Post Doctoral Fellows
Fatemeh (Leila) Vahedi
Ph.D. Students
Ana Portillo
Emily Feng
Liz Balint
MSc. Students
Misaal Mehboob
Alexa Mansour
Adnan Moinuddin
Undergraduate Students
Amelia Montemarano
Arman Pandher
Bashar Alobeid
Past Lab Members
Misaal Mehboob
MSc Candidate
Misaal completed her Bachelor of Health Sciences degree in the Honours Biochemistry - Biomedical Research Specialization program at McMaster University. After taking her first immunology course in second-year, she was enthralled by the powerful functions of innate immune cells, specifically NK cells, in infection and cancer, and joined the Ashkar lab to expand her knowledge. As an undergraduate student under Ana's mentorship, she investigated the cytotoxic potential of expanded γδ T cells against ovarian and breast cancer, and looked into novel strategies to enhance NK cell homing and infiltration into solid tumours.
In her master's, Misaal is looking to investigate the cytotoxicity of expanded NK and CD70-targeting CAR-NK cells against brain tumour cells. She hopes to gain an understanding of the immunotherapeutic potential of these cells against glioblastoma and medulloblastoma, specifically.
In her spare time, Misaal enjoys reading, hiking, and playing with her overly pampered cat.
Email: mehbom1@mcmaster.ca