Our Team

April Lukowski

Principal Investigator

April first developed an interest in enzymes and the environment as an undergraduate student at Saginaw Valley State University, where she completed a B.S. in Biochemistry. She earned her Ph.D. in Chemical Biology from the University of Michigan with Alison Narayan studying the biosynthesis of saxitoxin in cyanobacteria and the application of enzymes in biocatalysis. She joined the lab of Bradley Moore at UC San Diego to study the biosynthesis of halogenated toxins and connecting genes to molecules. April launched her own research group at UC San Diego at the Scripps Institution of Oceanography and the Skaggs School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences in Fall 2023, where her lab focuses on the discovery of novel enzymes from natural product biosynthetic pathways and their applications as biocatalysts in medicinal chemistry.

Postdoctoral Researchers

Robert Shepherd

Robbie is originally from North Carolina, where he received a B.S. in chemistry from UNC Greensboro in 2022. He then moved to UC Santa Cruz to pursue a Ph.D. with Professor Laura Sanchez, where he developed mass spectrometry methods for high-throughput applications in natural products research. He is now a postdoctoral researcher in the Lukowski Lab at SIO, where he will continue developing his research in enzymatic screening and metabolomics. Outside the lab, he enjoys reading fantasy novels, listening to all kinds of music, and riding around on anything with 1–4 wheels.

2026 - Present

email: rashepherd@ucsd.edu

PhD Students

Biochemistry and Molecular Biophysics

Anna Skrip

I am originally from the Great Lake State where I attended Grand Valley State University to earn a bachelor’s degree in biochemistry. I then worked for 3 years in industry followed by my current pursuit of a PhD at UCSD. When I’m not neck deep in the primordial soup of knowledge (in lab), I enjoy anything that gets me outdoors and finding all of the best places to eat!

email: askrip@ucsd.edu

2024 - Present

Lisa Saxton

I moved around from Japan to Tennessee and then spent the majority of my life growing up in San Diego. Environmentalism and spending time in nature are passions of mine, and I became interested in environmental-related research during my undergraduate years at UC Berkeley where I studied molecular environmental biology and conservation resources studies. I worked with microalgal biotechnology for nearly 2 years after graduating and am very excited for my graduate school journey at SIO to research marine natural products and bioremediation. Beyond the lab, I enjoy going to jazz jams, concerts, and going to speakeasies.

email: lsaxton@ucsd.edu

2025 - Present

Marine Biology

Biology

Lucas Cohen

2024 - Present

email: l4cohen@ucsd.edu

Natalie Murphy

Biochemistry and Molecular Biophysics

Natalie is originally from Virginia where she completed her bachelors degree at Virginia Tech studying biochemistry. She then completed two different post-baccalaureate research years in academic labs and spent some time as a barista before heading to UCSD to pursue a PhD. She is excited to now be in the Lukowski group investigating bile salt hydrolases and their various functions, host-associated and beyond. When not in lab or wrangling data, she enjoys surfing, roasting in the sun with a book, and yoga.

Email: namurphy@ucsd.edu

2026 - Present

Zach Brown

Marine Chemistry & Geochemistry (Barbeau Lab)

I grew up in Cleveland, Ohio, before moving to Philadelphia to complete a degree in chemistry at Haverford College. Following Haverford, I worked for two years at the National Cancer Institute in Frederick, MD. Knowing I loved research, but wanting to apply it to environmental questions, I chose to join SIO to explore the relationships between marine bacteria and iron nutrient cycling in the Barbeau and Lukowski labs! When not working with bacteria and proteins, I enjoy running, soccer, following my Cleveland sports teams, and hanging with my cats!I grew up in Cleveland, Ohio, before moving to Philadelphia to complete a degree in chemistry at Haverford College. Following Haverford, I worked for two years at the National Cancer Institute in Frederick, MD. Knowing I loved research, but wanting to apply it to environmental questions, I chose to join SIO to explore the relationships between marine bacteria and iron nutrient cycling in the Barbeau and Lukowski labs! When not working with bacteria and proteins, I enjoy running, soccer, following my Cleveland sports teams, and hanging with my cats!

Email: zabrown@ucsd.edu

2026 - Present

Masters Students

Johnny Tran

Marine Biology

Johnny is a BS/MS student student studying Marine Biology. He received his A.S. and A.A. degree from Orange Coast College where he found his passion for the ocean and environment researching bottlenose dolphin migration patterns. He joins the lab conducting his senior thesis on the potential natural products of coastal lichen. Outside of lab find him on the beach flying his jellyfish kite!

email: jot019@ucsd.edu

2025 - Present

J. Antonio Puron Guerrero

Antonio is a BS/MS student from Mexico City studying Marine Biology. Since joining the lab, he has discovered a great interest in marine natural products and the enzymes that are involved in their biosynthesis. He is investigating structural drivers of substrate specificity in Flavin-Dependent Halogenases from marine cyanobacteria. Outside the lab, Antonio snowboards all winter and SCUBA dives all summer!

Email: jpuronguerrero@ucsd.edu

2026 - Present

Marine Biology

Undergraduate Students

Lauren Kaiser

Microbiology

Lauren is an undergraduate student majoring in microbiology and minoring in marine science. She is a transfer student from Bakersfield College and has previously researched the endangered San Joaquin Valley Kit Fox and biofilm dispersion. Lauren is currently researching the biodegradative properties of enzymes for potential use in bioremediation of polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDE’s). Lauren’s goal is to earn a PhD and serve as a research professor. In her free time, Lauren enjoys the beach (obviously), coffee, volunteering, and flipping burgers.

Email: l2kaiser@ucsd.edu

2025 -Present

Annette is a fourth year undergraduate at UC San Diego majoring in biochemistry with a minor in marine sciences. After transferring from Grossmont College, where she created and previously led a research group studying the effects of urban runoff on a local ecosystem and worked as a lab technician, she interned at NASA JPL developing a capillary electrophoresis method for small ions and organic acids, then with CCE-LTER studying iron-binding proteins under iron-replete and iron-limited conditions. She is beyond stoked to join the Lukowski lab, where she is exploring marine natural products and how synthesizing them could lead to new drugs. Outside the lab, you'll find her on an outdoor adventure with her guitar in hand.

Email: anr107@ucsd.edu

Annette Ramos

Biochemistry

2026 - Present

Staff Scientists

Dr. Sheila Podell

Sheila is a senior bioinformaticist specializing in genomic and metagenomic analysis of large, complex data sets. She currently splits her time between the Lukowski and Moore natural product chemistry labs, providing one-on-one bioinformatics training for students and postdocs and developing new tools and pipelines for discovering novel biosynthetic gene clusters and enzymes with unusual chemical activity profiles in non-model eukaryotes, including algae, lichenous fungi, and marine invertebrates. In her free time, she enjoys books and classic films, gravitating toward mystery, historical fiction, and fantasy.

email: spodell@ucsd.edu

2026 - Present

Visiting Scholars

Jirativat (Jam) Nanthachan

I moved from Thailand to San Diego, California, where I am currently a Ph.D. candidate conducting a research visit at the Scripps Institution of Oceanography. Biotechnology and enzymology are passions of mine, and I became interested in the "Waste to Wealth" initiative during my research at VISTEC, where I worked on the synergistic bioconversion. I am very excited for my research journey at SIO to develop the single-component halogenase AetF for biocatalytic applications, specifically focusing on improving enzyme stability for gram-scale transformations and designing automated high-throughput screening workflows. Beyond the lab, I enjoy cruising on my skateboard, following, and vibing with PC games.

Email: jnanthachan@ucsd.edu

2026