Meet The Team

Dr. Melissa Lechner is a physician-scientist and the Principal Investigator of the research group. She did her MD/PhD in the USC/CalTech program in Los Angeles, then completed residencies in Medicine and Pediatrics in Boston at the Harvard Medical School hospitals. She returned to Los Angeles for her clinical fellowship in Endocrinology and then joined the faculty in 2020. Dr. Lechner’s clinical and research interests are related to autoimmune disease resulting from cancer immunotherapy (checkpoint inhibitors) and novel therapies for advanced thyroid cancer. 

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Nicole is a recent UCLA graduate, majoring in Human Biology and Society. She hopes to go to medical school in the future while continuing her interest in research throughout her career. She is interested in the role of inflammatory cytokines in autoimmune disease immunopathology, as well as immune-related adverse events that result from cancer immunotherapy. Born and raised in the Bay Area, she enjoys graphic design, learning different recipes, and exploring new places in her free time.

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Kyleigh moved to Los Angeles from her hometown Noblesville, Indiana motivated by the goal to work in medicine. She recently graduated from UCLA with a degree in microbiology, immunology, and molecular genetics and a minor in disability studies. She wants to continue building on her career in endocrinology and immunology as she is currently applying to medical school. When she is not in the lab, she enjoys exploring California with her family and learning new hobbies.

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Jarod is a graduate student at UCLA in the IMMP PhD program. He graduated from UCSD in 2019 with a degree in Human Biology and a Masters in Biology in 2020. He trained in the Crotty Alexander lab at UCSD, assessing the effects of e-cigarettes in mice. In his free time, he is into photography and bike rides.​​​​​​​

Jaden is a fouth-year student at UCLA majoring in Biology from Huntington Beach, California. He hopes to pursue a career in research and medicine in the future. His current projects include investigating the mechanisms behind autoimmune disease and the establishment of a thyroid tumor model to study Hashimoto's thyroiditis as well as papillary thyroid cancer. In his free time, you can find him doing photography and trying out new foods.​​​​

Esther is a graduate student and medical student in the UCLA Geffen School of Medicine. Her graduate research seeks to understand mechanisms of immune-related adverse events (IrAEs) as a result of cancer immunotherapy treatment. 

Joah is a third-year undergraduate student intending to double major in Human Biology and Society and Economics. She hopes to pursue a career in medicine and research. She is interested in autoimmune diseases and tumor immunology. In her free time, Joah loves camping, hiking, and being in the water.​​​​​​​

Ellie is a second year undergraduate currently studying at Cal Poly Pomona for chemical engineering & materials science and biotechnology with emphasis on cellular, molecular and microbial biology. She is interested in cancer immunotherapy and autoimmune responses and hopes to enter the medical field as a researcher. While she is not studying, she enjoys her job as an equestrian trainer and rider as San Pascual Stables.

Ashwin is a second-year undergraduate majoring in Microbiology, Immunology, & Molecular Genetics, and he aims to pursue a career in medicine and research. He is interested in immuno-oncology and his current project focuses on the mechanisms of checkpoint inhibitor pneumonitis pathophysiology.

Rachelle is a fourth-year student at UCLA majoring in Computational Biology with a specialization in biological data sciences, with plans to pursue a career in computational biology and bioinformatics. Her current research involves investigating sex differences in Hashimoto’s Thyroiditis using bioinformatic approaches. In her free time, Rachelle enjoys baking and playing musical instruments.