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About the NCL
Mission - Cancer Nanotechnology Plan - Management & Administration Staff - Facilities - Career Opportunities Staff
Scott E. McNeil, Ph.D., Director
Martin Fritts, Ph.D., Senior Principal Scientist
Anil K. Patri, Ph.D., Senior Scientist Dr. Patri received his B.Sc., from Osmania University and M.Sc., in Organic Chemistry from Aligarh Muslim University, India. He then worked for two years as a lecturer in Chemistry in India and then obtained his Ph.D. in Organic Chemistry from the University of South Florida under the guidance of Prof. George Newkome. After a
Prior to joining the NCL, Dr. Stern was a Post-Doctoral Fellow at the University of North Carolina - Chapel Hill in the Division of Drug Delivery and Disposition and Curriculum in Toxicology. In this position, his research focused on examining the role of intestinal metabolism in modulating the gastrointestinal toxicity of chemotherapeutic agents. His areas of expertise include biochemical toxicology of the liver and kidney, analytical methodology and drug metabolism/pharmacokinetics. He received his B.S. degree in Biochemistry from the University of Rochester, Rochester, NY and his Ph.D. in Toxicology from the University of Connecticut at Storrs, CT.
Marina Dobrovolskaia, Ph.D., Scientist Prior to joining the NCL, Dr. Dobrovolskaia worked as a Research Scientist; Department of Immunochemistry at a GLP operated contract research organization in Richmond, VA. She has been supervising the design, development and validation of bioanalytical ligand-binding assays to support pharmacokinetic and toxicity studies in a variety of drug development projects. Her areas of expertise include cell signaling, innate immunity, immunogenicity and analytical methodology. She received her M.S. degree in Biology/Microbiology from the Kazan State University in Russia and her Ph.D. in Biological Sciences from the N.N. Blokhin Cancer Research Center of Russian Academy of Medical Sciences in Moscow, Russia.
Prior to joining the NCL, he worked as a Postdoctoral on directed assembly of nanoparticles by atomic force microscopy (AFM)-based lithography in Professor Harald Fuchs' group at Muenster University, Germany, and then joined Professor Nadrian Seeman's lab at New York University as a Postdoctoral working on scaffolded assembly of nanoparticles with Branched DNA. Dr. Zheng received his B.S. and M.S. degree in Inorganic Chemistry from Inner Mongolia University and his Ph.D. in Physical Chemistry/Nanoscience and Technology from Peking University, China. His areas of expertise include AFM imaging and lithography, synthesis and modification of nanoparticles as well as design and construction of robust Branched DNA motifs.
Jeffrey Clogston, Ph.D., Scientist
Dr. Clogston received his B.S. in Chemical Engineering from Manhattan College and his Ph.D. in Chemical Engineering from The Ohio State University. His research dissertation was on the application of the lipidic cubic phase for drug delivery, wastewater remediation, and membrane protein crystallization. His areas of expertise include physico-chemical characterization of and in vitro release from lipid-based drug delivery systems, analytical methodology, and protein and lipid biochemistry.
Uma Ramalinga, Ph.D., Scientist
Prior to joining the NCL, Dr. Ramalinga held scientist positions in the pharmaceutical sector focusing on cardiovascular, oncologic, and infectious diseases. In her position at Wolfe Laboratories in Boston, Massachusetts, she conducted analytical development to support investigational new drug filings and bioequivalence studies of a cardiovascular drug. As a scientist in the medicinal chemistry division at AstraZeneca in Bangalore, India, Dr. Ramalinga focused on drug development in infectious diseases on the basis of a prodrug strategy. At Momenta Pharmaceuticals in Boston, she developed the chemistry and process for the anticoagulant drug M118, a rationally designed low-molecular weight-heparin. Dr. Ramalinga also developed novel heparin-based compounds for the Momenta oncology program. She served as Assistant Director of the nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) facility in the Department of Physiology and Pharmacology at Oregon Health & Science University in Portland, Oregon, where she established and managed the core NMR facility. Dr. Ramalinga earned her Ph.D. in organic chemistry from the University of Hyderabad, under the guidance of Professor Goverdhan Mehta, F.R.S. As part of her postdoctoral studies with Dr. René Grée at the Ecole Nationale Supérieure de Chimie, Rennes, France, she developed novel synthetic technologies employing transition metal catalysts. Dr. Ramalinga moved to the University of Colorado Health Sciences Center at Denver to conduct interfacial research in the chemical biology program with Professor Jeffrey Karpen, where she developed highly specific cyclic nucleotide gated ion channel blockers potent at subnanomolar levels.
Banu S. Zolnik, Ph.D., Postdoctoral Fellow Dr. Zolnik received her B.S. in Pharmacy from Istanbul University in Turkey and her Ph.D. in Pharmaceutical Sciences from the University Connecticut. Her dissertation research was on in vitro and in vivo release testing of controlled release parenteral microspheres. Her areas of expertise include formulation, physico-chemical characterization and in vitro/in vivo release of polymer-based therapeutics. As a doctoral student, she was awarded a United States Pharmacopeia Fellowship from 2003 to 2005 for her research on the development of in vitro release testing standards for biodegradable polymer drug delivery systems.
Parag Aggarwal, Ph.D., Postdoctoral Fellow Dr. Aggarwal received his B.S. in chemistry from Case Western Reserve University and his Ph.D. in medicinal chemistry from the University of Michigan. His research dissertation was on the validation of the Kdo pathway as a potential antimicrobial target. His areas of expertise include physicochemical characterization, analytical methodology, molecular enzymology, cell biology, and protein biochemistry.
Arindam Dhar, M.D., Ph.D., IOTF Fellow Previously, Dr. Dhar worked as a postdoctoral fellow with Dr. Doris Benbrook (Gynecologic Oncology), University of Oklahoma HSC, and with Dr. Nancy Colburn (Laboratory of Cancer Prevention) at NCI-Frederick. He studied transcription factors (retinoic acid/retinoid receptors, NF-κB and AP-1) as molecular targets for cancer prevention. He is actively involved in basic and translational research with nitric oxide-donors for cancer therapy and prevention. Dr. Dhar received his M.B.B.S. degree from the University of Calcutta, and his M.D. (Pharmacology) and Ph.D. (Biotechnology) from the All India Institute of Medical Sciences, New Delhi, India.
Chris McLeland, Senior Research Associate Chris McLeland served as a research biochemist at the Armed Forces Radiobiology Research Institute in Bethesda, MD, on the Biodosimetry Team prior to joining NCL. In this capacity, he and his colleagues developed a quantitative real-time PCR assay for assessing exposure to radiation. He has collaborated with NCI investigators and was subsequently co-authored on peer-reviewed publications. He received his B.S. degree in Biology from the University of South Carolina, Columbia, SC.
Timothy M. Potter, Research Associate Tim began working at the NCI at Frederick in 1989 in the Laboratory Animal Sciences Program. In early 1990, he transferred to the In Vitro Cell Line Screening Program (IVCLSP) of the Screening Technology Branch. In the IVCLSP, he developed extensive cell culture experience as a technician in the 60 cell line human tumor panel, the AIDS-related Lymphoma Screen and the Cellular Differentiation Screen. He was later assigned to the Molecular Target Screening Program, where he helped develop and run a variety of molecular target screens, including the B/ZIP and nucleocapsid screens. The wide range of experiences and responsibilities in his assignments in the Screen Technology Branch has given Tim valuable skills in cell culture and assay development.
Barry W. Neun, Research Assistant Barry has been employed continuously at the NCI-FCRF campus since November of 1987. He comes to the NCL having worked in the In Vitro Cell Line Screening Program (IVCLSP), part of the Screening Technologies Branch (STB). He has extensive experience in mammalian cell culture having helped maintain the 60 cell line human tumor panel used in the IVCLSP. He then branched out into high throughput molecular targeted anti-cancer screens. One screen Barry helped develop involved Thymidine Phosphorylase, an enzyme involved in angiogenesis signaling. Working on the development, optimization and implementation of high throughput molecular targeted screens has also given Barry valuable experience in recombinant protein expression and isolation.
Sarah Skoczen, M.S., Research Assistant Sarah received a B.S. in Biology from Shippensburg University and a M.S. in Biotechnology from Johns Hopkins University in December of 2005. She began working at SAIC-Frederick in June of 2002 in the In Vitro Cell line Screening Program (IVCLSP) of the Screening Technology Branch. As a technician on the 60 cell line human tumor panel, she gained valuable experience in mammalian cell culture and aseptic technique. She has also worked in the Radiation Modifiers Evaluation Module (RAMEM), where she screened for radiosensitivity and chemosensitivity of human tumor cell lines.
Jamie Rodriguez, Research Technician After graduating in December 2005 with a B.S. in biology and a minor in engineering from Shepherd University, she worked as a Senior Research Laboratory Technician for Advanced Product Enterprises (APE), a biotechnology company involved in the identification, testing, development, and production of bimolecular and molecular biology products. At APE Mrs. Rodriguez dealt with the production and purification of recombinant proteins and antibodies using cell culture bioreactors and chromatography methods, respectively. There she also established her aseptic technique and knowledge of mammalian and insect cell culture. Mrs. Rodriguez received a NASA scholarship during her junior and senior years at Shepherd University and has been a member of the Society of Women Engineers since 2005. She enjoys working with youth and has participated in numerous science fairs, judging mostly grade-school-level projects.
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A Service of the National Cancer Institute |
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Dr. McNeil serves as Director, Nanotechnology Characterization Laboratory for the National Cancer Institute at Frederick where he coordinates pre-clinical characterization of nanomaterials intended for cancer therapeutics and diagnostics. Prior to joining NCI-Frederick (i.e. SAIC-Frederick), he served for three years as Senior Scientist in the Nanotech Initiatives Division at SAIC where he transitioned basic nanotechnology research to government and commercial markets. He advises Industry and State and US Governments on the development of nanotechnology and is a member of several governmental and industrial working groups related to nanotechnology policy, standardization and commercialization. Dr. McNeil's professional career includes tenure as an Army Officer, with tours as Chief of Biochemistry at Tripler Army Medical Center, as a Combat Arms officer in the Gulf War. He is an invited speaker to numerous nanotechnology-related conferences and has six patents pending related to nanotechnology and biotechnology. He received his bachelor's degree in chemistry from Portland State University and his doctorate in cell biology from Oregon Health Sciences University.
Dr. Fritts is a Senior Principal Scientist supporting the Nanotechnology Characterization Laboratory and SAIC-Frederick in accelerating the transition of nanotechnology to cancer and biomedical applications. He is also a computational and experimental physicist assisting in the implementation of advanced imaging and measurement instrumentation, modeling and simulation to elucidate the structure-activity relationships of nanomaterial, and informatics systems to advance knowledge sharing. Dr. Fritts also assists in developing standards as the cochair of ASTM's E56.02 Subcommittee on Nanotechnology Characterization. Prior to joining SAIC-Frederick, he developed and prototyped nanotechnology applications for industry and government through SAIC's Nanotechnology Initiatives Division. Dr. Fritts' previous work also focused on joint experiment and computation in advanced product and process design and the use of information technology and modeling for collaboration in large research and development projects such as laser fusion with LLNL and LANL; counterterrorism with DTRA; ship design with DARPA, NAVSEA, and industry; and the design of Stars and Stripes, the winner of the 1987 America's Cup. He earned a bachelor's degree in physics at Holy Cross College and a doctorate in nuclear physics at Yale University.
Dr. Patri joined the Nanotechnology Characterization Laboratory (NCL) as a Senior Scientist in February 2005. He directs the physico-chemical characterization and standardization of nanomaterial for the NCL and actively collaborates with NIST and FDA.
In his position at the Nanotechnology Characterization Laboratory (NCL), Dr. Stern is involved in the design and implementation of pharmacology and toxicology studies used to characterize nanoparticle biological disposition and access nanoparticle biocompatibility. Data generated is used to support IND regulatory filings and aid in environmental risk assessment. Dr. Stern's responsibilities also include representing NCL at local and national nanotechnology meetings and the education of study personnel regarding nanoparticle safety issues.
Dr. Zheng joined the Nanotechnology Characterization Laboratory (NCL) in January 2006. In his position, Dr. Zheng is involved in physico-chemical characterization and standardization of nanomaterials intended for cancer therapeutic and diagnostics.
Dr. Clogston joined the Nanotechnology Characterization Laboratory (NCL) as a Scientist in March 2006. In his position, Dr. Clogston conducts physico-chemical characterization and standardization of nanoparticles intended for cancer therapeutics and diagnostics.
In her position at the Nanotechnology Characterization Laboratory (NCL), Dr. Ramalinga is involved in the synthesis, process development, and scale-up of nanomaterials to facilitate the transition of nanotechnology concepts from laboratory to clinical applications. She designs and synthesizes radiolabeled and multimodal nanomaterial probes for in vivo tracking, biodistribution, and SAR studies.
Dr. Zolnik joined the Nanotechnology Characterization Laboratory (NCL) in November of 2005 as a Postdoctoral Fellow. Her research includes in vitro/in vivo Drug Metabolism and Pharmacokinetic Modeling of cancer-related nanoparticles. She is also interested in understanding cellular uptake of nanoparticles for cancer therapy.
Dr. Aggarwal joined the Nanotechnology Characterization Laboratory (NCL) in January 2007 as a Postdoctoral Fellow. His research focuses on understanding the role and significance of the interactions between nanoparticles and proteins in blood plasma. Dr. Aggarwal is also interested in understanding the process of cellular uptake of nanoparticles for cancer therapy and the effects of these nanoparticles on the immune system.
Dr. Dhar is a NCI-FDA Interagency Oncology Task Force (IOTF) Fellow working on nanotechnology-based cancer theranostics (therapeutics + diagnostics using single multifunctional particles) at the Nanotechnology Characterization Laboratory (NCL). The project aims to establish the potential for human use of a targeted nano-theranostic system by determining effectiveness as well as pharmacological-toxicological properties in vitro and in vivo. This Fellowship is a collaborative project with the NCI Nanobiology Program and the Laboratory of Cancer Prevention. As part of his Fellowship, Dr. Dhar also works at the FDA on regulatory review with emphasis on nanomedicine.
Mr. McLeland joined the NCL in October of 2004 as a research associate. He works closely with NCL staff members to provide technical and logistical support in order to develop a series of assays that characterize the physical, in vitro and in vivo properties of nanoparticles. 
Mr. Potter is the primary tissue culture technician for the NCL, maintaining human and animal primary and immortalized cells. His duties include running a variety of cell-based toxicity and immunology assays and working closely with other NCL personnel in assay development.
Mr. Neun is the Radiation Area Supervisor and is responsible for establishing the Radiological Program for the Nanotechnology Characterization Laboratory (NCL). He is also the primary technician responsible for animal studies in working with the Laboratory Animal Sciences Program (LASP) and the Animal Care and Use Committee (ACUC) to develop animal studies which will help the NCL with its mission. Other duties include running various toxicity and immunological assays to help with the characterization of the nanoparticles submitted to the NCL.
Ms. Skoczen joined the NCL in September of 2005, as a Research Assistant. She is responsible for helping maintain human and animal primary and immortalized cells. Her duties also include running a variety of toxicity and immunological assays that aid in the characterization of nanoparticles submitted to the NCL. In addition to the biological assays, she provides support for a variety of physico-chemical characterization assays.
Mrs. Rodriguez joined the Nanotechnology Characterization Laboratory as a Research Technician in January 2007. She is continuing her research and tissue culture experience by working with and maintaining human and animal primary and immortalized cells. Mrs. Rodriguez is also responsible for performing a variety of blood contact assays that involve hemolysis, platelet aggregation, complement activation, and coagulation for nanoparticle screening.
