Meet The Team
Katrina G. Claw, PhD
(she/her/asdzaan)
Principal Investigator
Tribe: Diné (Navajo)
My research focuses broadly on personalizing medicine, using genetic information and biomarkers for tailored treatment, in relation to pharmacogenomics as well as understanding the ethical, cultural, and social implications of genomic research with populations historically underrepresented in health research. My current research includes studying cytochrome P450 genetic variation in Indigenous communities (e.g., American Indian and Alaska Native peoples), with a focus on CYP2A6 variation in relation to nicotine metabolism and smoking cessation, as well as understanding the ways in which adaptations to diverse local environments may have impacted modern pharmacogenomic variation and evolutionary medicine. My other projects include exploring the perspectives of tribal members on genetic research and developing guidelines and policies in partnership with tribes. All of my projects strive to use a community based participatory research approach and include cultural and Indigenous knowledge.
Research Services Professional
Crystal R. Musser, M.S.
(she/her)
Crystal R. Musser is a Research Services Professional at Claw Lab, where she manages the wet lab and serves as a bioinformatician for the Nicotine Metabolomics project. This project explores the interindividual genetic variation impacting nicotine metabolic rates and smoking cessation success. Born and raised in Colorado, Crystal holds a B.S. in Biology, Biomedical Sciences from the University of Northern Colorado and an M.S. in Bioinformatics from Johns Hopkins University. She is dedicated to addressing inequities in healthcare, aiming to reduce persistent health disparities. Crystal is enthusiastic about advancing interventional clinical research by integrating this research into personalized medicine applications by informing optimal treatment guidelines that are culturally, ethically, and socially appropriate using targeted pharmacogenomic biomarkers.
Research Associate
Matthew Blake
(he/him)
Matt is a Research Associate that began his time in the Claw Lab in September of 2024 after working in industry on product & process development and exploratory R&D in the fields of biologics, medical devices, and tissue engineering. His research focuses on multiplex assays of variant effects, particularly in CYP genes. He is currently working on conducting a Deep Mutational Scanning assay on CYP2A6.
Community Engagement Program Manager
Kyle Coulon
(he/him)
Kyle grew up in central New York state and has strong family ties to the Onondaga Nation. As Community Engagement Program Manager, he focuses on outreach and communicating research results with indigenous community partners. Kyle is currently planning a large scale community event in Summer 2025 and exploring future collaborations.
Qualitative & Mixed Methods Researcher
Lucas Rozell
(any pronouns)
Lucas is a medical anthropologist who works as a Qualitative and Mixed Methods Researcher with the Claw Lab. He is heavily engaged with the bioethics research projects and genetic literacy efforts that the lab is involved with. At the moment, he is working on projects relating to ethical engagement of biobank participants through the CCPM Biobank, community deliberations regarding a new genetic research policy for the Navajo Nation, a survey regarding educational videos about genetics for a Navajo audience, and Dr. Claw's PrIME Indigenous Mentoring Program. He is also on the planning committee for the Voices of the Diné Summit.
Post-Doctoral Researcher
Kendra Ferrier, PhD
(she/her)
Kendra is a post-doctoral researcher in the Claw Lab. Her research interests involve conducting personalized medicine research within and across diverse populations. Her main research project in the claw lab is assessing the relationship of epigenetic markers, genetic markers, and nicotine metabolism to improve tobacco cessation interventions in American Indian communities.
Post-Doctoral Researcher
Jack Staples, PhD
(he/him)
Jack is a Postdoctoral Fellow in the Department of Biomedical Informatics at CU Anschutz. He previously earned a PhD in Pharmaceutical Sciences and a Bachelor’s in Chemical Engineering. He also completed an industry co-op in the Bioinformatics Department at Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, Inc. Jack is working on developing and applying statistical genomics methods towards characterizing the contribution of genetics, environment, and sociodemographic factors to human disease risk (e.g., cardiovascular, metabolic, autoimmune) and pharmacokinetics/pharmacodynamics of small molecule drugs and hormones (e.g., nicotine).
PhD Student, Human Medical Genetics and Genomics Program
Carissa Sherman
(she/her)
Tribe: Diné (Navajo)
​
Carissa is a PhD Candidate in the Human Medical Genetics and Genomics PhD program at the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus. Her research examines pharmacogenetic variation across global populations as well as the ethical, legal, social, and cultural implications of genomics research. Her proposed thesis will focus on understanding pharmacogenetic variation within nicotine metabolism to improve tobacco cessation efforts within American Indian communities. Her mother's side is from Ganado, AZ and her father's side is from Phoenix, AZ, and Carissa is a member of the Navajo (Diné) tribe.
Research Services Senior Professional
Amanda Skenadore
(she/her)
Tribe: Diné (Navajo)
​
Ya'teeh! Kinyaa'aanii' nisli' Tl'aashchi'i' ba' shischiiin. Amanda is born for the Towering House people and born into the Red Cheek Clan and comes from a small town called Chinle, Arizona. She obtained her Masters of Public Health with a concentration in Community Health from the Colorado School of Public Health and a graduate certificate of Public Health Training for American Indian Health Professionals at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. She is working with the Claw Lab on the Perspectives on Genetic Research in the Navajo Nation Project, where she is assisting in the qualitative analysis of the project.
Rotation Students
Student | Program | Year |
|---|---|---|
Hannah Webb | Pharmaceutical Sciences MS | 2026 |
Hugo Lemus | PATH-GDS (PATHways in Genomic Data Science) | 2026 |
Sierra Bainbridge-Bowman | GREU (Genomic Research Experiences for Undergraduates) | 2026 |
Molly Helms | GREU (Genomic Research Experiences for Undergraduates) | 2026 |
Makena Sauve | High School Summer Internship | 2026 |
Isabella Eaton | GREU (Genomic Research Experiences for Undergraduates) | 2025 |
Nicole Garcia Tubens | Human Medical Genetics and Genomics PhD Program | 2025 |
Mateus Stocco Di Francesco | Undergraduate Summer Internship | 2025 |
Makena Sauve | High School Summer Internship | 2025 |
Souha Tifour | PATH-GDS (PATHways in Genomic Data Science) | 2024 |
Samantha Lopez Alvarez | Human Medical Genetics and Genomics PhD Program | 2024 |
Iris Ruz | GREU (Genomic Research Experiences for Undergraduates) | 2024 |
Annika Smith | Human Medical Genetics and Genomics PhD Program | 2023 |
Shalom Gutierrez-Henry | Human Medical Genetics and Genomics PhD Program | 2023 |
Tada Vargas | Human Medical Genetics and Genomics PhD Program | 2022 |
Talon Arbuckle | Computational Bioscience PhD Program | 2022 |
Carissa Sherman | Human Medical Genetics and Genomics PhD Program | 2021 |
Betzaida Maldonado | Human Medical Genetics and Genomics PhD Program | 2021 |
Katie Marker | Human Medical Genetics and Genomics PhD Program | 2020 |
Past Members
Laboratory Science Professional (former)
​
MD/PhD student at The State University of New York (SUNY) (current)
Tadeusz Wroblewski
I am particularly interested in leveraging both
wet-bench and bioinformatic techniques to investigate mechanistic differences between patients and populations in the context of personalized medicine and human disease; specifically focusing on the inclusion of under-represented groups in research and medicine. My research interests include pharmacogenetics and oncology. In my free time, I enjoy exploring the Colorado outdoors through running, skiing, and mountaineering.
Laboratory Science Professional (former)
​
MD student at University of Michigan (current)
Kaja Aagaard, B.S.
Kaja is a graduate of Vermont’s Middlebury College, where she studied biology and anthropology. Her interests in medical anthropology and genomic research led her to the Claw Lab, where she contributed to pharmacogenomics and bioethics projects. Originally from Seattle, WA where she has returned to go on to medical school for rural family practice.
Undergraduate Researcher, ESIL Program
Suzanna Garcia-Mota
I am a professional research assistant in the Dr. Claw lab. I am particularly interested in leveraging both
wet-bench and bioinformatic techniques to investigate mechanistic differences between patients and populations in the context of personalized medicine and human disease; specifically focusing on the inclusion of under-represented groups in research and medicine.
Research Assistant (former)
PhD student at Case Western Reserve University (current)
F. Leah Nez, B.A., B.S.
Tribe: Diné (Navajo)
​
Leah's interests in pursuing the ethics of Indigenous biomedical research and policy drew her to the Claw Lab. She graduated from Metropolitan State University of Denver with a B.S. in Biology and B.A. in Philosophy. Outside the lab, she loves to travel, photograph wildlife and spend her time with friends and family.
​
Post-Doctoral Researcher
Amber Nashoba, PhD
Tribe: Choctaw
​
Amber is interested in the application of
genetics and evolution theory to study changes in organisms and populations in response to their environment. Her doctoral dissertation focused on the
first-ever empirical application of Fisher’s Fundamental Theorem of Natural Selection. After completing her MS and PhD at the University of Minnesota, she worked on genomics at Northeastern and population evolution at the University of California.
PhD Student, Human Medical Genetics and Genomics Program
Shalom Gutierrez Diaz-Henry
Shalom is interested in the evolution of pharmacogenetics across species and the evolutionary history of pharmacogenetics in humans. Her work with Claw Lab included working on expanding a bioinformatics pipeline to explore the evolutionary relationship of different vertebrate species including humans.