Our Team
Meet the Researchers Behind the YAK Lab
Our team brings together diverse expertise in RNA biology, structural biology, and machine learning to advance our understanding of RNA structure and function.
Meet the Researchers Behind the YAK Lab
Our team brings together diverse expertise in RNA biology, structural biology, and machine learning to advance our understanding of RNA structure and function.
Principal Investigator
yousuf@stanford.edu
Yousuf graduated from the University of Maryland, College Park with a B.S. in Cell Biology and Molecular Genetics. He then studied at the University of Cambridge and obtained his M.Phil in Pathology funded by the Winston Churchill Scholarship. He then returned to the USA and completed a M.S. in Biomedical Informatics and his Ph.D. in Molecular and Cellular Physiology as a Knight-Hennessy Scholar, NSF Graduate Research Fellow, and NIH F31 recipient.
In between these, Yousuf contributed to the AlphaFold project by incorporating nucleic acids into the model and to the ESM3 protein language model. Between experiments and coding, Yousuf enjoys to run, play tennis, and ski.
Life Science Research Professional
Louie attended the University of California, Davis and graduated with a B.S. in Cell Biology and a minor in Asian American Studies. Prior to transferring, he majored in A.S. Biological Sciences at Mission College in Santa Clara, CA.
He is an aspiring first-generation scientist from the Philippines. He found his passion in research as an undergraduate researcher at the UC Davis Genome Center before working as a postbaccalaureate scholar at Stanford. Outside of science, he likes to eat out, hike, and explore different places.
Operations Specialist
Abby was born and raised in Sacramento, CA before attending the University of Oregon, graduating in 2024 with a BA in Psychology and minors in Business and Sociology. She just moved to South Bay and started at Stanford's MCP Department in January 2025.
In her free time, Abby loves to be outside, listen to music, try new recipes, and travel!
Our lab is just getting started! Check back here for updates as our team grows and alumni move on to exciting new opportunities.
We're always looking for motivated students and researchers to join our team.
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