Members





Jeffrey Comer (PI)

Assistant Professor of Anatomy and Physiology

E-mail: jeffcomer [at] ksu [dot] edu

Curriculum Vitae

  • PhD in Physics, University of Illinois, Urbana, Illinois, USA
  • BS in Physics, University of Akron, Akron, Ohio, USA

Dr. Jeffrey Comer is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Anatomy and Physiology at Kansas State University and is associated with the Institute of Computational Comparative Medicine and the Nanotechnology Innovation Center of Kansas State. Dr. Comer’s experience in computational biophysics dates from 2006, and he has coauthored 32 publications in peer-reviewed journals and 6 book chapters involving molecular simulation, receiving more than 900 citations (Google scholar). He is also a contributor to the popular molecular dynamics software NAMD (doi: 10.1021/ct500874p). His research interests include rational design and virtual screening of nanomaterials for biological applications, surface interactions between nanomaterials and biomolecules, biomolecular kinetics, free-energy calculations, and ion channels and transporters.

Jeff Comer



Ravindra Thakkar (Doctoral Student)

Graduate student in the Comer Research Lab.

  • MS in Biotechnology, Sardar Patel University
  • BS in Biochemistry, Sardar Patel University

Mr. Thakkar is combining electron microscopy and molecular simulation to better understand nanoscale systems

Ravindra Thakkar





Former Members




E. R. Azhagiya Singam (Former Postdoctoral Researcher)

Former Postdoctoral Researcher in the Comer Research Lab. Currently at UC Berkeley.

  • PhD in Bioinformatics - Computational Biology, University of Madras
  • MS in Bioinformatics, University of Madras
  • BS in Zoology, University of Madras

Dr. E. R. Azhagiya Singam joined Dr. Comer's lab in the summer of 2017. He focused mainly on the interaction of proteins with graphitic surfaces and studied changes in their structure upon adsorption.

E. R. Azhagiya Singam



Logan Coates (Former Undergradate Researcher)




Ariela Vergara-Jaque (Former Postdoctoral Researcher)

Former Postdoctoral Researcher in the Comer Research Lab. Currently at Universidad de Talca.

  • PhD. in Applied Sciences, University of Talca, Talca, Chile.
  • BS in Bioinformatics, Bioinformatics Engineer, University of Talca, Talca, Chile.

Dr. Ariela Vergara-Jaque joined the Comer group in 2015, culminating from previous collaborations with Dr. Comer. Dr. Vergara-Jaque has extensive experience in simulation of biological systems including both membrane proteins and nanostructures. During her previous postdoctoral experience in the lab of Dr. Lucy Forrest at National Institutes of Health, she developed expertise in bioinformatics and modeling of proteins that function as channels and transporters, whereas in her PhD, she worked with dendritic nanoparticles used as a mechanism for transport and controlled delivery of drugs. Dr. Vergara-Jaque has coauthored 17 publications in peer-reviewed journals and is a recipient of the 2013 L'Oréal Chile-UNESCO Women in Science Fellowship and the 2015 L'Oréal-UNESCO Rising Talent Award.

Ariela Vergara-Jaque



Horacio Poblete (Former Postdoctoral Researcher)

Former Postdoctoral Researcher in the Comer Research Lab. Currently at Universidad de Talca.

  • PhD in Applied Sciences, Universidad de Talca, Chile
  • BS in Chemistry, Universidad de Santiago de Chile, Chile

Dr. Horacio Poblete (Postdoc) joined to the Comer group in 2015. He has experience in simulations of membrane proteins and nanosurfaces. His doctoral work focused on transient receptor potential channel V1 (TRPV1), a nonselective cation channel, which involved collaboration with Dr. Comer (doi: 10.1074/jbc.M114.613620). Recently, Dr. Poblete has been involved in computational studies for predicting the adsorption of penta-peptides onto nano-silver surfaces in collaboration with the experimental group of Dr. Emilio Alarcon (Ottawa University, Canada) (doi: 10.1021/acs.langmuir.5b03601). Also, he has been studying the structural coupling between substrate translocation and the gating mechanism of the auxiliary anion channel in EAAT1, using computational techniques in collaboration with the experimental group of Dr. Delany Torres-Salazar and Dr. Susan Amara at NIH. Dr. Poblete has coauthored 14 publications in peer-reviewed journals.

Horacio Poblete



Anurag Muthyam (Undergradate Researcher)




Pedro Dousseau Guedes de Melo (Undergraduate Researcher)

Computer Engineering Undergraduate Student

E-mail: dousseau [at] ksu [dot] edu

Curriculum Vitae

  • Pursuing degree in Computer Engineering, Federal University of São Paulo, São José dos Campos, São Paulo, Brazil
  • Pursuing degree in Science and Technology, Federal University of São Paulo, São José dos Campos, São Paulo, Brazil
  • Technical in Mechatronics, Everardo Passos Technical School, São José dos Campos, São Paulo, Brazil

Computer Engineer undergraduate student participant of the Brazilian Scientific Mobility Program - Science Without Borders, an exchange program that is offered by the Brazilian government for the best qualified students from the most reliable universities of the country with the purpose of learning, reaching, and exchanging technology. Graduated as a mechatronics technician at the Everardo Passos Technical School, and worked as an intern at LHColus Technology and OnsetComp Brazil. As undergraduate student, researched at the National Institute for Space Research in the project Numeric Simulation of the Geometric Factor of Electrostatic Analyzer of Energy ELISA, at the Associated Laboratory of Plasma. Currently engaged as an undergraduate researcher at the Nanotechnology Innovation Center of Kansas State.