Heather Branscome, PhD

Senior Scientist, ATCC

Dr. Branscome has over 17 years of cross-functional laboratory experience and in her current role she is responsible for managing the Cell Biology Bioproduction and Preservation laboratories at ATCC.  Throughout her career she has gained significant expertise in the areas of cell and molecular biology and has fulfilled various roles to support and lead new product development, process improvement, technology transfer, biomanufacturing & large-scale processing, and quality control.  Her primary research interests surround advanced purification of extracellular vesicles (EVs) and the functional analysis of stem cell EVs in various models of cellular repair.  She earned both her Master of Science in Biology and her Ph.D. in Biosciences from George Mason University.

	Jamie Almeida, NIST Jamie Almeida has worked at the National Institute of Standards and Technology since 2004 in the Biosystems and Biomaterials Division focusing on the development and characterization of bioassays. Her contributions include the development of short tandem repeat (STR) genotyping assays for mouse cell lines and validation of these methods through the Mouse Cell Line Authentication Consortium. The development of a mouse allelic ladder reference material for accurate allele call determination is in progress. Jamie is also currently working on viral vector characterization for Adenovirus Serotype 5 in collaboration with ATCC for release of a new reference material.
	Abhay Andar, PhD Development, and Bioprocess Engineering, ATCC Jamie Almeida has worked at the National Institute of Standards and Technology since 2004 in the Biosystems and Biomaterials Division focusing on the development and characterization of bioassays. Her contributions include the development of short tandem repeat (STR) genotyping assays for mouse cell lines and validation of these methods through the Mouse Cell Line Authentication Consortium. The development of a mouse allelic ladder reference material for accurate allele call determination is in progress. Jamie is also currently working on viral vector characterization for Adenovirus Serotype 5 in collaboration with ATCC for release of a new reference material.
	Nilay Chakraborty, PhD Principal Scientist Dr. Nilay Chakraborty is the BioNexus Foundation Principal Scientist in Cryobiology at ATCC. He is an expert in the area of preservation sciences. An engineer by training, Dr. Chakraborty received his PhD from University of North Carolina. He developed several innovative technologies in biopreservation and stabilization during his tenure at Center for Engineering in Medicine in Harvard Medical School, Harvard-MIT Health Science Technology and Shriners Burns Hospital. Prior to joining ATCC, Dr. Chakraborty was an Associate Professor with tenure at University of Michigan and acted as a Provost Fellow as well as the Chair of the Research Committee for College of Engineering at University of Michigan. He has designed and developed several programs at the University of Michigan that focused on success of first-generation college students in Michigan. Dr. Chakraborty served as a PI in multiple Federal Research Grants and served as a reviewer for Federal Scientific bodies including NSF and NIH. He has several patents and has actively worked on technology translation area in Bioengineering by creating two successful startup businesses. At ATCC Dr. Chakraborty is developing a core group centered around advancing ATCC’s core competencies in preservation sciences. The group focuses on development of novel preservation capabilities for ATCC.
	Hyeyoun Chang, PhD Senior Scientist, ATCC Hyeyoun Chang, PhD, is a Senior Scientist at ATCC with more than a decade of experience in mammalian cell culture, cancer biology, and cell-based assay development. She has extensive hands-on experience establishing and optimizing diverse cell culture models, from routine 2D culture to advanced 3D systems. An experienced mentor and educator, Dr. Chang enjoys translating practical laboratory experience into clear, reproducible techniques that help scientists build confidence and good habits at the bench.
	Diana Douglas Lead Scientist, ATCC Diana Douglas is a Lead Biologist at ATCC with 20 years of research experience. She earned a B.S. in Biology from Truman State University and, before joining ATCC, worked at Cornell University’s Baker Institute for Animal Health and the University of Missouri–Columbia’s Dalton Cardiovascular Research Center. Since joining ATCC in 2015, she has led cell biology R&D projects focused on developing, characterizing, and transferring advanced models. Her work includes creating a portfolio of CRISPR-engineered reporter cell lines, advancing iPSC culture and differentiation, and introducing iPSC gene-editing techniques at ATCC.
	John Foulke, MS Lead Biologist, ATCC John Foulke is a Lead Biologist in the Immuno-Oncology group in the R&D department at ATCC. John joined the ATCC cell biology R&D group in 2008, and he has led many projects centered on the development of novel cell lines and cell-based reporter systems to support the cancer research community. His work is mainly focused on developing innovative cell models for research and drug discovery in the immuno-oncology field.
	Dong Kim Lead Biologist, ATCC Dong Kim is the Lead Biologist of the cGMP Cell BioProduction department at American Type Culture Collection (ATCC), where he leads the successful execution and delivery of custom contracts, in addition to serving as the technical SME. Dong has worked at ATCC for over 9 years and possesses extensive experience on cell manufacturing, technology transfers, process development, and troubleshooting. He obtained his BS from Virginia Commonwealth University in 2013 and his MS in Biotechnology-Bioinformatics from University of Maryland Global Campus in 2023.
	Sujoy Lahiri, PhD Lead Scientist, R&D, ATCC Sujoy Lahiri is a Cell Biologist and Biochemist with 18+ years of research experience. He has expertise in Hepatic Biology, 3D Multicellular Modeling, Human and Animal Research, ADME/Tox studies, and Metabolic Research as well as expertise in Hepatic and other Primary Cell isolations from Human and Animal tissues. He has strong scientific credentials in product design and development and has launched 3D-qualified cellular models and primary cells as cataloged products. He is currently the R&D Lead of Primary Cells at ATCC and his focus is on advanced cellular modeling for toxicology and disease research
	Paul Lovell, PhD Associate Scientist, ATCC Paul Lovell is an Associate Scientist and joined ATCC in 2022. He obtained his bachelor’s of science degree in biotechnology from Syracuse University in 2017 and his doctoral degree in 2022 from the University of Nebraska Medical Center in Omaha focused in pharmaceutical sciences. At ATCC, he is working within the Cell Biology group on the Content and Accessioning team.
	Carolina Lucchesi, PhD BioNexus Foundation Principal Scientist Carolina Lucchesi is BioNexus Foundation Principal Scientist leading the Microphysiological Systems program at ATCC. Dr. Lucchesi received her Ph.D. in Cellular and Molecular Biology from the University of Campinas in Brazil and has over 20 years of experience in Tissue Engineering and Organ-on-Chip technology. She was a key scientist in the development of Emulate’s core organ-on-chip technology at the Harvard Wyss Institute and part of the founding technical team. She is an accomplished biological scientist and engineer with experience both individually and leading teams in the use and development of MPS. She has generated several patents and worked side-by-side with pharmaceutical companies, formulating, and executing strategies to investigate small molecules’ drug absorption, metabolism, oral bioavailability, drug-drug interaction, safety, and efficacy. In her current role, Dr. Lucchesi leads the MPS program bringing new capabilities in the use of advanced 3D models and developing existing and new content to be applied in state-of-art technologies.
	Becky Steffen, M.S. (NIST) Becky Steffen has worked for the Applied Genetics Group at NIST for 18 years as a Research Biologist, mainly focusing on short tandem repeat (STR) multiplex development, the characterization of additional miniSTR loci, low template DNA analysis, concordance evaluations with new commercial STR kits and capillary electrophoresis (CE) instruments, human cell line authentication, next generation sequencing (NGS), and Standard Reference Material (SRM) development. Ms. Steffen received her BA at The University of Virginia in Biology and MS at George Mason University in Molecular Biology.
	Fang Tian, PhD Director, Cell Biology Content and Product Development Dr. Fang Tian is Director of Cell Biology Content and Product Development at ATCC. Dr. Tian has 20+ years of extensive experiences in cell banking, bioprocess, product development, cell biology and molecular biology. She is responsible for over 5,000 human, animal cell lines and hybridomas in the ATCC Cell Biology General Collection. Her R&D team has been developing advanced cell models focusing on major diseases, molecular signatures, cell signaling pathways, and genetic alternations, as well as generating robust host cell models for bioproduction and bioprocess. Her research field covers CRIPSR gene editing, cancer genomics, cancer immunology, neovascularization, stem cell and progenitor cell differentiation, as well as anti-cancer drug screening. She is a member of US Technical Advisory Group to International Organization for Standardization (ISO) Technical Committee. Dr. Tian was a research fellow in Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School. She conducted postdoctoral research at the Hillman Cancer Institute of the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center. Dr. Tian obtained her Ph.D. degree from Chinese Academy of Sciences.
	Kit Man Tsang, PhD Senior Scientist, ATCC Dr. Tsang has 20 years of research experience in Stem Cell-based Model Development and Human Disease Translational Research with expertise in developing patient-specific iPSC models from wide range of different cell sources, including human skin biopsy, peripheral blood and different surgical tissues as well as Proficiency in 3D culture and organoids (e.g. vascular organoids) in disease modeling.
	Karlie Wysong, MS Senior Scientist, ATCC Karlie Wysong joined ATCC in 2024 as a Senior Biologist. She obtained her bachelor’s degree in Biochemistry with a minor in Chemistry at Virginia Tech in 2020, then obtained her master’s degree in Pharmaceutical Sciences from the School of Pharmacy at the University of Maryland Baltimore in 2021. At ATCC, Karlie is on the Content and Accessioning team within the Cell Biology department which is responsible for the acquisition and bioproduction of new cell lines to add to ATCC’s General Collection catalog.

• Introduction to Cell Culture/Aseptic Technique
• Constituents of Tissue Culture (Media, Serum, etc.)
• Principles and Considerations for Setting up a Tissue Culture Lab
• Cell Line Authentication
• Authentication of Non-Human Cell Lines. Isozymes, COI Multiplex Assay; SNPs, and STRs
• Best practices in Cryopreservation of Mammalian Cells
• Primary Cell Isolation and Culture
• Organoids and 3D Cell Culture
• Cellular Reprogramming/Genetic Engineering of Cell Lines

• Aseptic Technique Demonstration
• Media/Reagent Preparation
• Thawing/counting/seeding Adherent Cell Line
• Thawing/counting/seeding Suspension Cell Line
• Observation and Reseeding of Suspension Cell Line
• Observation and Passaging of Adherent Cell Line
• Doubling Time and PDL Calculations
• Set up Luciferase Reporter Cell-based Assay
• Harvesting of Pre-plated Cells
• Preparation of Cryopreservation Medium
• Cryopreservation of Cells
• Finish Luciferase Reporter Assay