Zaid Vellani is a Sophomore at UCLA. He has a keen interest in Gastroenterology, and is a researcher in The Nguyen Hepatology Lab. Zaid has studied Organic Chemistry for over 5 years under the guidance of instructors from MIT, Stanford, and SUNY. As a researcher, he devises syntheses for photoaffinity probes, and explores the metabolic effects of Branched Chain Amino Acids on Fatty Liver Disease. In the future, Zaid hopes to pursue a career in Pediatric Gastroenterology. His hobbies include wrestling, playing basketball, and running with his dog!

Dr. Conlon earned her PhD from UCONN and did her postdoctoral fellowship at  Stony Brooke University. She remained as a research scientist for over a decade and since then has transitioned to teaching students. She specifically focuses on building intuition about approaching problems, and how to identify key patterns in the material.

Jad Madani is a senior at UCLA, soon to graduate with a bachelor’s degree in biology. His research interests focus on the development and impact of emerging pharmacological therapies and regenerative medical treatments for difficult-to-treat diseases, spanning from debilitating single-enzyme deficiencies to cancer. Graduating from university at just 17 years old, Jad has consistently demonstrated academic excellence driven by a deep intellectual curiosity. His passion for the sciences inspires him to support and mentor motivated students, helping them learn, grow, and thrive both in and beyond the classroom.