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Kun Tan, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor
Kun obtained his Ph.D. from China Agricultural University in 2016 and subsequently joined Dr. Miles Wilkinson’s laboratory as a postdoctoral fellow. He was promoted to Assistant Project Scientist in 2021 and then to Assistant Professor in 2023. Kun’s research has spanned a variety of projects, including stem cell biology and developmental biology. His work primarily focuses on the transcriptional and post-transcriptional regulatory mechanisms that influence key developmental decisions.
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Chiara Capponi, Ph.D.
Postdoctoral Fellow
Chiara earned her Ph.D. from La Sapienza University of Rome in Italy. She is particularly interested in male fertility and reproductive biology. Her current research focuses on the characterization and function of spermatogonial stem cells (SSCs), with a particular emphasis on human SSCs.
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Kangfu Peng, Ph.D.
Postdoctoral Fellow
Kangfu earned his Ph.D. from the University of Chinese Academy of Sciences in 2025 and subsequently joined Dr. Tan’s laboratory as a postdoctoral fellow. His current research focuses on (i) the physiological roles of human accelerated regions in neural development, and (ii) post-transcriptional regulatory mechanisms in shaping stem cell fate.
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Sai Sahithya Chamarthy
SRA
Sahithya completed her undergraduate studies at the Sathyabama Institute of Science and Technology, where she worked on superparamagnetic iron oxide nanoparticles and their theragnostic applications. She earned her Master’s degree in the Wilkinson laboratory (through the CIRM program involving both CSUSI and UCSD), focusing on the characterization of spermatogonial stem cells (SSCs). She is currently working on a project defining the genetic changes that drove the evolution of the human brain.
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Jeremy Shishkin
Undergraduate Student
Jeremy is a first-year undergraduate student at UC San Diego majoring in Neurobiology. In the lab, he is currently assisting with a project investigating the role of HAR123 in neural development. He is interested in neurodevelopmental research and plans to pursue a career in medical research. Outside the lab, Jeremy enjoys running, playing tennis, and reading classic novels.
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Sophia Qin
Undergraduate Student
Sophia is an undergraduate student at UC San Diego studying Human Biology. She recently joined the Tan laboratory, where she will soon identify a project to focus on. She is interested in reproductive biology research and is eager to study the mechanisms underlying spermatogonial stem cell (SSC) development, with the long‑term goal of developing stem cell-based therapeutic approaches for reproductive disorders.