This is my current team - for past members, click here.
Last updated 01/05/2025
Dr. Rabia Fatima
Postdoc (2025 - )
Phd 2019-2024 (Biochemistry)
Rabia joined us from a BSc at McMaster, with a thesis in the MacNeil lab. From worms to bacteria to phages… and by the end of the PhD, she was bring them all together! The picture here is her receiving the now-traditional Hynes Lab warhammer for completing her PhD. Her grad school journey was littered with awards for her exceptional work and presentation skills, culminating in the Canadian Society of Microbiologists Armand-Frappier award for the best PhD in the country. The pandemic drove her to baking and photography, starting “Chaotic Bake” which you can check out on Instagram. She also runs an online book store as a Director of Online Sales at Friends of the Mississauga Library . Her McMaster email is fatimr1@…
Gayatri Nair
PhD Candidate (MedSci) 2021-, Research Assistant IV B (Fall 2019-S2021)
Even prior to joining the lab, she could frequently be found in lab, keeping Hiba company. Mascot or Unofficial lab member? Might as well make it official - with her MSc defence in Sept 2019 marking her departure from the Surette lab, she joined us as an RA to work on the IIDR/Farncombe Joint Phage Initiative. She became so enamored with the lab, she started a PhD with us in the Fall of 2021, following up work identifying new signals of phage induction. She was supported by a Farncombe Studentship, an OGS-D, has won awards as an outstanding student - but none top the award for best presentation she effortlessly clinched despite (subtly!) throwing up during it. That’s talent! She used to dance competitively in her undergrad, but now only does so with a company.
Christine Cerson
PhD Candidate 2022-
(Biochemistry)
Christine met Dr. Hynes through his phage lectures in 3MI3. A few raised hands and some exceptionally sharp questions later, her fate was sealed. Now a member the Hynes lab supported by an OGS, looking for the opportunity to ask and answer a billion more questions. As you may have divined from the picture (left), She is currently on Maternity leave, but I have it on good authority there’s a picture of her last gel at home that takes the spiritual place of the ultrasound pictures she had over her lab bench - she’ll be back in Sept 2025. Her McMaster email is cersonc@...
Jordan Mayol
MSc. Student 2023-
(Biochemistry), Thesis (22-23), Summer 23
Jordan was drawn to the lab after being introduced to phages in Dr. Hynes’ 3MI3 lecture series, got to hold his first pipette (covid cohort!) and has stuck around ever since. Supported by a CGS-M, he’s handling the lab’s most ‘out-there’ project, trying to teach E. coli some new tricks. Outside of school, Jordan enjoys dancing, cycling, drinking oat milk lattes, and seeing how long he can hold a handstand for. He is part of the McMaster recreational dance team.
Ayesha Umair
MD/PhD 2024 -
Thesis (2023-2024)
Ayesha joined us as a thesis student from a BHSc (Hons) degree with a concurrent certificate in immunology, microbiology, and virology. She displayed such a mastery of the field and the literature that I nominated her for a CSM undergraduate award, and celebrated when she agreed to stick around for her PhD, as part of the McMaster MD/PhD program. Supported by a CGS-M, she’s trying to undo all the hard work of her predecessors in the lab by, instead, supressing phage induciton. In her spare time, she likes reading, chess, and video games.
McMaster Undergraduate Students
Eve Adams
Thesis student 2024-2025 (Arts & Sci/MolBio)
Eve was a thesis student in Arts & Science combined with Molecular Biology & Genetics, crushing her father’s hopes of having one more physicist in the family. To be fair, it’s a short step between Phage and Physics, as Max Delbrueck can testify. She did superbly over the year, but that alone wouldn’t keep her picture here after graduation… she also will be sticking around for an MSc in the fall!
