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 | Juan Liu Principal Investigator Assistant Adjunct Professor, Department of Integrative Biology (IB) Assistant Curator, University of California Museum of Paleontology (UCMP) Research Associate, American Museum of Natural History (AMNH) liujuan(at)berkeley.edu Liu earned her M.S. from the Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology (China) and PhD from the University of Alberta (Canada), studying fossil fish. Liu then spent several years as a visiting scholar at the American Museum of Natural History (USA). Prior to joining the IB and UCMP, she had been an assistant professor at the State University of New York at Buffalo, where she taught anatomy. She enjoys her research on the evolution of fossil fishes and the functional anatomy of the auditory system. In her leisure time, she enjoys practicing Taiji. |
Graduate Students | |
 | Jennifer Hoeflich jchoeflich(at)berkeley.edu Jennifer Hoeflich is a fourth-year graduate student in the department of Integrative Biology, whose thesis research is focused on conductive hearing in Ictalurid catfishes, particularly how ecological factors influence the morphology and function of their multi-ossicle chain. Jennifer went to the University of Florida for undergrad and did research with the Florida Museum of Natural History. Currently doing research on the evolution and function of the Weberian apparatus along with working in the UCMP collections on fossil fishes. |
 | Derrick Leong derrickleong(at)berkeley.edu Derrick Leong is a third-year graduate student in the Integrative Biology department at UC Berkeley. He attended UC San Diego as an undergraduate and received his bachelor's degree in Geology at the Scripps Institute of Oceanography. His current research is on the evolution of the lateral line canal-tubule system in extinct Devonian sarcopterygian fishes and extant early actinopterygian fishes. He also conducts field work in Nevada. During his free time, Derrick enjoys playing sports, the violin, and spending time with his friends.
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Undergraduate Students | |
 | Isabel (Izzy) Banayad Izzy is a second-year undergraduate pursuing a simultaneous degree in Integrative Biology and Microbial Biology. She is currently on the pre-medicine track in hopes of becoming a dermatologist. She joined the Liu lab in the 2023 Fall Semester and is currently helping on a project that aims to quantify neuromasts in Stomatepia fish and study the relationship between the lateral line and temperature sensing. Outside of the lab, she enjoys making art, thrifting, going to concerts, hiking, and cooking.
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 | Rangarajan Bharadwaj ranga_bharadwaj(at)berkeley.edu Ranga is a fourth year undergraduate student in the FAM labs majoring in Molecular and Cell Biology. He has worked on lateral line morphology and is currently working on a project to ascertain the morphology of neuromasts and lateral line canals in the Cichlid genus Stomatepia and eventually trying to ascertain the location of thermoregulation or temperature sensing in these fish. His broad research interests are the intersection of biochemistry, neurobio, and evolution. Outside of the lab, he likes to play bass guitar, read, and climb. ranga_bharadwaj(at)berkeley.edu
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 | Ayden Chang ayc(at)berkeley.edu
Ayden is a first year undergraduate in the College of Letters and Science planning on double majoring in Integrative Biology and Marine Science. His interests include Marine Biology/Ecology, with a particular broad interest in Sharks, Seabirds, Cetaceans, and Salmonids, particularly surrounding their evolution and the roles they played in their ancient ecosystems. Outside of the lab, he enjoys swimming (in the ocean or the pool), scuba diving, playing guitar, and cooking. |
 | Cathryn Dong Cathryn Dong is currently a first-year undergraduate at Cal and intends to major in molecular and cellular biology and Data science. She hopes to have her graduate study in bio science in the future. She is interested in animal physiology and genetics. She joined the Liu lab this fall and is currently working on segmentation of the lateral line canals and acid-preparation of fish fossils. Outside the lab, Cathryn enjoys climbing,learning Japanese, and basketball. |
 | Russell Huang Russell is a fourth year at the College of Natural Resources majoring in Conservation and Resource Studies. He is interested in the effects of human activity on the morphology of native and invasive species populations. His work currently focuses on the segmentation of Cypriniformes, and will soon study the morphological differences between Poecilia Mexicana populations from its native and introduced ranges. In his free time, he enjoys visiting museums (specifically aquariums), arranging soundtracks, playing retro games, and eating. |
 | Xinche Li Chester is a third year undergraduate majoring in Integrative Biology. He has worked on lateral lines segmentations and is currently working on a project illustrating the neuromast cells in lepisosteus species. His research interests include biomechanics, marine ecology and behavioral biology, with particular interest in elasmobranchiis. In his free times, he enjoys reading, visiting museums and fencing.
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 | Melody Lo Melody is a third year undergraduate student at UC Berkeley majoring in Molecular Environmental Biology. She joined the Liu Lab in Fall 2022 as an Undergraduate Research Apprentice to Jennifer Hoeflich, segmenting catfish CT scans to study the morphology and evolution of the Weberian apparatus. She has since branched out to starting a new research project on the habitat-based evolution of the columella in salamanders. In her free time, Melody volunteers at the Berkeley Free Clinic, watches horror movies, bakes tres leches cake, and embroiders. |
 | Anuksha Ram Madhan Anuksha is a third-year undergraduate double-majoring in Environmental Science and Ancient Greek & Roman Studies (i.e. Classics). In the FAM lab, she has worked on lateral line morphology and segmentation. Her current work focuses on otolith asymmetry and kinetosis in Osteichthyes, as well as working towards understanding potential impact factors of these phenomena. Beyond the lab, Anuksha enjoys reading, martial arts, and music. |
 | Aidan Purcell aidanqp00(at)berkeley.edu Aidan is a third year undergraduate student majoring in Integrative Biology. His interests include biological morphology, macroevolution, phylogenetics, and particularly enjoys the subfield of artistic fossil reconstruction within the greater field of Paleontology. In the FAM Lab he works on producing sketches and drawings of fossils to be used in research projects. These drawings are meant to highlight the 3D shape and texture of the fossil that may be difficult to see in photo scans. Outside the lab he enjoys various random artistic projects, puzzles, and video games. |
 | Katherine Walton katherine_walton(at)berkeley.edu Katherine Walton is a fourth-year integrative biology major and data science minor. Her research work centers on penguin skull anatomy, segmenting the middle and inner ears of penguins and related marine birds to study avian underwater hearing. Outside the lab, she enjoys ice skating and reading. |
 | Johan Zhang johanzhang(at)berkeley.edu Johan Zhang is a fourth-year undergraduate in the College of Letters and Science, majoring in Molecular and Cell Biology. His current research work consists mainly of segmenting lateral line canals in early tetrapodomorphs as well as understanding aspects of their evolution. In his free time, he enjoys swimming, running, and playing video games. He is currently interested in medicine, specifically pediatrics, and hopes to attend medical school one day :) |
 | Tony Zehua Zhou zzhou32(at)berkeley.edu Tony is a fourth-year undergraduate in the College of Letters and Science, majoring in Integrative Biology and minoring in Data Science. He has worked on 1) segmentation of the lateral line canals in the extant and fossil fishes, 2) refining clearing and staining methods, 3) conducting harmonic analysis on zebrafish Weberian Apparatus models. Teaching younger undergraduates how to do segmentation is his focus this year. Besides academics, Tony also shows interest in cooking and basketball and could hop on to a trip to aquariums at any time. |
Alumni
Ian Strieter Post-Bacc |
Chrisy Jiyun Yoon Medical Student at University of Buffalo |
Morgan Dickson Undergraduate at UC Berkeley |
Mason Munoz Undergraduate at UC Berkeley |
