Current Members

Title	Education Background	Research Interests
Professor of Chemistry	Rebecca Y. Lai B.S. California State University, Los Angeles Ph.D. University of Texas at Austin Postdoctoral Training at University of California, Santa Barbara	Our research program focuses on both fundamental and applied aspects of biosensor research. The main objective of our research is the design and fabrication of folding- and dynamics-based electrochemical biosensors. We aim at developing portable real-time biosensors for environmental monitoring and point-of-care diagnostics. Our sensing strategy is to link target-induced change in the conformation and/or flexibility of the biorecognition elements (e.g., peptides, nucleic acids) to a robust, electrochemical signaling mechanism. These sensors are reagentless, reusable, and insensitive to non-specific interactions of contaminants, enabling them to be employed directly in realistically complex media such as blood, urine, soil extracts, and a wide range of food matrices. We also develop hybrid analytical techniques, including electrochemical-surface plasmon resonance spectroscopy, electrochemical-surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy, and fluorescence microscopy-scanning electrochemical microscopy, for characterization of this class of biosensors.
Postdoctoral researcher	Kayleigh A. McElveen B.S. Truman State University Ph.D. University of Nebraska-Lincoln	Kayleigh graduated with a B.S. in Chemistry from Truman State University in Kirksville, MO in 2017. She joined the Lai Lab in Oct 2017 and received her Ph.D. in May 2023. She is currently a postdoctoral researcher in the Lai Lab working on an NSRI/DTRA project. She reads, cross-stitches, and watches Netflix in her free time. Ph. D. Thesis: “Design and fabrication of Fe(II) spin crossover molecular complexes for their applications in memory devices” (Spring 2023)
Graduate Student	Cody M. Shultz B.S. Truman State University Ph.D. University of Nebraska-Lincoln	Cody graduated with a B.S. in Chemistry from Truman State University in Kirksville, MO in 2017. He joined the Lai Lab in Oct 2017 and received his Ph.D. in Aug 2023. He is currently a postdoctoral researcher in the Lai Lab. In his free time, he likes to play video games, cross stitch, and listen to music. Ph. D. Thesis: “Characterization and design of electrochemical-based biosensors from metal ions to proteins” (Summer 2023)
Graduate Student	Md Shirajur Rahman B.S. and M.S. University of Dhaka, Bangladesh	Md Shirajur Rahman completed his B.S. and M.S. degrees from the Department of Applied Chemistry and Chemical Engineering at the University of Dhaka, Bangladesh. He joined the Lai Lab in April 2021. His research encompasses the design and fabrication of electrochemical peptide-based biosensors for detection of metal ions. He likes to spend time with his family and hanging around with his friends in his free time. He likes to play basketball, volleyball, cricket, etc. Moreover, he loves motorbikes.
Graduate Student	Madhuka M. Liyanage B.S. and M.S. University of Peradeniya, Sri Lanka	Madhuka graduated with a B.S. in Chemistry, Molecular Biology, and Biotechnology, and a M.S. in Analytical Chemistry from the University of Peradeniya, Sri Lanka, in 2015 and 2018, respectively. She joined the Lai Lab in August 2021, and her research focuses on the design and fabrication of electrochemical peptide-based sensors for the detection of a wide range of targets, including metal ions, proteins, and bacterial cells. She enjoys reading, cooking, and watching movies during her leisure time.
Graduate Student	Mahbuba Nazneen B.S. and M.S. University of Dhaka, Bangladesh	Mahbuba received her B.S. and M.S. degrees from the Department of Applied Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, University of Dhaka, Bangladesh, in 2019 and 2022, respectively. She joined the Lai Lab in June 2022, and her research focus is on the design and fabrication of electrochemical peptide-based sensors for microbial detection. She spends most of her free time studying religion, reading books, and she loves gardening and crafting.
Graduate Student	Nicholas Zuercher B.S. University of Nebraska-Lincoln	Nick graduated with a B.S. in Chemical Engineering from UNL in 2017. He worked at Celerion, Inc. for 5 years as a chemist, with the focus on LC-MS/MS. He joined the Lai Lab in August 2022, and his research focus is on aptamer selection for various protein targets. In his free time, he enjoys taking long walks and reading.
Graduate Student	Binny Tamang B.S. Millikin University	Binny graduated from Millikin University with a B.S. in Chemistry and a Mathematics minor in 2022. She joined the Lai Lab in August 2022. Her research focus is on the synthesis and characterization of spin crossover complexes and polymer composites for device applications. In her free time, she likes playing the guitar, reading the classics, and playing chess.