Notable Former Lab Members

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Dr. Pamela Marshall has been involved in the field of forensic analysis since 2002. Upon the completion of her MS in Forensic Genetics in 2002, she worked as a Forensic Scientist III at the Maryland State Police Forensic Sciences Division. While in Maryland, Dr. Marshall became an expert on sexual assault kit examination and collection practices. She was the Sexual Assault Forensic Examiner (SAFE) Coordinator for the state, helped to promote 120-hour SAFE collection legislation, and assisted in the training of over 200 SAFE nurses. Dr. Marshall has also travelled abroad to Luanda, Angola, Africa in order to train analysts in forensic DNA analysis. She has been qualified as an expert witness in the field of serology in Maryland and Texas.

Her dissertation was titled “Improved Tools for the Robust Analysis of Low Copy Number and Challenged DNA Samples”, leading to her graduation with her doctorate in 2014 under the guidance of Drs. Bruce Budowle, Art Eisenberg, Ranajit Chakraborty, and Angela van Daal.

From 2014-2018, Dr. Marshall served as the Director of the Forensic Science Program at the Southern University at New Orleans, a public, historically black college and university (HBCU). While at SUNO, Dr. Marshall created a state of the art forensic laboratory for hands-on research and experimentation. She has received numerous grants as well as partnered on research projects with other faculty and students. She is an advocate for increasing the number of African American and underrepresented minority professionals in the field of forensic science.

In July 2018, Dr. Marshall became the Director of the Forensic Science and Law Program at Duquesne University, the nation’s only entry level Master’s degree program in forensic science. She also serves as an Associate Professor and holds a courtesy appointment in the Department of Biological Sciences.

Dr. Marshall has extensive graduate and undergraduate teaching experience in the forensic disciplines of serology, DNA, and microscopy. Her research interests include low copy number DNA, human and wildlife DNA identification challenges, nanoparticle technology, pressure cycling technology, and PCR enhancement.

Shamika is currently a Criminalist at the Houston Forensic Science Center (formally the Houston Police Department Crime Laboratory) and has been at HFSC since September of 2010. Her current role is as a DNA analyst and focusing on the Backlog Reduction Project, which primarily focuses on the elimination of our backlog (approximately 10,000 cases awaiting Serology and or DNA analysis were outsourced) and maintaining our incoming caseload. The project process includes reviewing incoming data from outsource laboratories, determining CODIS eligibility, and issuing reports to Investigators. Prior to working at HSFC, she was a student at the University of North Texas Health Science Center and prior to that, an employee at Reliagene Technologies. In 2010, she received her Master of Science degree in Forensic Genetics from the University of North Texas Health Science center where she studied DNA transfer. In 2007, she received her Bachelor of Science degree in Biological Sciences from Louisiana State University.

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Lisa Skandalis, self-proclaimed master of the universe, received her Master of Science degree in Forensic Genetics from the University of North Texas Health Science Center under Dr. Bruce Budowle. During her time here, she studied in-silico analysis of whole mitochondrial genome capture protocols in severely degraded samples. Her thesis title was “Population variances in the whole mitochondrial genome impacting capture for human identification”. Currently, she is a Forensic Biologist at the US Army Criminal Investigation Laboratory, Defense Forensic Science Center in Atlanta, GA; however, she is most excited to have time to read, be crafty, and play with my cat.

Lindsey Thompson worked on selecting an Ancestry-Informative Marker (AIM) panel of INDELs while at the University  of North Texas Health Science Center under Dr. Bobby LaRue.  Now Lindsey enjoys working at her new job at Sorenson Forensics and other activities such as reading, hanging out with friends, and playing with her dog.

David received his PhD from the University of North Texas Health Science Center in 2015 for his work on towards the Development of a Comprehensive Massively Parallel Sequencing Panel of SNP and STR Markers for Human Identification. During his time, he was instrumental in the development and application of the software STRait Razor. He now works for Promega in the Genetic Analysis Division as a Senior Research Scientist.

Xiangpei Zeng was a PhD student in Dr. Budowle’s lab at the University of North Texas Health Science Center until 2016. He was born in China, and  received his medical degree from medical school of Sun Yat-sen University (Guangzhou, China) in Forensic Medicine. He continued to study in Sun Yat-sen University and received his Master’s Degree in Forensic Genetics under the guidance of Dr. Hongyu Sun on the application of X-STRs in Chinese populations. Xiangpei moved to USA in 2011 and spent one year in the Department of Biology at University of Alabama (Tuscaloosa) as a PhD student. In August 2012, He joined the Department of Molecular and Medical Genetics at UNTHSC and continued his study in Forensic Science. His primary research focus is the application of ancestry informative markers in Forensic Genetics using massively parallel sequencing technology. He likes reading and traveling when he is free. Xiangpei now works in San Diego California for a Bio-Tech company as a research scientist.

Frank received his PhD from the University of North Texas Health Science Center in 2018 for his work evaluating the efficacy of a pathway-driven genetic predictive model of tramadol pharmacokinetics (i.e., absorption, distribution, metabolism, excretion, and response) with application to postmortem medico-legal investigations. Frank currently is a Postdoctoral Associate in the Department of Psychiatry at the Yale University School of Medicine where he studies the genetics of psychiatric disorders, behavioral phenotypes, and complex traits in the laboratory of Dr. Renato Polimanti. To keep up with Frank’s most recent activity, please visit www.frankwendt.com.

Nicole was a PhD student in the Budowle lab from 2013 through 2018.  She is native to Canada, where she completed her Bachelor’s Degree in Forensic Science and Biology at the University of Toronto.  She then worked with the Royal Canadian Mounted Police in Northern Alberta before moving on to the University at Albany, SUNY to complete her Master’s Degree in Forensic Molecular Biology.  Following graduation in 2011, Nicole spent some time at the NYC Office of Chief Medical Examiner Department of Forensic Biology as a Criminalist and left in 2013 to pursue her studies at UNTHSC.  Nicole completed her PhD in July 2018, focusing on novel STR markers for enhanced DNA mixture deconvolution.  Immediately following graduation, Nicole was appointed a tenure-stream Assistant Professor position in the Forensic Science Program at the University of Toronto.   When she isn’t teaching or working in her lab, Nicole enjoys running, reading, volunteering, and spending quality time with her husband Lindsay and great danes Hank and Earl.

Dr. Angie Ambers has a Ph.D. in molecular biology (with emphasis in forensic genetics and human identification) as well as master’s degrees both in forensic genetics and in criminology. She spent 8 years as a forensic geneticist for the UNT Center for Human Identification (CHI) and was an adjunct professor at the University of North Texas for 12 years, teaching DNA analysis/methodology to undergraduate students enrolled in the FEPAC-accredited forensic science certificate program. Her casework has included DNA testing of an American Civil War guerrilla scout, Finnish World War II soldiers, unidentified late-19^th century skeletal remains discovered by a construction crew in Deadwood, South Dakota, Special Operations soldiers killed during the 1974 Turkish invasion of Cyprus, skeletal remains exhumed from Prague Castle in the Czech Republic, soldiers from the Seven Years’ War (1756-1763), bone samples purported to belong to a member of the Jesse James gang, and skeletal remains associated with the last expedition of the French explorer La Salle. During her time with the CHI, Dr. Ambers also collaborated with the National Institute of Justice (NIJ) and the Forensic Technology Center of Excellence (FTCoE) to develop a formal report on the utility of Familial DNA Searching in cold case investigations, and she traveled twice to India to train scientists from various Indian states and the Maldives Police Service on the processing of bone samples in forensic DNA casework.

In addition to skeletal remains cases and research, Dr. Ambers served as one of the project leads for a U.S. State Department grant to combat human trafficking in Central America through the application of forensics. She traveled to three Northern Triangle countries (Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras) to perform gap assessments of government laboratories and train personnel in forensic DNA analysis, with the goal of promoting quality casework methods based on ISO 17025 standards. Dr. Ambers now is an Associate Professor (Forensic DNA) in the Henry C. Lee College of Criminal Justice and Forensic Sciences at the University of New Haven, and will be continuing her work in human trafficking with Henry Lee’s Center for Investigations of Trafficking in Persons.

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Maiko was born and raised in Japan, and received her B.S.in pharmaceutical science and pharmacist license. Maiko worked for 10 years at the Criminal Investigation Laboratory of Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department as a forensic scientist where she completed over 2,000 cases of DNA typing for crime investigation. She earned her Ph.D. in Forensic Medicine from the University of Tokyo during the duty in TMPD. She now aims to develop novel methods that useful for forensic casework at UNTHSC. Her current research focus is the mixture DNA analysis using massively parallel sequencing technology. In her free time, Maiko enjoys boarding airplanes (just as a passenger), traveling and cooking.

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Carey Davis graduated from University of North Texas Health Science Center with a degree in Biomedical Sciences. She completed her B.S. in biochemistry at the University of Virginia while working in the pathology department laboratory headed by Dr. Dennis Templeton. She then continued to Virginia Commonwealth University and received her M.S. in Forensic Science while working under the direction of Dr. Tracey Dawson Cruz on low copy number analysis. During her time at UNTHSC, she worked on many projects including: low copy number techniques, Y-STR development, and STR variant analysis. Her main research focused on molecular autopsy and employing next generation sequencing techniques to the world of forensics. Carey has since defended her dissertation entitled, “Increased Resolution Screening of the Pharmacogenetic Gene CYP2D6 with Microarray Technology.” In her free time, she enjoys scuba diving, traveling, and working as a volunteer firefighter.

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Rachel Kieser,
Ph.D. 

Gemma is a second year Masters of Medical Science student completing an independent research project in Dr. Budowle’s lab. Her research involves testing the efficacy of the Rapid DNA Testing in the forensic setting. She completed her B.S. in biochemistry at the University of Texas at Dallas in 2016. After the completion of her independent research project, she hopes to attend medical school. When Gemma is not at school or in the lab, she spends her free time binge watching Netflix, eating take out, and taking naps.

Natalie Colón is a Masters of Medical Sciences student completing a year of independent research in Dr. Budowle’s lab. Her research will involve studying the variability in heteroplasmy present in mitochondrial multiple sample sites. She earned her Bachelors of Science in Biology from Southwestern University. In her free time, Natalie enjoys playing with her dog, Finn, volunteering, hiking, and binge-watching the Office for the billionth time.

Hailing from Pondicherry, a sleepy coastal town (of Life of Pi fame) in southern India, Utpal’s formal training in biology began with a MSc in Ecology from Pondicherry University in 2008. He then graduated with a PhD in Quantitative Biology from the University of Texas at Arlington in 2016. His doctoral training primarily involved using computational methods to investigate questions in molecular ecology using a combination of macro – and micro-evolutionary approaches.

As a postdoctoral research associate at UNTCHI, Utpal helped create the Mitochondrial Mixture Database and Interpretation Tool (MMDIT) – a bioinformatic pipeline for deconvoluting mitochondrial DNA mixture and using computational phylogenetic and population genetic methods on human microbiome data to leverage them as a forensic tool. When he’s not analyzing data, he can be found herping, rock climbing, or composing music.

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Angela earned a PhD in molecular genetics from Macquarie University in 1986. She has a lengthy research career in the areas of molecular biology and genetics and has conducted research at a variety of academic institutions including three years at Washington University in St. Louis and two years at the Rockefeller University in New York.
Angela was Assistant Chief Scientist in Biology at the South Australian Forensic Science Centre from 1991-1998, where she established some of the fundamental molecular biology methodologies which are still used today by forensic laboratories worldwide. She was the first person in Australia to provide expert courtroom testimony on the PCR DNA typing methodology, thus pioneering forensic genetics in Australia.
Angela was integral in formulating the quality standards for DNA testing for forensic laboratories incorporated into the National Association of Testing Authorities (NATA) accreditation requirements of Australia and was an accredited laboratory inspector for both NATA and the US-based forensic accreditation body, ASCLD-LAB.
From 1999 to 2005 she was employed at Queensland University of Technology as Project Leader in the Co-operative Research Centre for Diagnostics. She was Professor of Forensic Science at Bond University from 2005 through 2012. In her position at Bond University she developed Bachelor and Masters of Forensic Science degree programs and conducted research in the area of improved DNA applications for forensic science. Since 2012 she has been a consultant reviewing forensic casework for quality and interpretation issues.
Angela’s research career spans 30 years and includes Drosophila, marsupial and human genetics and molecular biology. She has researched projects on medical diagnostic techniques, the genetic basis of complex human diseases such as schizophrenia and craniosynostosis. She also has extensive research capabilities in the area or forensic genetics, having researched the genetic basis of human physical appearance (pigmentation, face shape and features and height), improved methods for low template DNA samples and enhanced recovery and DNA analysis of degraded DNA samples.

 

Magdalena Bus,

Assistant Professor

 

Jianye Ge received his BS and MS degrees in Computer Science from Nankai University, China. He earned his Ph.D. in Bioinformatics from the University of Cincinnati and then worked as Assistant Professor at the University of North Texas Health Science Center. He also worked for the Human Identification Division (HID) for Thermo Fisher Scientific as algorithm leader and later as Global Market Development Manager. His research relates primarily to computational analysis and interpretation of DNA forensic data. The software programs he developed have been used by the Federal and State government agencies to assist in solving criminal cases.

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Sammed Mandape,

Bioinformatician

 

Sammed is from Kolhapur, a city that resides along mountain ranges in western India. He has an undergraduate degree in Biotechnology. He then graduated with a Master of Science degree in Bioinformatics from Indiana University Indianapolis in 2014. His research interests are focused on designing and implementing analytics pipeline for high-throughput data, developing methods for integrating data from a range of sources, and building tools. He likes to spend his leisure time with his pets or reading books or learning new programming language.

 

 

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Muyi Liu,

Postdoctoral Research Associate