Steen Laboratory | Lab Members


Meet Our Team!
	Judith Steen, PhD \| Email Dr. Steen is a Professor of Neurobiology at Harvard Medical School, a member of the Harvard Stem Cell Institute and the Director of the Neuroproteomics Laboratory in the F. M. Kirby Neuroscience Center at Boston Children’s Hospital. Her laboratory works to understand neuro-regeneration and neurodegenerative diseases using systems biology approaches. The laboratory develops novel qualitative and quantitative methodologies at the interface of proteomics and transcriptomics with special emphasis on computational proteomics approaches. These novel quantitative methods and bioinformatics tools developed by the Steen Laboratory are being applied to understand the biology of regeneration and neurodegeneration in both mouse models, stem cells and human tissues, to find molecular targets for therapeutics, and to identify biomarkers of the neurodegenerative process. Further functional studies using biochemical, molecular and cell biology approaches are used to verify and understand the role of the targets and biomarkers in the context of injury and disease. The goal of this research is to use molecular information provided by our quantitative proteomics measurements in order to ameliorate neurodegeneration and promote regeneration.is an Associate Professor of Neurobiology at Harvard Medical School, a member of the Harvard Stem Cell Institute and the Director of the Neuroproteomics Laboratory in the F. M. Kirby Neuroscience Center at Boston Children’s Hospital. Her laboratory works to understand neuro-regeneration and neurodegenerative diseases using systems biology approaches. The laboratory develops novel qualitative and quantitative methodologies at the interface of proteomics and transcriptomics with special emphasis on computational proteomics approaches. These novel quantitative methods and bioinformatics tools developed by the Steen Laboratory are being applied to understand the biology of regeneration and neurodegeneration in both mouse models, stem cells and human tissues, to find molecular targets for therapeutics, and to identify biomarkers of the neurodegenerative process. Further functional studies using biochemical, molecular and cell biology approaches are used to verify and understand the role of the targets and biomarkers in the context of injury and disease. The goal of this research is to use molecular information provided by our quantitative proteomics measurements in order to ameliorate neurodegeneration and promote regeneration.
	Hanno Steen, PhD \| Email Dr. Steen is a Professor of Pathology at Harvard Medical School, whose laboratory is located at Boston Children’s Hospital. Dr. Steen’s group research has three focal areas: i) The discovery of urinary biomarkers for diagnostic purposes in a wide range of acute and chronic diseases including appendicitis, Kawasaki disease, TB, traumatic brain injury, and Crohn’s Diseases. To this end the Steen Lab has developed a urine proteomics platform which allows for the fast and efficient processing and proteomic analysis of urine specimens. ii) Use of proteomics to study post-translational mechanisms of protein regulation, with particular emphasis on protein degradation in mitosis and development. The Steen group developed the concept of co-regulation proteomics algorithms that correlates protein abundance traces specific enzyme activities and functions. This work resulted in the identification of kinens, as a new class of cell cycle dependent substrates of the Anaphase Promoting Complex. iii) Method development to improve a) processing of proteomic samples, b) accuracy and precision of protein quantification and iii) computational methods for the qualitative and quantitative analysis of proteomic data. For instance, the FLEXIQuant approach developed by the Steen Lab, which allows for the exquisitely detailed characterization of selected proteins and their post-translational modification, has been instrumental for studying multikinase mechanisms (Nat Methods. 2012;9:504), and the post-translational regulation of Tiki1 in Xenopus development (Cell. 2012;149:1565) and kinesin C1 during mitosis (EMBO J. 2014;33:385).
Image	Ceren Uncu \| Email Ceren is from Antalya, Turkey. She joined the Steen Lab after graduating from Istanbul University in 2011. As the CLS Lab’s manager, she keeps the Judith Steen Lab running smoothly, ensuring the team has the resources, guidance, and support they need to do their best work. She oversees budgets, equipment, and collaborations, manages Material Transfer Agreements, Safety and Regulatory Protocols and coordinates onboarding and training for new lab members. She also serves as the Chair of the Hospital’s Laboratory Safety Group, helping maintain a safe and productive environment for all Boston Children's Hospital researchers. Outside of the lab, Ceren can be found chasing her two little kids at playgrounds, going on family adventures, or practicing yoga at various studios around Boston.
Image	Deeptarup Biswas, PhD \| Email Deeptarup Biswas specializes in Single-Cell Omics, Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning, Neuroscience, and Biomarker Discovery. He completed his Ph.D. at the Indian Institute of Technology Bombay (IITB), where he developed robust big data analysis pipelines to investigate the pathophysiology and therapeutic mechanisms of high-grade meningioma tumors. Currently, his research lies at the intersection of mass spectrometry-based proteomics, big data analytics, and neurodegenerative disease biology, aiming to unravel molecular mechanisms and disease-associated proteomic profiles. He has developed several databases, automated tools, and computational pipelines, including BrainProt, AlphaCross-XL, CovProt, and BDMC - contributing to advancements in omics-driven and translational clinical research.
Image	Oliver Schott, MSc \| Email Oliver earned his master's degree in bioanalytical chemistry from the University of Aalen, Germany, specializing in mass spectrometry and statistics. During his graduate studies in the Steen lab, Oliver develops mass spectrometry-based high-throughput proteomic platforms for analyzing Dried Blood Spots (DBS). His work covers various fields such as Chemistry, Biology, Statistics, (Bio-)Informatics, along with hardware development and lab automation.
Image	Hou Feng, MD \| Email Dr. Feng earned her M.D. degree from Sun Yat-sen University under the supervision of Dr. Kuang, successfully defending her thesis in the summer of 2023. Her graduate research focused on understanding resistance mechanisms to kinase inhibitors in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), employing multi-omics approaches and bioinformatics analyses. She integrated data from genomics, transcriptomics, proteomics, and phosphoproteomics to elucidate pathways involved in drug resistance, gaining substantial expertise in high-throughput data analysis and cancer biology. With a growing interest in mass spectrometry and its applications, Dr. Feng joined the laboratory of Dr. J. Steen at Boston Children’s Hospital and Harvard Medical School as a postdoctoral fellow. She has pivoted her focus to neurodegenerative disorders with remarkable adaptability. Her current research spans Alzheimer's disease (AD), Parkinson's disease (PD), and multiple system atrophy (MSA), where she has been specifically investigating protein aggregation mechanisms and their downstream effects in different mouse models.
Image	Dylan Tabang, PhD \| Email Dylan is a post-doctoral research fellow who joined the group of Prof. Hanno Steen in the Department of Pathology in 2023. He did his Bachelor of Science degree in Chemistry at the University of Illinois at Chicago followed by a Doctor of Philosophy degree in Chemistry at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. His graduate work focused on developing the multiomic mass spectrometry toolbox for analysis of pancreatic diseases, with a focus on protein post-translational modifications. Dylan's current interests in the Steen^2 lab include developing new, high throughput-methods for deepening proteomic coverage from body fluids and performing biomarker discovery in pancreatic (and other pediatric) disease research. Dylan's hobbies outside of lab include cooking, cultural sightseeing, and reading.
Image	Tian Wang, PhD \| Email Tian Wang is from Changchun, China. He graduated with a B.Sc. on chemical biology in 2017 and a Ph.D. on biology in 2022 (with Prof. Lei Liu) both at Tsinghua University (China). During his Ph.D. program, Tian was focusing on developing new strategies to chemically synthesize biochemical protein tools for studying ubiquitin-associated proteins in cells by proteomic methods, as well as the structural insights into ubiquitination enzymes by biophysical methods. With the increasing interest in mass spectrum, he joined the Steen Lab as a postdoctoral fellow in 2022. He is working on the pathogenesis role played by Tau in multiple tauopathies. In his spare time, Tian loves to work out at gym, paddle on the dragon boat, and watch BiliBili!
Image	Meenakshi Jha, MSc \| Email Meenakshi Jha is a Lab manager in the Steen lab. She studied Biotechnology(M.Sc.) from Bangalore University, India. After her post-graduation, she worked for the firm Ernst & Young in Bangalore. Her interest in science made her switch her career to Science and she eventually got an opportunity to join Steen lab in May 2018. Besides managing the lab, she also manages thousands of samples for various projects. She loves music, singing is her favorite pastime. She loves traveling and exploring new places around the world.
	Christophe Schlaffner, PhD \| Email Christoph was born and raised in Germany. He graduated from the University of Applied Sciences Upper Austria with a Bachelor of Science in Engineering (Bioinformatics) and a Master of Science in Engineering (Bioinformatics). He went on to receive his PhD from the University of Cambridge, UK where he worked with Dr. Jyoti Choudhary at the Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute and Dr. Andreas Bender at the Center for Molecular Informatics, University of Cambridge, on developing tools and analyzing data for proteogenomics and personal proteomics. Christoph is interested in developing bioinformatics tools to understand the function of non-canonical RNA and translation products and untangling disease related from personal variation. Outside the lab, Christoph enjoys cooking and baking, traveling, and choral music.
Image	Saima Ahmed, PhD \| Email Saima is currently a Postdoctoral Research Fellow in the Steen Lab. She joined Dr. Hanno Steen’s lab in 2008 and later completed her PhD from the Technische Universität Berlin (TU Berlin) under his mentorship focusing on proteomics-based biomarker discovery. Since then, she has contributed to 19 scientific publications, including four first-author papers and a textbook chapter. One of her studies was featured on the cover of the Journal of NeuroVirology, and she has submitted two U.S. patent applications. She has received several awards, including finalist for the HMS Pathology Research Celebration and first prize for Poster of Distinction at the HMS Pathology Retreat. Her research focuses on developing non-invasive biomarker assays using body fluids such as urine to predict and diagnose diseases in premature neonates in the NICU.
Image	Sinead Greally, PhD \| Email Sinead Greally is a Postdoctoral Research Fellow in the Steen Laboratory at Boston Children’s Hospital and Harvard Medical School. Originally from Ireland, she earned her BSc in Biomedical Science from the National University of Ireland, Galway, and an MSc in Drug Development and NeuroHealth from Maastricht University in the Netherlands. She completed her PhD as an external student at Maastricht University, conducting her research in the Steen Lab, where she investigated the proteomic and molecular features of α-synuclein pathology in Parkinson’s disease, Dementia with Lewy Bodies, and Multiple System Atrophy. In her postdoctoral research, Sinead continues to characterize α-synuclein proteoforms across synucleinopathies, expand global proteomic analyses in PD, DLB, and MSA, and investigate biomarkers associated with GBA-linked Parkinson’s disease. Outside the lab, she enjoys exploring Boston, traveling, and spending time with friends.
Image	Liquan Liu, MD \| Email Liquan Liu is a postdoctoral fellow at the Steen Lab with a passion for bridging clinical medicine and cutting-edge mass spectrometry research. He earned my M.D. from Huazhong University of Science and Technology, specializing in oncology and clinical medicine. Currently, he focuses on single-cell and spatial proteomics applied to neurodegenerative diseases, working across the entire research pipeline—from sample preparation to data analysis and clinical translation. What excites Liquan most is the potential to translate our proteomics findings into meaningful clinical impact through precision medicine. Beyond the lab, you might find Liquan reading, watching movies, or out on the water with his dragon boat team! He is always eager to collaborate and learn from others in the proteomics community!
Image	Medha Gayathri J Pai \| Email Medha Gayathri J Pai is a research trainee in the Steen lab. She is a doctoral candidate at the Indian Institute of Technology Bombay, India. She brings a multidisciplinary foundation in Biosciences, Biotechnology, and Forensic Science. Her research focuses on applying quantitative proteomics and molecular biology to understand pediatric brain tumors. At the Steen Lab, she is learning and optimizing methods in deep visual proteomics and spatial proteomics, integrating AI-driven image analysis with mass spectrometry to study neurodegenerative and pediatric diseases. Medha loves exploring different cuisines from around the world and singing is her favourite pastime.
	Zainab Wurie, BA \| Email Zainab joined the Steen Lab in February 2017 as an undergraduate researcher, where she worked on optimization of human cerebrospinal fluid peptidomics methods and mass spectral analysis for her senior thesis. She graduated with a B.A. in Neurobiology from Harvard University in 2018. She loved the lab so much that she decided to join full-time. As a research assistant, she is working under Dylan Tabang, PhD and performing high-throughput body fluid sample processing for proteomic/mass spectral analysis, as well as proteomics/peptidomics method optimization. Outside of lab, she loves taking long walks, gardening, and spending time with friends and family.

Meet Our Team!
	Judith Steen, PhD \| Email Dr. Steen is a Professor of Neurobiology at Harvard Medical School, a member of the Harvard Stem Cell Institute and the Director of the Neuroproteomics Laboratory in the F. M. Kirby Neuroscience Center at Boston Children’s Hospital. Her laboratory works to understand neuro-regeneration and neurodegenerative diseases using systems biology approaches. The laboratory develops novel qualitative and quantitative methodologies at the interface of proteomics and transcriptomics with special emphasis on computational proteomics approaches. These novel quantitative methods and bioinformatics tools developed by the Steen Laboratory are being applied to understand the biology of regeneration and neurodegeneration in both mouse models, stem cells and human tissues, to find molecular targets for therapeutics, and to identify biomarkers of the neurodegenerative process. Further functional studies using biochemical, molecular and cell biology approaches are used to verify and understand the role of the targets and biomarkers in the context of injury and disease. The goal of this research is to use molecular information provided by our quantitative proteomics measurements in order to ameliorate neurodegeneration and promote regeneration.is an Associate Professor of Neurobiology at Harvard Medical School, a member of the Harvard Stem Cell Institute and the Director of the Neuroproteomics Laboratory in the F. M. Kirby Neuroscience Center at Boston Children’s Hospital. Her laboratory works to understand neuro-regeneration and neurodegenerative diseases using systems biology approaches. The laboratory develops novel qualitative and quantitative methodologies at the interface of proteomics and transcriptomics with special emphasis on computational proteomics approaches. These novel quantitative methods and bioinformatics tools developed by the Steen Laboratory are being applied to understand the biology of regeneration and neurodegeneration in both mouse models, stem cells and human tissues, to find molecular targets for therapeutics, and to identify biomarkers of the neurodegenerative process. Further functional studies using biochemical, molecular and cell biology approaches are used to verify and understand the role of the targets and biomarkers in the context of injury and disease. The goal of this research is to use molecular information provided by our quantitative proteomics measurements in order to ameliorate neurodegeneration and promote regeneration.
	Hanno Steen, PhD \| Email Dr. Steen is a Professor of Pathology at Harvard Medical School, whose laboratory is located at Boston Children’s Hospital. Dr. Steen’s group research has three focal areas: i) The discovery of urinary biomarkers for diagnostic purposes in a wide range of acute and chronic diseases including appendicitis, Kawasaki disease, TB, traumatic brain injury, and Crohn’s Diseases. To this end the Steen Lab has developed a urine proteomics platform which allows for the fast and efficient processing and proteomic analysis of urine specimens. ii) Use of proteomics to study post-translational mechanisms of protein regulation, with particular emphasis on protein degradation in mitosis and development. The Steen group developed the concept of co-regulation proteomics algorithms that correlates protein abundance traces specific enzyme activities and functions. This work resulted in the identification of kinens, as a new class of cell cycle dependent substrates of the Anaphase Promoting Complex. iii) Method development to improve a) processing of proteomic samples, b) accuracy and precision of protein quantification and iii) computational methods for the qualitative and quantitative analysis of proteomic data. For instance, the FLEXIQuant approach developed by the Steen Lab, which allows for the exquisitely detailed characterization of selected proteins and their post-translational modification, has been instrumental for studying multikinase mechanisms (Nat Methods. 2012;9:504), and the post-translational regulation of Tiki1 in Xenopus development (Cell. 2012;149:1565) and kinesin C1 during mitosis (EMBO J. 2014;33:385).
Image	Ceren Uncu \| Email Ceren is from Antalya, Turkey. She joined the Steen Lab after graduating from Istanbul University in 2011. As the CLS Lab’s manager, she keeps the Judith Steen Lab running smoothly, ensuring the team has the resources, guidance, and support they need to do their best work. She oversees budgets, equipment, and collaborations, manages Material Transfer Agreements, Safety and Regulatory Protocols and coordinates onboarding and training for new lab members. She also serves as the Chair of the Hospital’s Laboratory Safety Group, helping maintain a safe and productive environment for all Boston Children's Hospital researchers. Outside of the lab, Ceren can be found chasing her two little kids at playgrounds, going on family adventures, or practicing yoga at various studios around Boston.
Image	Deeptarup Biswas, PhD \| Email Deeptarup Biswas specializes in Single-Cell Omics, Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning, Neuroscience, and Biomarker Discovery. He completed his Ph.D. at the Indian Institute of Technology Bombay (IITB), where he developed robust big data analysis pipelines to investigate the pathophysiology and therapeutic mechanisms of high-grade meningioma tumors. Currently, his research lies at the intersection of mass spectrometry-based proteomics, big data analytics, and neurodegenerative disease biology, aiming to unravel molecular mechanisms and disease-associated proteomic profiles. He has developed several databases, automated tools, and computational pipelines, including BrainProt, AlphaCross-XL, CovProt, and BDMC - contributing to advancements in omics-driven and translational clinical research.
Image	Oliver Schott, MSc \| Email Oliver earned his master's degree in bioanalytical chemistry from the University of Aalen, Germany, specializing in mass spectrometry and statistics. During his graduate studies in the Steen lab, Oliver develops mass spectrometry-based high-throughput proteomic platforms for analyzing Dried Blood Spots (DBS). His work covers various fields such as Chemistry, Biology, Statistics, (Bio-)Informatics, along with hardware development and lab automation.
Image	Hou Feng, MD \| Email Dr. Feng earned her M.D. degree from Sun Yat-sen University under the supervision of Dr. Kuang, successfully defending her thesis in the summer of 2023. Her graduate research focused on understanding resistance mechanisms to kinase inhibitors in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), employing multi-omics approaches and bioinformatics analyses. She integrated data from genomics, transcriptomics, proteomics, and phosphoproteomics to elucidate pathways involved in drug resistance, gaining substantial expertise in high-throughput data analysis and cancer biology. With a growing interest in mass spectrometry and its applications, Dr. Feng joined the laboratory of Dr. J. Steen at Boston Children’s Hospital and Harvard Medical School as a postdoctoral fellow. She has pivoted her focus to neurodegenerative disorders with remarkable adaptability. Her current research spans Alzheimer's disease (AD), Parkinson's disease (PD), and multiple system atrophy (MSA), where she has been specifically investigating protein aggregation mechanisms and their downstream effects in different mouse models.
Image	Dylan Tabang, PhD \| Email Dylan is a post-doctoral research fellow who joined the group of Prof. Hanno Steen in the Department of Pathology in 2023. He did his Bachelor of Science degree in Chemistry at the University of Illinois at Chicago followed by a Doctor of Philosophy degree in Chemistry at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. His graduate work focused on developing the multiomic mass spectrometry toolbox for analysis of pancreatic diseases, with a focus on protein post-translational modifications. Dylan's current interests in the Steen^2 lab include developing new, high throughput-methods for deepening proteomic coverage from body fluids and performing biomarker discovery in pancreatic (and other pediatric) disease research. Dylan's hobbies outside of lab include cooking, cultural sightseeing, and reading.
Image	Tian Wang, PhD \| Email Tian Wang is from Changchun, China. He graduated with a B.Sc. on chemical biology in 2017 and a Ph.D. on biology in 2022 (with Prof. Lei Liu) both at Tsinghua University (China). During his Ph.D. program, Tian was focusing on developing new strategies to chemically synthesize biochemical protein tools for studying ubiquitin-associated proteins in cells by proteomic methods, as well as the structural insights into ubiquitination enzymes by biophysical methods. With the increasing interest in mass spectrum, he joined the Steen Lab as a postdoctoral fellow in 2022. He is working on the pathogenesis role played by Tau in multiple tauopathies. In his spare time, Tian loves to work out at gym, paddle on the dragon boat, and watch BiliBili!
Image	Meenakshi Jha, MSc \| Email Meenakshi Jha is a Lab manager in the Steen lab. She studied Biotechnology(M.Sc.) from Bangalore University, India. After her post-graduation, she worked for the firm Ernst & Young in Bangalore. Her interest in science made her switch her career to Science and she eventually got an opportunity to join Steen lab in May 2018. Besides managing the lab, she also manages thousands of samples for various projects. She loves music, singing is her favorite pastime. She loves traveling and exploring new places around the world.
	Christophe Schlaffner, PhD \| Email Christoph was born and raised in Germany. He graduated from the University of Applied Sciences Upper Austria with a Bachelor of Science in Engineering (Bioinformatics) and a Master of Science in Engineering (Bioinformatics). He went on to receive his PhD from the University of Cambridge, UK where he worked with Dr. Jyoti Choudhary at the Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute and Dr. Andreas Bender at the Center for Molecular Informatics, University of Cambridge, on developing tools and analyzing data for proteogenomics and personal proteomics. Christoph is interested in developing bioinformatics tools to understand the function of non-canonical RNA and translation products and untangling disease related from personal variation. Outside the lab, Christoph enjoys cooking and baking, traveling, and choral music.
Image	Saima Ahmed, PhD \| Email Saima is currently a Postdoctoral Research Fellow in the Steen Lab. She joined Dr. Hanno Steen’s lab in 2008 and later completed her PhD from the Technische Universität Berlin (TU Berlin) under his mentorship focusing on proteomics-based biomarker discovery. Since then, she has contributed to 19 scientific publications, including four first-author papers and a textbook chapter. One of her studies was featured on the cover of the Journal of NeuroVirology, and she has submitted two U.S. patent applications. She has received several awards, including finalist for the HMS Pathology Research Celebration and first prize for Poster of Distinction at the HMS Pathology Retreat. Her research focuses on developing non-invasive biomarker assays using body fluids such as urine to predict and diagnose diseases in premature neonates in the NICU.
Image	Sinead Greally, PhD \| Email Sinead Greally is a Postdoctoral Research Fellow in the Steen Laboratory at Boston Children’s Hospital and Harvard Medical School. Originally from Ireland, she earned her BSc in Biomedical Science from the National University of Ireland, Galway, and an MSc in Drug Development and NeuroHealth from Maastricht University in the Netherlands. She completed her PhD as an external student at Maastricht University, conducting her research in the Steen Lab, where she investigated the proteomic and molecular features of α-synuclein pathology in Parkinson’s disease, Dementia with Lewy Bodies, and Multiple System Atrophy. In her postdoctoral research, Sinead continues to characterize α-synuclein proteoforms across synucleinopathies, expand global proteomic analyses in PD, DLB, and MSA, and investigate biomarkers associated with GBA-linked Parkinson’s disease. Outside the lab, she enjoys exploring Boston, traveling, and spending time with friends.
Image	Liquan Liu, MD \| Email Liquan Liu is a postdoctoral fellow at the Steen Lab with a passion for bridging clinical medicine and cutting-edge mass spectrometry research. He earned my M.D. from Huazhong University of Science and Technology, specializing in oncology and clinical medicine. Currently, he focuses on single-cell and spatial proteomics applied to neurodegenerative diseases, working across the entire research pipeline—from sample preparation to data analysis and clinical translation. What excites Liquan most is the potential to translate our proteomics findings into meaningful clinical impact through precision medicine. Beyond the lab, you might find Liquan reading, watching movies, or out on the water with his dragon boat team! He is always eager to collaborate and learn from others in the proteomics community!
Image	Medha Gayathri J Pai \| Email Medha Gayathri J Pai is a research trainee in the Steen lab. She is a doctoral candidate at the Indian Institute of Technology Bombay, India. She brings a multidisciplinary foundation in Biosciences, Biotechnology, and Forensic Science. Her research focuses on applying quantitative proteomics and molecular biology to understand pediatric brain tumors. At the Steen Lab, she is learning and optimizing methods in deep visual proteomics and spatial proteomics, integrating AI-driven image analysis with mass spectrometry to study neurodegenerative and pediatric diseases. Medha loves exploring different cuisines from around the world and singing is her favourite pastime.
	Zainab Wurie, BA \| Email Zainab joined the Steen Lab in February 2017 as an undergraduate researcher, where she worked on optimization of human cerebrospinal fluid peptidomics methods and mass spectral analysis for her senior thesis. She graduated with a B.A. in Neurobiology from Harvard University in 2018. She loved the lab so much that she decided to join full-time. As a research assistant, she is working under Dylan Tabang, PhD and performing high-throughput body fluid sample processing for proteomic/mass spectral analysis, as well as proteomics/peptidomics method optimization. Outside of lab, she loves taking long walks, gardening, and spending time with friends and family.

Steen Laboratory Lab Members