Current Lab Members
Dr. Ravi Singh
Dr. Ravi Nandan Singh currently is an assistant professor in the Department of Cancer Biology at Wake Forest School of Medicine. His interdisciplinary background in biomedical nanotechnology, a field lying at the interface of biomedicine, chemistry, physics and materials science, brings together ideas and techniques from these disciplines. He is dedicated to improving outcomes for cancer patients and his goal is to facilitate the translation of nanoparticle-based therapeutics from the lab to the clinic. He has authored or co-authored over 40 scientific papers with over 3200 citation (h-index 24; ISI Web of Science) and holds several patents for novel cancer therapies. Awards for his research accomplishments include the Young Investigator Award from the International Liposome Society (2006), Howard Temin Pathway to Independence Award in Cancer Nanotechnology from NIH/NCI (2010), and Postdoctoral Fellow of the Year from Wake Forest University (2011), and he has secured over $2.5 million in research funding, primarily from the NCI. He received his B.A. in physics from Harvard University in 1995 and then spent eight years conducting research at Weill Cornell Medical Center and Imperial College London before initiating graduate studies at University College London where he earned his Ph.D. in Pharmaceutical Science in 2008. He completed a postdoctoral fellowship in cancer biology at Wake Forest School of Medicine in 2012. You can catch him outside of the lab following his favorite NFL (Redskins and Panthers) and EPL (Arsenal) teams, occasionally playing lacrosse, and often building Lego or playing Wii U (Just Dance) with his daughter. Challenge him in a dance off if you dare!
Dr. Cale Fahrenholtz
Cale Fahrenholtz currently is a postdoctoral fellow in Dr. Ravi Singh’s laboratory at Wake Forest University School of Medicine in the Department of Cancer Biology. His research focuses on the development of clinically-usable nanomaterials to target, diagnose and treat aggressive cancers. Drawing upon his strong background in pharmacology and toxicology, he recently developed a targeted system using a carbon nanotube background suitable for use as both a diagnostic agent and a vehicle for delivery of novel platinum-based therapies. He revels in the challenges of finding new and unique solutions to address specific clinical problems. Cale received his B.Sc. in Pharmacology and Toxicology at the University of Wisconsin in 2006 and then worked as a technician investigating stem cell transplantation for the treatment of dysmyelinating diseases. Cale then received his doctorate from the University of Miami – Miller School of Medicine from the Department of Molecular and Cellular Pharmacology in 2012. In the laboratory of Dr. Kerry Burnstein and in collaboration with Amgen Inc., he established preclinical efficacy for IGF-1R antibody-based therapies for prostate cancer and subsequently developed models of acquired resistance to IGF-1R inhibition and defined a novel calcium-mediated mechanism. Cale is an avid hockey fan (Florida Panthers) and can often be spotted biking around Winston-Salem.
Lab Alumni/ae
Jerod Sears, M.S.
Jerod joined the Singh lab in 2015 and earned his MS in 2017. He his currently pursuing a MD at Wake Forest University School of Medicine. His work studied the effects of nanoparticle enhanced photothermal and magnetic hyperthermia combined with ionizing radiation for treatment of mesenchymal cancers. Jerod is orignally from Lexington, KY. He received his B.S. in Chemistry with ACS certification in biochemistry and a minor in Biology from Centre College in 2015. Jerod is an avid University of Kentucky basketball fan. He makes sure to watch every game in the same seat with his pet hedgehog for good luck. Go Cayuts!
Dr. Jessica Swanner
Jessica joined the Singhlab in 2012 and earned her PhD in 2017. She is continuing her academic career as a postdoctoral fellow in Prof. Balveen Kaur's lab at Texas Medical Center in Houston. For her dissertation research, Jessica studied the utilization of silver nanoparticles as a novel therapy for the treatment of primary and metastatic triple negative breast cancer. She received her undergraduate degree in Biology with a minor in Chemistry from Erskine College in 2012. She enjoys basketball, snowboarding, and a hanging out by any warm body of water.
Dr. Brittany Eldridge
Brittany joined the Singhlab in 2012 and earned her PhD in 2017. She is pursuing a career as a medical/scientific writer for MedThink SciCom. For her dissertation research, Brittany worked on developing carbon nanotubes for use in thermal ablative therapy for glioblastoma. She received her undergraduate degree in Biology with a minor in English from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in 2012. Ask her about her cat, Dill! (But only if you have a couple of hours to spare to look at cat pictures.)
Brian Bernish, M.S.
Brian was a research associate in the Singh Lab from 2012 - March 2016 and was responsible for keeping the lab from going up in flames. He is now a clinical trials coordinator and will start school in Fall 2017 at Wake Forest University School of Medicine to become a Physicians Assistant.
Undergraduate Researchers (Past and Present)
Jasmine Tinoco; NC A&T; 2009-2010
Verida Leandre; NC A&T; 2011
Allison Hooker; Salem College; 2014-2015
Mariah Wright; WFU; 2014-2015
Maria Ramirez-Perez; Salem College; 2015-2016
Chris Hackett; WFU; 2016
Boning Chen; WFU; 2017-Present