Xiuli Wang Lab

Dennis Awuah obtained an M.Sc. in integrated immunology from the University of Oxford and a Ph.D. in immuno-bioengineering from the University of Nottingham, both in the U.K. His research interests have broadly involved the development and characterization of novel blood-stage malaria vaccines to determining the immune-modulatory properties of engineered materials for drug delivery and other applications. As part of his Ph.D., Dr. Awuah investigated the contribution of small RNAs (microRNAs) to the regulation of dendritic cell responses within the context of inflammation. To pursue his interests in translational T cell therapeutics, he joined the Xiuli Wang lab as a postdoctoral fellow in 2019, where he is currently working to improve the safety and design of CAR T cell immunotherapies used against hematologic malignancies in the clinic. In his spare time, he enjoys reading, playing tennis and hiking the California mountains. 
 

Ruby Espinosa joined the Xiuli Wang lab in 2022. 
 

Lior Goldberg, M.D., joined Xiuli Wang’s lab research team in 2020.
 

Min Guan, M.D., Ph.D., earned her M.D. degree at Norman Bethune University of Medical Sciences in China. She completed an internship and residency in clinical medicine at the 1st Hospital of Jilin University. Dr. Guan then completed her M.S. training in the Key National Immunology Lab at Jilin University. She determined her long-term goal of finding a cure for cancer led her to pursue a Ph.D. degree in cancer gene therapy at the University of Navarra, Spain, before she moved to the United States and joined the Department of Medical Oncology & Therapeutics Research at City of Hope as a staff scientist, expanding her research on several chemotherapy agents that targeting multiple solid tumors. Dr. Guan further transitioned to the T Cell Therapeutics Research Laboratory in the Department of Hematology & Hematopoietic Cell Transplantation at City of Hope, where she contributed to developing the CMV-specific CD19 CAR T platform targeting hematology malignancies and CMV-specific HIV N6 CAR T platform targeting AIDS. She is leading on the correlatives for several ongoing clinical trials to translate the findings into the optimization of clinical outcomes for patients. Meanwhile, she is passionate about exploring several novel targets for developing immunotherapy for both hematological and solid tumors that are underserved.
 

Ashlie Munoz earned a B.S. degree in molecular and cellular biology as well as a B.S. in microbiology from California State Polytechnic University San Luis Obispo. Mentored by Elena Keeling, Ph.D., she studied the development and regeneration of the colonial ascidian Botrylloides violaceus. Munoz went on to earn her M.S. degree in biotechnology and lab management from California State University Channel Islands. As a CIRM scholar, further hired to lab manager, she worked under Francesca Mariani, Ph.D., studying bone regeneration in a survival surgical mouse model. Munoz is currently pursuing her doctorate at the Irell & Manella Graduate School of Biological Sciences at City of Hope under co-mentors Xiuli Wang, Ph.D., and Stephen Forman, M.D., with work that focuses on the exhibited beneficial role of the glucocorticoid steroid, dexamethasone, on CAR T cell persistence and efficacy. 
 

Saghar Pahlavanneshan obtained her Ph.D. in genetics in a collaboration between Tarbiat Modares University in Iran and the medical school of University of Geneva, Switzerland. From the Alps to Houston, she traveled to pursue her goals in immunotherapy and genetic engineering. She joined the lab of Ann M. Leen, Ph.D., at Baylor College of Medicine and Texas Children’s Hospital in Houston, and worked on developing T cell therapies for viral infections (CMV, EBV, HHV8) in various disease conditions. In 2022, Dr. Pahlavanneshan joined the Leo Wang lab to work on therapeutic CMV-CD19 bispecific CAR T cells for patients with CD19 + hematologic malignancies. She is excited to pursue her goal in contributing to the advancement of gene therapy and immunotherapy to cure patients in City of Hope.
 

Ryan Urak, Ph.D., is a postdoctoral fellow and CIRM scholar in the Department or Hematology & Hematopoietic Cell Transplantation at City of Hope. Dr. Urak earned his B.S. in biochemistry and biology from University of California Riverside. Later, he earned his M.S. in biological science from California State Polytechnic University Pomona and his doctoral degree in biological science from the Irell & Manella Graduate School of Biological Sciences at City of Hope. 

Dr. Urak has extensive expertise in CAR engineering, immunotherapy, cancer biology and virology. His research focuses on developing novel CAR constructs for enhancing CAR T cell therapy against acute lymphoblastic leukemia, lymphoma, multiple myeloma and HIV. His studies focus on developing CAR constructs that target patient populations that are excluded from current CAR T cells studies.