CAD cells connected by a network of TNTs.

Life is not easy for any of us. But what of that? We must have perseverance and above all confidence in ourselves. We must believe that we are gifted for something and that this thing must be attained.

Marie Curie

CAD cells connected by a network of TNTs. Picture acquired by Karine Gousset, Zurzolo Lab, Pasteur Institute, Paris, France.

Current Lab Members

Graduate Students

Dylan Tanner Biology

Undergraduate Students

Palak Tohan Biology
Yashdeep Grewal Biology

Lab Alumni (Where they are now)

Ana Ramirez Perez, MS Biology Biology (Graduated)

Attending the University of California, Davis as a Ph.D. Candidate

2025 Poster and Abstract on “Determining the Role of L-Plastin in Tunneling Nanotube Formation” at the CSU Biotechnology Symposium.

2025 Poster and Oral Presentation on “Exploring the Role of L-plastin in the Formation of Tunneling Nanotubes.” at the Central California Research Symposium; won UCSF Outstanding Graduate Oral Presentation.

2024 CCRS Poster and Oral Presentation on “Analyzing the Role of L-Plastin in the Formation of Tunneling Nanotubes” at the Central California Research Symposium; won UCSF Honorable Mention Graduate Oral Presentation.

2024/2025 CSU Fresno, Department of Biology Outstanding Thesis Award Winner

Ramandeep Kaur, MS Biology Biology (Graduated)

Associate Researcher, 1Cell.Ai Inc.

2024 Poster and Oral Presentation on “Role of Lactate Dehydrogenase B in the formation of tunneling Nanotubes (TNTs)” at the Central California Research Symposium.

Destiny Ortiz, BS Biology Biology (Graduated)

2024 Poster and Oral Presentation on “Effect of Fixation on Immunofluorescence” at the Central California Research Symposium; won an Honorable Mention for her oral presentation.

NSF LSAMP Scholar.

Ajmeet Pama-Ghuman, BS Biology Biology (Graduated)

Attending UCSF School of Medicine.

2024 Poster and Oral Presentation on “Characterization of the Transcriptomes of Specific Subtypes of Cellular Protrusions Isolated by Laser Capture Microdissection” at the Central California Research Symposium; won an Honorable Mention for her oral presentation.

Vinita Raj, BS Biology Biology (Graduated)

Emergency Medicine Scribe, UCSF Fresno

Rutva Rajput, MS Biotechnology Biology (Graduated)

Research Associate II, Nitto BioPharma

Scientist (Protein Expression and Purification), Evotec

Research Associate, Immuno-epigenetics (Co-op), Moderna

2022/2023 FSSRA Award winner.

Michelle Patterson, MS Biology Biology (Graduated)

Bioscience Account Manager III, Thermo Fisher Scientific

2018/2019 FSSRA Award winner.

Daniel Savala, MS Biology Biology (Graduated)

Fresno State/UC Davis Bridges to Doctorate Program

2023 Poster and Abstract on “Exploring the Role of Protein-X in Tunneling Nanotube Formation” at the CSU Biotechnology Symposium.

2022 Poster and Oral Presentation on “Exploring the Role of Protein-X in Tunneling Nanotube Formation” at the Central California Research Symposium.

Noe Green, MS Biology Biology (Graduated)

Attending the Arizona State University as a Ph.D. Candidate

2022 Poster and Oral Presentation on “How does the expression of Protein X influence Tunneling Nanotube formation in neuronal cells?” at the Central California Research Symposium.

Nicolas Putnam, MS Biology Biology (Graduated)

Product Applications Specialist III, Thermo Fisher Scientific

Product Applications Specialist II, Thermo Fisher Scientific

2021 Poster and Oral Presentation on “Antimycin A Leads to the Upregulation of Myo10 and Tunneling Nanotube Formation” at the Central California Research Symposium.

Alan Pham, BS Biology Biology (Graduated)

Attending UCSF School of Medicine.

2019 ASCB Poster and Abstract for “Physiological Concentrations of Hydrogen Peroxide and Glutamate, Induce Tunneling Nanotube Formation in Hela and Cad Cells.”

2019 Poster and Oral Presentation on “Do Physiological Concentration Of Hydrogen Peroxide And Glutamate Affect The Expression Of Myosin X In Cancer Cells?” at the Central California Research Symposium.

Paria Azami, MS Biology Biology (Graduated)

Biology Instructor, Reedley College

Attending the University of California, Riverside as a Ph.D. Candidate

2020 Poster and Oral Presentation on “The Role of CD7 Protein in Tunneling Nanotube Formation” at the Central California Research Symposium.

2019/2020 FSSRA Award winner for “The importance of the mitochondria in TNT formation and function.”

Zoua Xiong, BS Biology Biology (Graduated)

2019 ASCB Poster and Abstract for “Physiological Concentrations of Hydrogen Peroxide and Glutamate, Induce Tunneling Nanotube Formation in Hela and Cad Cells.”

Andreina Trujillo Banuelos, MS Biology Biology (Graduated)

Scientist I, Cytek BioScience, Fremont, CA.

2019 Poster and Oral Presentation on “The Role Of Mitochondrial Dna In Tunneling Nanotubes Formation In Rho Cells” at the Central California Research Symposium.

2017/2018 FSSRA Award winner for “The importance of the mitochondria in TNT formation and function.”

2017/2018 Graduate Net Initiative Award winner for “CRISPR/Cas9-mediated fluorescent tagging of endogenous Myosin-X in a stable neuronal cell line.”

Abigail Ajanel, MS Biology Biology (Graduated)

Attending Washington University in St. Louis as a Ph.D. candidate.

Attended University of Utah as a Ph.D. candidate.

2020 Poster and Oral Presentation on “The Effect of Hydrogen Peroxide and Glutamate on Myosin-X expression and TNT Formation.” at the Central California Research Symposium.

2019 ASCB Poster and Abstract for “Physiological Concentrations of Hydrogen Peroxide and Glutamate, Induce Tunneling Nanotube Formation in Hela and Cad Cells.”

2019 Poster and Oral Presentation on “Physiological Concentrations Of Hydrogen Peroxide And Glutamate, Induce Tunneling Nanotube Formation In Hela Cells” at the Central California Research Symposium; won Honorable Mention Oral Presentation.

2018/2019 FSSRA Award winner.

Tariq Sakoury, MS Biology Biology (Graduated)

Physician Assistant, Inspire Health Mdical Group, Fresno, CA.

2018/2019 FSSRA Award winner.

Jaime Uhl, MS Biology Biology (Graduated)

Graduated SUNY Upstate Medical University CLS

2018 Poster and Oral Presentation on “Fluorescence In Situ Hybridization (FISH) to Study the Role of Myo10 in TNTs” at the Central California Research Symposium.

2018/2019 FSSRA Award winner.

2017/2018, 2016/2017 Graduate Net Initiative Award winner for “CRISPR/Cas9-mediated fluorescent tagging of endogenous Myosin-X in a stable neuronal cell line.”

2017/2018 and 2016/2017 FSSRA Award winner.

Joanna De La Pena, BS Biology Biology (Graduated)

Program Supervisor, Think Togehter, Sacramento, CA.

Attended the University of California, Davis as a Ph.D. Candidate

NSF LSAMP Scholar.

Noah Contreras, BS Biology Biology (Graduated)

Graduated Kaiser Permanente Bernard J. Tyson School of Medicine.

2018/2019 FSSRA Award winner.

Maeghan Tovar Sierra High School (Graduated)

Software Engineer, Atlassian

Graduated from Stanford University with a B.S. in Computer Science

2018 ASCB Poster and Abstract for “The proteolysis of Myo10, by Calpain, under low calcium conditions is activated by its FERM domain Acyl-CoA Binding Protein Motif.”

Pablo Guaman Tipan, BS Biology Biology (Graduated)

Attending University of Texas at Austin as a Ph.D. candidate.

Staff Research Associate I, Lab of Dr. Daniele Piomelli, UC Irvine, CA.

2017/2018 FSSRA Award winner for “Development of Pichia pastoris as a model system for Myosin X-induced filopodia formation.”

2017 CCRS Poster and Abstract, 2016 ASCB Poster and Abstract, 2016 CSU Biotechnology Symposium Poster and Abstract, and 2016 CSUPERB Presidents’ Commission Scholars Award winner.

2016/17 CSU Fresno Undergraduate Research Awardee.

Puneet Sran, BS Biology Biology (Graduated)

Graduated from UC Davis School of Medicine.

2017 CCRS Poster and Abstract for “Interaction of Myosin-X with mRNP Complexes.”

2016/17 CSU Fresno Undergraduate Research Awardee for “Interactions of Myosin-X with nuclear and mRNP complex proteins.”

Dr. Ana Gordon Post-Doctoral Fellow

Fundación Martín Escudero (Spain) Post-Doctoral Fellow, 2016–2018.

Chinka Pruthi, MS Biotechnology Biology (Graduated)

Scientist I, AbbVie

Associate Scientist II, AbbVie

2013/2014 FSSRA Award winner for “The formation of TNTs in macrophages.”

Cameron Saunders, BS Biology Biology (Graduated)
Vivian Lo, BS Biology Biology (Graduated)

I3 Institute Scholar, University of Pittsburgh School of Information Sciences.

Ellen Douglass, BS Biology Biology (Graduated)
Lesly Pereira-Fita, BS Biology Biology (Graduated)

Quality Assurance Manager/Project Manager, Twin Arbor Labs

Adjunct Faculty, Allan Hancock College

Adjunct Faculty Instructor, Reedley College

Vinisha Prajapati Clovis North High School

Attending the University of Illinois College of Law.

Graduated from Penn State University.

Maria Silvia Melgarejo, BS Biology Biology (Graduated)

Post Baccalaureate Program, CSU East Bay.

Rachel Lee Nelson, BS Biology Biology (Graduated)

NSF LSAMP Scholar.

Michelle Cha Clovis West High School
Shivalee Gujarathi, MS Biotechnology Biology (Graduated)

Senior Manager, Guardant Health, San Marcos, CA.

Senior Clinical Trial Manager, Guardant Health, San Marcos, CA.

Clinical Trial Manager, Guardant Health, San Marcos, CA.

Senior Clinical Research Associate, Thermo Fisher Scientific, Carlsbad, CA.

Scientist III, Molecular Biology, Thermo Fisher Scientific, Carlsbad, CA.

Scientist II, Molecular Biology, Thermo Fisher Scientific, Carlsbad, CA.

2015 CCRS Poster and Abstract, 2015 CSU Biotechnology Symposium Poster and Abstract, 2014/2015 FSSRA Award winner, 2014 CCRS Poster and Abstract, and 2013/2014 FSSRA Award winner for HIV-1 Nef/TNT-related projects.

Stacy Han, BS Biology Biology (Graduated)

Assistant Professor, Medicine, UCSF School of Medicine

Graduated from UCSF School of Medicine.

2015 CSU Fresno Department of Biology Outstanding Undergraduate Award.

2015 CCRS Poster and Abstract, 2015 CSU Biotechnology Symposium Poster and Abstract, 2014/2015 FSSRA Award winner, 2013/2014 FSSRA Award winner, and 2014 CSU Fresno Undergraduate Research Awardee for Myo10/FERM domain projects.

Shahana Saadat Farooqi Summer Undergraduate Research Fellow

Attending UC Berkeley School of Law (JD expected May 2026)

Graduated UC Berkeley, B.A. in Public Health.

Maria Mendoza, BS and MS Biology Biology (Graduated)

Switched to a Microbiology focused lab.

NIH CSU Fresno/UC Merced Bridges to Doctorate Program Scholar and NSF LSAMP Scholar.

Joselyn Navarrette, BS Biology Biology (Graduated)

2016/2017 FSSRA Award winner and 2016/17 CSU Fresno Undergraduate Research Awardee for HIV-1 Nef/TNT projects.

Rekha Rangan, BS Biology Biology (Honors Program) (Graduated)

Senior Medical Writer, Avant Healthcare

Medical Writer, Avant Healthcare

Research Engineering/Scientist Associate I and Lab Manager, UT Texas at Austin

Research Engineering/Scientist Associate II and Lab Manager, UT Texas at Austin

Research Technician, Allergan

Graduated UC Irvine, M.S. in Biology.

2017 CCRS Poster and Abstract and 2016/17 CSU Fresno Undergraduate Research Awardee for Myosin-X projects.

Shravan Kannan, MS Biology Biology (Graduated)

Attending the University of Iowa as a Ph.D. Candidate

Research Associate, Dynavax, Berkeley, CA.

2016 ASCB Poster and Abstract, 2016 CCRS Poster and Abstract, 2016 CSU Biotechnology Symposium Poster and Abstract, 2015 Stanford University Mass Spectrometry Research Applications Symposium, and 2015 CCRS Poster and Abstract for microproteomics and Myo10 projects.

Lab member event photo.
Lab member event photo.
Lab member event photo.
Lab member event photo.
Lab member event photo.
Lab member event photo.
Lab member event photo.
Lab member event photo.
Lab member event photo.
Lab member event photo.
Lab member event photo.
Lab member event photo.
Gousset Lab group photo, Fall 2020.

Fall 2020, from top left to bottom right: Dr. Gousset, Paria, Nicolas, Bridget, Alan, Vinita, Zoua.

Gousset Lab group photo, Fall 2018.

Fall 2018, from bottom left to top right: Alan, Andreina, Zoua, Abigail, Dr. Gousset, Paria, and Tariq.

Gousset Lab group photo, Fall 2017.

Fall 2017, from left to right: Puneet, Pablo, Dr. Ana Gordon, Dr. Gousset, Jaime, and Andreina.

Gousset Lab group photo, Fall 2016.

Fall 2016, from left to right: Jaime, Dr. Ana Gordon, Shravan, Dr. Gousset, Rekha, Pablo, Puneet, and Joselyn.

Gousset Lab group photo, Fall 2015.

Fall 2015, from left to right: Pablo, Lee, Maria, Stacy, Shivalee, Dr. Gousset, Joselyn, Rekha, and Shravan.