Trevor Ung
Graduate Student
About Trevor
Hailing from the remote, snowy north known as Toronto, Canada, Trevor received a BASc in biomedical engineering from the University of Toronto in 2020. Seemingly unable to avoid frigid climates, he moved to Chicago to pursue a PhD in molecular engineering, co-advised by Aaron Esser-Kahn and Melody Swartz.
Trevor's previous work on drug delivery systems led him to the immunoengineering path, where he aims to study how the targeted delivery of vaccines can help improve their efficacy.
In his spare time, you may find Trevor biking along the Chicago waterfront, or playing ultimate frisbee at the nearest available field.
Education
BASc, Biomedical Systems Engineering, University of Toronto (2020)
Favorite Quote
“The difference between screwing around and science is writing it down.”
– Adam Savage, Mythbusters
Scientific Hero
Frederick Banting/Charles Best – co-discovery of insulin and public release of patent
Favorite Paper
The Danger Model: A Renewed Sense of Self;
Polly Matzinger
If you could be a piece of lab equipment, what would you be?
"LCMS – moves too slow, overly analytical, and frequently calibrated with caffeine"
Trevor's Research
Trevor is currently studying how cell-specific delivery of vaccines affects the generation of immune memory. His project aims to generate nanocarrier systems capable of targeting specific cell types, and to use these tools to analyze the immune response.
Lab Publications
Isolating and Targeting a Highly Active, Stochastic Dendritic Cell Subpopulation for Improved Immune Responses. Deak, Peter Edward, Bradley Studnitzer, Trevor Ung, Rachel Steinhardt, Melody Swartz, and Aaron Esser-Kahn. Cell Reports 2022 Nov 1;41(5):111563. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.celrep.2022.111563
Isolating and Targeting a Highly Active, Stochastic Dendritic Cell Subpopulation for Improved Immune Responses. Deak, P. Studnizter, B, Ung, T, Steinhardt, R. Swartz, M and Esser-Kahn, A.P. Cell Reports, April 2022 http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.4093302