Baiyan Qian graduated with a B.S. in Biological Sciences, focusing on Molecular and Biochemistry, from Peking University (2019-2023), where he worked on research in RNA modification and UV recovery in cancer cells. Baiyan is now pursuing his Ph.D. in Chemistry with an emphasis on Chemical Biology at the University of Chicago, studying PTM specificity through combinatorial selection technology. Apart from academics, Baiyan enjoys staying fit, cooking, and repainting figure collections. He’s a big fan of Dragon Ball anime, showcasing his collection in a display cabinet. At the end of the intro, he wants to say, “Genshin, Initiate!”

This is Yufan Zhu, aka 朱俞帆 (IPA [ʈʂu˥ y ˧˥ fan ˥ ]) in case anyone wants to know the characters and pronunciations, who obtained his B.S. in chemical biology at Peking University, College of Chemistry and Molecular Engineering. Trained as a chemist as early as in high school, he would like to try some biology related chemistry or “interdisciplinary things” at first and finally ended up here conducting biology research. His present research focuses protein engineering. “Nerd” as sē dēscrībit, learning languages is one of his interests, mainly Latin and French. He also has some experience in model making, and telling far-too-silly jokes that you might not laugh at.

Alexa Hendricks is a third year undergraduate from Houston, Texas pursuing a double major in Biological Chemistry and English. She is eager to be contributing to novel research and emerging immunotherapy technologies. In her spare time, Alexa enjoys reading, exploring Chicago, and spending time with friends.

Dr. Mengbing Zou, a Peking University PhD graduate, has made significant contributions to analytical chemistry. Her doctoral research led to novel methods for preparing stable isotopically labeled single-strand DNA, enhancing drug-DNA interaction studies via liquid nuclear magnetic resonance technology. Post-PhD, she explored GPCRs and their ligands at Peking University. Currently, at the University of Chicago, she’s advancing in engineering research. Besides her scientific work, Dr. Zou enjoys botany, particularly growing plant seedlings, reflecting her dedication to growth in all aspects of her life.

Jenny Huo is a PhD student in the Committee on Cancer Biology. She received her undergraduate degree in Biochemistry and minor in Philosophy from Smith College. In the lab, she is interested in protein antibody engineering using novel techniques. Outside the lab, she likes to bake desserts, watch anime, take art classes, swim at the Point, and play with her 3 black cats.