Ceena Nafarzadegan is a graduate student in the Program in Microbiology and Immunology at the University of Pittsburgh. He received his BS in molecular, cell and developmental biology from the University of California, Santa Cruz in 2020. After graduating, Ceena worked in Dr. Kari Nadeau’s lab at Stanford’s Sean N. Parker Center for Allergy and Asthma research. There he worked on investigating avidin as a basophil activation marker to improve food allergy diagnostics. Ceena then joined Dr. Justin Sonnenburg’s lab, where he worked with Dr. Sean Spencer investigating the effects of fermented foods on the gut microbiome and immune system. Ceena joined the Delgoffe lab in February 2025.
Favorite sandwich? Tie between Bánh mì and Döner Kebab
What immune cell are you? Memory CD8+ T cell, because I never forget.
What is your favorite piece of lab equipment? Any pipette that can shoot off the tip with satisfying velocity
Go-to karaoke song? Song 2 – Blur (if I don’t feel like singing) or Take on Me – A-ha (If I do feel like singing)