Members
Eric Greene (he/him)
Assistant Professor Department Chemistry and Biochemistry
Email: egreene@sfsu.edu
Eric graduated from the University of Colorado, Boulder with degrees in Biochemistry and Molecular, Cellular, and Development Biology. As an undergraduate, he worked with Dr. Zhongping Tan using chemical biology approaches to study glycosylated proteins.
As a graduate student in Dr. Andy Martin’s lab at UC Berkeley, Eric studied how conformations and conformational dynamics of the 26S proteasome influence degradation processes. He also collaborated with Dr. Susan Marqusee’s lab to help illuminate how energetic changes conferred by site-specific ubiquitination on substrate proteins influenced whether, and how, these proteins were degraded by the proteasome.
Eric was a postdoc in James Fraser’s lab at UCSF, where he worked on project seeking to understand how protein conformations impact function and regulation, and, how posttranslational factors that occur throughout a protein’s lifetime further tune function.
Danya Abdallah (she/her)
3rd year B.S. Biochemistry Student
As a member of the Greene Lab, Danya studies how metabolic enzymes are regulated through protein–protein interactions. Her project focuses on investigating whether argininosuccinate synthetase 1 (ASS1) and argininosuccinate lyase (ASL) form a functional metabolon by expressing, purifying, and testing their combined activity. This work aims to improve our understanding of the regulation of the urea cycle and arginine metabolism.
Outside the lab, Danya enjoys spending time with friends, going on walks, and skiing when she needs a break from school.
Jeanan Ahmad
Graduate Student
Jeanan is currently working on ‘Team Argininosuccinate Synthetase (ASS1)’ with the goal of understanding the binding of ASS1 to NMRAL1 and seeing how it impacts theh structure and activity of ASS1.
Jeanan loves to go to the beach with her friends and currently serves as a president of a club on campus. Outside of thhe lab, Jeanan loves watching shows and catching up on sleep.
Haneen Alkabbani (she/her)
3rd year B.S. Biochemistry Student
Haneen Alkabbani is a junior pursuing a Bachelor of Science in Biochemistry at San Francisco State University. As a dedicated member of ‘Team Opposite Enzymes’ she contributes research project aimed at exploring how enzymes are regulated. She is a Genentech Foundation and CSU-SPA (formerly LSAMP) scholar.
Outside the lab and classroom, she enjoys exploring San Francisco with friends, often discovering new coffee shops around the city.
Andrew Bautista (he/him)
2nd year M.S. Student in Chemistry (conc in Biochemistry)
Andrew is pursuing his Master’s degree in Biochemistry studying the mechanism behind posttranslational modification dependent inhibition of bacterial glutamine synthetase. Andrew received a B.S. with summa cum laude honors in Biochemistry from SF State in 2024 and, after excelling at protein biochemistry in his coursework, opted to pursue a graduate degree in the Greene lab.
Cyrina Geluz (she/her)
Graduate Student
Cyrina is pursuing a B.S. in Biochemistry at San Francisco State University and is one of the first members of the once nascent Greene lab. She is an expert in protein visualization and biochemistry, having worked on several projects including bioinformatics focused on exploring human glutamine synthetase. Currently, she is working on investigating a conserved oligomeric interface in human glutamine synthetase and the impact of disease variants at this interface.
Outside of the lab, Cyrina enjoys exploring the Bay Area and shopping for pens!
Lucky Gurung (she/her)
3rd year B.S. Biochemistry Student
Lucky is a junior pursuing a degree in Biochemistry. As a member of the Greene lab she works on Argininosuccinate Synthetase 1 (ASS1), a pivotal enzyme in the urea cycle and arginine biosynthesis. She is specifically investigating the consequences of post-translational modifications (PTMs) to ASS1 utilizing kinetic analyses with hopes of studying structural effects through cryo-EM.
Outside of the lab, she enjoys painting, reading, and hiking. Lucky made it a whooping 4050 meters (~13,287 feet) above sea level!
Emily Hernandez (she/her)
2nd year M.S. Student in Chemistry (conc in Biochemistry)
Emily is a First Gen Latina, and second year Master’s Student. Emily received her Bachelor’s of Science in Biochemistry with a minor in Race and Resistance at San Francisco State University. During her undergraduate career she completed biochemistry research with Dr. Greene in the Greene lab.
Continuing her work with him as a graduate student, she is studying Tau protein amyloid conformations in diseases by inducing fibril formation with chemicals like sodium alginate and analyzing their structures using Cryo-EM. Emily is also part of SEO as an NIH-Bridge MS Scholar and Secretary of the Chemistry and Biochemistry Student Association here on campus. Outside of school she loves to travel. Her most recent trip was a solo trip to Japan!
Patrick Sherry (he/him)
1st year M.S. student in Chemistry (conc in Biochemistry)
Patrick is a first-year graduate student pursuing his M.S. in chemistry with an emphasis in biochemistry, and received his undergraduate degree in biochemistry from CSU Chico. He is part of the team ‘opposite enzymes’, studying transhydrogenase systems as a solution to balance NADPH and NADH concentrations.
In his free time, Patrick enjoys going on hikes, exploring the city, traveling, and spending time with friends.
Markus Tecson (he/him)
2nd year M.S. Student in Chemistry (conc in Biochemistry)
Markus is interested in using a combination of biochemical, biophysical, and computational techniques to explore how changes to a conserved interface in Human Glutamine Synthetase impacts oligomerization and activity. This enzyme plays a key role in both cancer and neurodegenerative diseases, making the discoveries especially exciting for future therapies. In addition to being an SF State Scholar, Markus is a joint NIH Bridges to Doctorates Fellow and Genentech Foundation MS Scholar.
Outside of the lab, Markus loves to spend time with his cat and play video games. He is also an avid photographer, runner, and pretends to know how to play piano!
Aaliyah Atenga
Sophomore Undergraduate
Aaliyah is a sophomore undergraduate working on glutamine synthetase disease mutations.
Nathalie Carrillo
Junior Undergraduate
Nathalie is a junior undergraduate working on metabolite screening for glutamine synthetase and argininosuccinate synthetase.
Alex Martel
Senior Undergraduate
Alex is a senior undergraduate working on glutamine synthetase disease mutations.
Marlo Paprocki
BLEND M.S. Student
Marlo is a BLEND M.S. student working on glutamine synthetase disease mutations.
Celeste Rascon
Senior Undergraduate
Celeste is a senior undergraduate working on glutamine synthetase disease mutations.
John Schlauraff
Sophomore Undergraduate
John is a sophomore undergraduate working on glutamine synthetase disease mutations.
Former members
Jerrade Domingo (he/him)
Argininosuccinate synthetase biochemist (Fall 2025–Spring 2026)
Next position: Pharmacy School, UCSF
Rowan Jacobs (he/him)
Metabolite Screening Entrepreneur (Summer 2024–Spring 2026)
Michelle Von Merta-Sustarich (she/her)
Argininosuccinate synthetase Entrepreneur (Summer 2024–Spring 2026)
Next position: Intern, Columbia University; incoming Ph.D. student, University of Nevada Las Vegas
Sophie Aho
Structural Ensemble Navigator (Spring 2026)
Ryan Leung
Enzyme Kinetics Specialist (2023–2025)
Next position: Phlebotomist-in-training
Emilio Meija, M.S.
Structural Enzymology Specialist (2023–2025)
Next position: Staff Research Associate III, UCSF Clinical Laboratory
Madison Hales
Ensemble analyst and Enzyme kinetic decipherer (2023–2025)
Next position: Medical assistant/patient care coordinator/office manager, Union Square Facial Plastic Surgery
Dan Fournier
Ensemble analysis, structural bioinformatics, and code debugger (2023–2024)
Next position: Research Associate I, ATUM
Yuly Cruz
Ensemble analysis and structural bioinformatics (2023–2024)
Next position: Master’s Student SFSU Biomedical Sciences
Daniel Hogan
Web site setter-upper (2023)
Next position: Bioinformatics programmer, UCSF
Joining
If you are interested in joining, please contact Dr. Greene by email to set up an appointment. Please note, that San Francisco State University does NOT have a Ph.D. granting program in the chemical or biological sciences—if you are looking for a Ph.D. position please inquire at other universities.