attitude.
I’m a transfer student from Modesto Junior College. As an undergrad at UCSC, I’ve become a member of STEM Diversity program and the NIH-funded Initiative for Maximizing Student Development (IMSD).

Gian Carlo Parico
Graduate student | HHMI Gilliam Fellow
Superpower: Screening for circadian rhythms drugs for Batman can work the (K)night shift
I graduated from UC San Diego with a B.S. in Bioengineering. After spending a few years in the biotech industry working on intrinsically-disordered proteins, it only felt natural to go back to school and study protein structure. In 2017, I joined the Partch lab to research how protein-protein interactions lead to 24-hour timekeeping in the cell.

Jon Philpott
Graduate student
Superpower: Woodworking / carpentry
I finished my undergraduate degree up in beautiful northern California, where I studied biochemistry and applied statistics at Humboldt State University. I joined the Partch lab because I am fascinated by how structural biology and biochemistry can inform our understanding of emergent phenomena such as circadian rhythms.

Andrea Ramos Coronado
Undergraduate research assistant | NIH IMSD Scholar
Superpower: Lifting weights and eating lots of food!

Becca Spangler
Joint graduate student with Jordan Ward's lab
Superpower: Making it all look so easy...
I graduated from San Jose State University with a B.S. in Biochemistry and a minor in Biology. In 2019, I joined the Partch lab to study the similarities between different biological time-keeping mechanisms.

Jeff Swan
Graduate student
Superpower: Kinetics, kinetics and more kinetics!
B.S. Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Michigan State University
M.S. Chemistry, University of Colorado at Boulder
My scientific career up to this point has focused primarily on structural kinetics and the enzymology of phosphoryl transfer. In the Partch lab, I am interested in understanding how the coordination of these processes is transduced into biological rhythmicity. To this end, I will be studying a (relatively) simplified circadian clock derived from cyanobacteria.
Former lab members
Britney Hernandez, B.S. UCSC
Megan Torgrimson, B.S. UCSC; UCSC PBSE Graduate Program
Dr. Sabrina Hunt; Research Scientist, Codexis, Inc.
Lauren Yee, UCSC
Dr. Efrain Ceh Pavia; Research Scientist, Planet Pharma/Grifols Diagnostics Solutions
Ivette Perez, B.S. UCSC (IMSD Scholar); Vanderbilt University Graduate Program
Kiernan Kringen, B.S. UCSC
Ali Yousefi, B.S. UCSC
Courtney Dailley, B.S. UCSC
Leslee Nguyen, B.S. UCSC; Two Pore Guys
Priyanka Panchal (NIH ACCESS Scholar), Undergraduate at Monterey Peninsula Community College
Dr. Alicia Michael, Ph.D. UCSC; EMBO Postdoctoral Fellow, Lab of Nico Thoma (FMI, Basel, Switzerland)
Divya Ramani, B.S. UCSC
Riley Mahn, B.S. UCSC
Dr. Hande Asimgil; Research Scientist, LMU Munich
Dr. Chelsea Gustafson, Ph.D UCSC; Assistant Professor, Oregon Institute of Technology Dept. of Natural Science
Niki Goularte, B.S. UCSC; Stanford University Dept. of Structural Biology Ph.D. program / NSF Predoctoral Fellow
Kyle Franks, B.S. UCSC; Inside Sales Representative, Thermo Fisher
Jansen Luu, B.S. UCSC; Manufacturing Associate, Biomarin
Ashley Kern, M.S. UCSC; Scientist, Wellnext
Chris Ahlbach, B.S. UCSC; M.D. program, UCSF Medical School
Marisol Sanchez (NIH ACCESS Scholar), UC Davis undergraduate
Nicole Parsley, B.S. UCSC; UNC Dept. of Chemistry Ph.D. program
Colby Sandate, B.S. UCSC; Scripps Research Institute Dept. of Chemistry Ph.D. program / NSF Predoctoral Fellow
Michael Sanchez (NIH ACCESS Scholar), UCSC undergraduate
Dr. Stacy Harvey; Project Scientist, Boeger Lab @ UCSC
Jaclyn Schmitt, M.S., Cabrillo College, Adjunct Lecturer
Patrick Sammons, B.S. UCSC; M.D. program, USC Medical School
Hema Kopalle, B.A. UCSC; M.S. program, UCSD
Kathy Huang, B.S. UCSD
Mariah Heller (NIH ACCESS Scholar), B.S. UC Davis
Kevin Hagy, B.S. UCSC; UCSC Dept. of MCD Biology Ph.D. program
Matthew Chung, B.S., UCSC; Research Assistant, Stanford University School of Medicine
Paul Wang, B.S., UCSC; Research Assistant, UCSF Center for Aging and Memory
Jessica Macias (NIH MARC Scholar), B.S. UCSC; CSUMB Dept. of Marine Science M.S. Program