{"id":118,"date":"2023-06-09T20:23:16","date_gmt":"2023-06-10T03:23:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/gibsonlab\/?page_id=118"},"modified":"2026-10-27T10:29:25","modified_gmt":"2026-10-27T17:29:25","slug":"graduate-students","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/gibsonlab\/gibson-lab\/graduate-students\/","title":{"rendered":"Graduate Students"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<div class=\"wp-block-group\"><div class=\"wp-block-group__inner-container is-layout-constrained wp-block-group-is-layout-constrained\">\n<h4 style=\"text-align: center;\"><span class=\"gD\" style=\"color: #008080;\" role=\"gridcell\">Jessica Josephson (<em>PhD Candidate<\/em>)<\/span><\/h4>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"768\" height=\"1024\" src=\"https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/gibsonlab\/files\/2026\/10\/IMG_4074-768x1024.jpeg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-795\" srcset=\"https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/gibsonlab\/files\/2026\/10\/IMG_4074-768x1024.jpeg 768w, https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/gibsonlab\/files\/2026\/10\/IMG_4074-225x300.jpeg 225w, https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/gibsonlab\/files\/2026\/10\/IMG_4074-1152x1536.jpeg 1152w, https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/gibsonlab\/files\/2026\/10\/IMG_4074-1536x2048.jpeg 1536w, https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/gibsonlab\/files\/2026\/10\/IMG_4074-1200x1600.jpeg 1200w, https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/gibsonlab\/files\/2026\/10\/IMG_4074-1980x2640.jpeg 1980w, https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/gibsonlab\/files\/2026\/10\/IMG_4074-scaled.jpeg 1920w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><span lang=\"en-CA\">Jessica joined the lab as a PhD student September 2021.\u00a0 She earned her MSc in Pediatrics from the University of Alberta working on novel parenteral lipid formulations for premature babies. She also earned her undergraduate in Animal Science from the University of Alberta<\/span><span lang=\"en-CA\">. Jessica&#8217;s research focuses on probiotics and the interaction between the gut and the brain.<\/span><span lang=\"en-CA\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><em><span lang=\"en-CA\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/in\/jessica-josephson-31829393\/\">LinkedIn<\/a>\u00a0 | \u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/scholar.google.com\/scholar?hl=en&amp;as_sdt=0%2C5&amp;q=JK+Josephson&amp;btnG=\">Google Scholar<\/a>\u00a0<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h4 style=\"text-align: center;\"><span class=\"gD\" style=\"color: #008080;\" role=\"gridcell\">Dorsa Daeizadeh (PhD<em> Student<\/em>)<\/span><\/h4>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-791 size-large\" src=\"http:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/gibsonlab\/files\/2026\/10\/IMG_4023-768x1024.jpeg\" alt=\"\" width=\"580\" height=\"773\" srcset=\"https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/gibsonlab\/files\/2026\/10\/IMG_4023-768x1024.jpeg 768w, https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/gibsonlab\/files\/2026\/10\/IMG_4023-225x300.jpeg 225w, https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/gibsonlab\/files\/2026\/10\/IMG_4023-1152x1536.jpeg 1152w, https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/gibsonlab\/files\/2026\/10\/IMG_4023-1536x2048.jpeg 1536w, https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/gibsonlab\/files\/2026\/10\/IMG_4023-1200x1600.jpeg 1200w, https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/gibsonlab\/files\/2026\/10\/IMG_4023-1980x2640.jpeg 1980w, https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/gibsonlab\/files\/2026\/10\/IMG_4023-scaled.jpeg 1920w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 580px) 100vw, 580px\" \/><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"s3\"><span class=\"s2\">Dorsa Daeizadeh joined the lab as a CHIR-funded PhD student in September 2026. <\/span><span class=\"s2\">Her PhD research will investigate the effects of ultra-processed foods on the gut microbiome and incretin signaling in patients with inflammatory bowel disease, with the goal of advancing our understanding of diet\u2013microbiome\u2013host interactions and their implications for human health. <\/span><span class=\"s2\">Dorsa earned her MSc in Biological Design from Arizona State University , where her research focused on microbial chain elongation, a unique anaerobic metabolic pathway through which the human gut microbiome produces beneficial short- and medium-chain fatty acids.<\/span><span class=\"s2\">\u00a0<\/span><span class=\"s2\">Outside of research, Dorsa enjoys playing the piano, oil painting, writing poetry in Persian, listening to French music, and exploring nature through hiking.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><\/p>\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center wp-block-paragraph\" style=\"text-align: center;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/in\/dorsa-daeizadeh\/\">Linkedin<\/a><\/p>\n<p><\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-group\"><div class=\"wp-block-group__inner-container is-layout-constrained wp-block-group-is-layout-constrained\">\n<h4 style=\"text-align: center;\"><span class=\"gD\" style=\"color: #008080;\" role=\"gridcell\">Madeline Frazer (<em>MSc Student<\/em>)<\/span><\/h4>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"768\" height=\"1024\" src=\"https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/gibsonlab\/files\/2026\/10\/IMG_4047-768x1024.jpeg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-793\" srcset=\"https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/gibsonlab\/files\/2026\/10\/IMG_4047-768x1024.jpeg 768w, https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/gibsonlab\/files\/2026\/10\/IMG_4047-225x300.jpeg 225w, https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/gibsonlab\/files\/2026\/10\/IMG_4047-1152x1536.jpeg 1152w, https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/gibsonlab\/files\/2026\/10\/IMG_4047-1536x2048.jpeg 1536w, https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/gibsonlab\/files\/2026\/10\/IMG_4047-1200x1600.jpeg 1200w, https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/gibsonlab\/files\/2026\/10\/IMG_4047-1980x2640.jpeg 1980w, https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/gibsonlab\/files\/2026\/10\/IMG_4047-scaled.jpeg 1920w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\">Madeline joined the Gibson lab as a MSc student in 2025 after graduating with Honors in Wildlife and Wildlands Conservation from Brigham Young University in Utah, USA. She is eager to bring together her background in ecology and conservation with the world of molecular biology to answer applied questions. Her Master&#8217;s thesis work focuses on investigating the potential impacts of glyphosate- based herbicides on the gut microbiomes of forest mammals. In addition to her love for biology, she can be found baking brownies and doing at-home yoga.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-group\"><div class=\"wp-block-group__inner-container is-layout-constrained wp-block-group-is-layout-constrained\">\n<h4 style=\"text-align: center;\"><span class=\"gD\" style=\"color: #008080;\" role=\"gridcell\">Wangyang Dai (<em>MSc Student<\/em>)<\/span><\/h4>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-794 size-large\" src=\"http:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/gibsonlab\/files\/2026\/10\/IMG_4053-768x1024.jpeg\" alt=\"\" width=\"580\" height=\"773\" srcset=\"https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/gibsonlab\/files\/2026\/10\/IMG_4053-768x1024.jpeg 768w, https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/gibsonlab\/files\/2026\/10\/IMG_4053-225x300.jpeg 225w, https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/gibsonlab\/files\/2026\/10\/IMG_4053-1152x1536.jpeg 1152w, https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/gibsonlab\/files\/2026\/10\/IMG_4053-1536x2048.jpeg 1536w, https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/gibsonlab\/files\/2026\/10\/IMG_4053-1200x1600.jpeg 1200w, https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/gibsonlab\/files\/2026\/10\/IMG_4053-1980x2640.jpeg 1980w, https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/gibsonlab\/files\/2026\/10\/IMG_4053-scaled.jpeg 1920w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 580px) 100vw, 580px\" \/><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\">Wangyang Dai joined the lab as a Masters student in September 2026. She is recently completed her undergraduate studies in Biological Sciences at Shandong University in China. During her undergrad, her research was focused on molecular and synthetic biology. She is broadly interested in microbiology and biomedical research. In her free time, Wangyang enjoys reading mystery novels, listening to music, and making handmade crafts.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-group\"><div class=\"wp-block-group__inner-container is-layout-constrained wp-block-group-is-layout-constrained\">\n<h4 style=\"text-align: center;\"><span class=\"gD\" style=\"color: #008080;\" role=\"gridcell\">Valencia Smith (<em>MSc Student<\/em>)<\/span><\/h4>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone  wp-image-706 aligncenter\" src=\"http:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/gibsonlab\/files\/2026\/05\/d32d7822-5937-4288-a890-4d83946ed340-300x225.jpeg\" alt=\"\" width=\"618\" height=\"463\" srcset=\"https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/gibsonlab\/files\/2026\/05\/d32d7822-5937-4288-a890-4d83946ed340-300x225.jpeg 300w, https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/gibsonlab\/files\/2026\/05\/d32d7822-5937-4288-a890-4d83946ed340-1024x768.jpeg 1024w, https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/gibsonlab\/files\/2026\/05\/d32d7822-5937-4288-a890-4d83946ed340-768x576.jpeg 768w, https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/gibsonlab\/files\/2026\/05\/d32d7822-5937-4288-a890-4d83946ed340-1536x1152.jpeg 1536w, https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/gibsonlab\/files\/2026\/05\/d32d7822-5937-4288-a890-4d83946ed340-1200x900.jpeg 1200w, https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/gibsonlab\/files\/2026\/05\/d32d7822-5937-4288-a890-4d83946ed340.jpeg 1920w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 618px) 100vw, 618px\" \/><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><span data-olk-copy-source=\"MessageBody\">Valencia joined the lab as a MSc student in September 2026 and recently finished a U.S. Peace Corps service in Panama. She graduated from Eastern Washington University with bachelors degrees in Biology and Spanish. She is interested in the effects of highly processed foods to the gut microbiome, specifically in indigenous populations. Her interests outside of biology include reading, running, and entertaining her cat, P\u00faa.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-group\"><div class=\"wp-block-group__inner-container is-layout-constrained wp-block-group-is-layout-constrained\"><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Jessica Josephson (PhD Candidate) Jessica joined the lab as a PhD student September 2021.\u00a0 She earned her MSc in Pediatrics from the University of Alberta working on novel parenteral lipid formulations for premature babies. She also earned her undergraduate in Animal Science from the University of Alberta. Jessica&#8217;s research focuses on probiotics and the interaction [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":96603,"featured_media":0,"parent":40,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-118","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/gibsonlab\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/118","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/gibsonlab\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/gibsonlab\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/gibsonlab\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/96603"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/gibsonlab\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=118"}],"version-history":[{"count":29,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/gibsonlab\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/118\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":832,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/gibsonlab\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/118\/revisions\/832"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/gibsonlab\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/40"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/gibsonlab\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=118"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}