

Allegra Aron, Principal Investigator
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Allegra Aron grew up in the San Francisco Bay Area, CA and earned her B.S. from Brown University, working with Professor Eunsuk Kim. In 2012, she started her graduate studies with Professor Christopher Chang at the University of California, Berkeley. As a recipient of NSF GRFP, Allegra developed fluorescent and bioluminescent sensors for iron. Allegra moved to the University of California, San Diego in 2018 to join the laboratory of Pieter Dorrestein, where she developed mass spectrometry methods for finding small molecule metal-binding compounds from complex samples.
As an assistant professor at the University of Denver, Allegra has been honored as a 2024 Webb-Waring Early Career Investigator through the Boettcher Foundation of Colorado and has received an NIH R35 MIRA award.
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Outside of the lab, Allegra loves rock climbing, skiing, hiking, and occasionally surfing.
Postdoctoral Scholars

Dr. Logan Ott
Logan Ott grew up in Humboldt City Iowa and obtained his bachelor’s degree in microbiology from Iowa State University while working on developing an in house MALDI-TOF spectrum databases for rapid identification of bacterial pathogens in the Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory. In 2018, Logan matriculated into the Doctoral program in Microbiology at Iowa State University and joined the laboratory of Dr. Melha Mellata where his thesis research focused on horizontal gene transfer in the gut of animals, and the emergence and spread of plasmid associated antimicrobial resistance and virulence genes in naïve bacterial population and mechanisms for regulation and inhibition.
During his doctoral training, Logan was awarded the United States Department of Agriculture - National Institutes of Food and Agriculture (USDA-NIFA) predoctoral research fellowship to support his work on the role of dietary short chain fatty acids in regulating bacterial plasmid conjugation in the gut of chickens. Logan Joined Allegra’s lab in the fall of 2024 and is now working on characterizing the novel metallome of the various human microbiota.
Outside of the lab, Logan enjoys spending time with his wife and kids, hiking, camping, and fishing.

Dr. Jonathan Michael
Jon received his Ph.D. at University of Oklahoma.

Graduate Students
Olivia Schwartz, 2nd year Molecular and Cellular Biophysics
Olivia grew up in Ocean Springs, Mississippi and received a B.S. in Biomedical Engineering from Mississippi State University. She is currently a Ph.D. student in Molecular and Cellular Biophysics (MCBP). Outside of the lab, Olivia enjoys skiing, hiking, board games, video games, and cooking.
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Marquis Yazzie, 2nd year Chemistry
Marquis Yazzie is from Window Rock, Arizona which is located on the Navajo Nation. Marquis completed his undergraduate in Environmental Science at Regis University. Marquis obtained his master’s in chemistry degree at Northern Arizona University in Dr. Jani C. Ingram’s lab. His current research project characterizes the novel chemical diversity of metallophores produced by the lanthanide utilizing methylotrophic bacteria and understanding their biological role in lanthanide metabolism. This research aligns well with his long-term interest in basic and applied research to study environmental and biological health and exposure using multi-omics, analytical chemistry, and microbiology approaches. Marquis enjoys activities including climbing, Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, playing basketball, playing the guitar, and watching stand-up comedy.

Emmanuel Asante, 2nd year Chemistry
Emmanuel was raised in Ghana located in the western part of Africa. He earned my bachelor’s degree in chemistry from the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST) in Ghana. Growing up, he was passionate about applying his knowledge in chemistry to solve health and environmental problems. In Dr. Aron’s lab, he has worked on nanoparticle-based strategies for enrichment of siderophores and the purification of escherichelin from E.coli Nissle. Outside of work, I love to spend quality time with my wife, children and positive minded friends.

Colin Brady, 1st year Chemistry
Colin grew up overseas before moving back to California for much of his teens. He earned his bachelor's in chemistry at the University of Washington in Seattle before working at the biotech startup, Lumen Bioscience, for several years. There, he primarily performed protein characterization work amid learning and developing a host of molecular and chemical biological techniques. He joined the Aron lab after coming to the University of Denver to begin his graduate work and is excited to develop his knowledge and abilities related to untargeted mass spectrometry, and chemical biology, particularly as it applies to environmental work. He spends much of his free time skiing, running, hiking, and really anything outdoors
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Undergraduate Students

David Hattan, U4
David is a fourth year undergraduate student earning B.S in Chemistry at the University of Denver. With a departmental grant David will spend the summer of 2024 researching a potential component of Alzheimer's pathology with non-targeted mass spectrometry. Originally from Maine, David enjoys skiing, billiards, and hiking.

Connor Hansen, U3
Connor is a Chemistry major at the University of Denver. He was born and raised in Missoula, Montana. In his free time, he loves to go skiing, hiking, and disc golfing depending on the season. His project aims to use mass spectrometry to understand affinities of metal binding. ​
Joseph Brock, U2 - Boettcher Scholar Undergrad
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Alumni
Dr. Anastasiia Kostenko, Ph.D. - KBI Biopharma, Louisville, CO
Feel free to reach out to us by emailing allegra.aron@du.edu.
Our team is always eager to connect with students, researchers, and collaborators who share our passion.
