Marcy J. Balunas, Ph.D.

Associate Professor

Department of Microbiology and Immunology

Department of Medicinal Chemistry

Program in Chemical Biology

Rogel Cancer Center

Michigan Center for Infectious Disease Threats and Pandemic Preparedness

Email: mbalunas@umich.edu

Marcy received a dual B.A./B.A. in Chemistry and Biology from the University of Rochester, an M.S. in Plant Ecology from SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry, and a Ph.D. in Pharmacognosy from the University of Illinois at Chicago. She conducted postdoctoral research at the Scripps Institution of Oceanography (UCSD) in conjunction with the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute. Marcy began her independent career at the University of Connecticut Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences.

Katie McBride, M.S.

Research Staff and Lab Manager

Email: kathmcb@med.umich.edu

B.S. Microbiology - 2016 University of Tennessee, Knoxville
M.S. Microbiology - 2018 University of Tennessee, Knoxville

My career in science has taken me all over the place- from working in a food-pathogen detection lab in high school, to monitoring radioactive wastewater at Oak Ridge National Laboratory, to studying the human gut microbiome. Now in Dr. Balunas' lab I am helping culture bacteria of interest in our search for novel natural products. Additionally, I am responsible for a lot of day-to-day operations as well as safety, general organization, ordering, and morale (that last one I made up, but I like to think it's true...). Outside of the lab you can find me walking my dog, bingeing the latest HBO-melodrama, or trying to learn the rules to a new board game.

Dulce Guillén Matus, Ph.D.

Postdoctoral Fellow

Email: dulceg@med.umich.edu

I’m an oceanographer interested in the chemical ecology of marine microorganisms. I joined the Balunas lab in 2022 after earning my PhD in Marine Biology from Scripps Institution of Oceanography, UCSD. My research focuses on the ecological roles of specialized metabolites from bacterial symbionts in marine invertebrates. I’m trying to gain insights into the interactions between host, environment, and microbiome that drive the evolution of bacterial specialized metabolism.

Gillian Davidson

Ph.D. candidate - Cellular and Molecular Biology

Email: gxd@umich.edu 

Gillian graduated from the University of Texas at Austin in 2021 with a BS in Biochemistry and minor in Sociology. She worked in Dr. Bryan Davies’ lab as an undergraduate student and research technician developing protein therapies against multi-drug resistant pathogens. Gillian is co-advised by the Balunas lab and Lyssiotis lab and is generally interested in using mass spectrometry-based metabolomics to investigate the tumor microenvironment. 

Hobbies include: bouldering, drag shows, and living a Gen-Z life. 

Jennifer Nguyen

Ph.D. candidate - Medicinal Chemistry

Email: nguyenjn@med.umich.edu

I graduated from Ferris State University with a B.S. in Biotechnology and minor in Business Entrepreneurship in 2022. During my undergrad, I worked in Dr. Eric Nybo’s lab on the metabolic engineering of anthracyclines, a main class of chemotherapeutic drug. In the Balunas lab, my project focuses on characterizing bioactive metabolites present in bacterial isolates from a biofilm microenvironment using a metabolomic approach. In my down time, I enjoy reading, making/ eating food, and hiking.

Joey Krampen

Ph.D.  candidate - Microbiology & Immunology

Email: jkrampen@umich.edu

I graduated from Purdue University in 2020 with a B.S. in Agricultural and Biological Engineering and minors in Biotechnology and Management. During my undergraduate experience, I worked in the lab of Dr. John Tesmer performing structural biology experiments, and I also participated in the HHMI’s SEAPHAGES program to isolate novel bacteriophages and annotate their genomes. In the Balunas lab, my work focuses on using metabolomics to characterize the complexity of diverse biologic samples and investigating methods to improve how we elucidate unique features from complex samples. In my free time I enjoy rock climbing, watching movies, reading, and hiking.

Alana Ponte

Ph.D. student - Chemical Biology

Email: aponte@umich.edu

I graduated from Haverford College in 2023 with a B.S. in Chemistry, concentration in biochemistry, and minor in health studies. During my undergraduate training I worked in Dr. Casey Londergan’s lab studying the membrane binding behavior of alpha synuclein. In the Balunas lab, I am excited to apply metabolomics and my background in protein research to investigate microbial metabolism in the context of cancer. Outside of the lab I enjoy baking, crosswords, and paint-by-numbers.

Joshua Barbachyn

PharmD Student

Email: jbarbach@med.umich.edu

I am an aspiring pharmacy student here at the University of Michigan who comes from a chemistry background. Here in the Balunas lab, I hope to assist in new drug discovery by furthering my understanding of complex host/microbe/environment interactions. In my spare time, I enjoy going to Tigers’ games, playing with my dog, playing all sports, traveling, and spending time with family.

Connor Daly

PharmD Student

Email: connord@umich.edu  

I graduated from Grand Valley State University in 2018 with my B.S. in Chemistry and Biomedical Sciences. Now I am pursuing my PharmD. In the Balunas lab, I look to assist with compound discovery that could be used as future antibiotic/antifungal therapies. Outside of academia, I like to explore, play video games, and spend time with my family. 

Andrew Xi

Undergraduate Student

Email: xiandrew@umich.edu 

January 2024 - Present