Principal Investigator

DVM, MPVM, PhD, DACVIM (SAIM)
Research Scientists

Meg Nakazawa
BVSc, PhD
meg.nakazawa@wsu.edu
Japan Society for the Promotion of Science (JSPS) Fellow
Meg Nakazawa completed her BVSc degree at Nihon University in Japan. After her graduation, she worked as a staff veterinarian at Nihon University Animal Medical Center. In March 2023, Meg successfully earned her Ph.D. degree from the Graduate School of Veterinary Medicine at Nihon University. Her current interests include gastrointestinal diseases in dogs, dog leukocyte antigen, organoids, organ-on-a-chip and translational research. In her free time, she enjoys winter activities such as skiing and snowboarding.

Itsuma Nagao
DVM, PhD
itsuma.nagao@wsu.edu
Japan Society for the Promotion of Science (JSPS) Fellow
Itsuma Nagao earned his DVM and PhD degrees from the University of Tokyo in Japan. During his PhD training, he spent one year as a research scholar in the our lab. After completing his PhD, he worked as a postdoctoral researcher at the University of Tokyo before joining the Cleveland Clinic as a postdoctoral fellow for six months. He then returned to the Ambrosini Lab at WSU as a postdoctoral fellow. His current research focuses on investigating the therapeutic applications of fecal microbiota transplantation for intestinal diseases in dogs and humans and elucidating its underlying mechanisms using Gut-on-a-chip models. Outside the laboratory, he enjoys watching American football, having played the sport for more than 10 years since his university days.
Student Scientists

SoHee Kim
Visiting PhD student
Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST)
Visiting Student Researcher (VSR) Fellow

Alivia Behnke
Rotating PhD student
Voiland School of Chemical Engineering and Bioengineering
NIH Protein Biotechnology Trainee

Mariah Jordan
Rotating PhD student
School of Molecular Biosciences

Jyot Patel
DVM student
College of Veterinary Medicine
CVM Summer Scholar ’26

Samar Patil
Undergraduate student
Voiland School of Chemical Engineering and Bioengineering
Alumni
Dr. Matthew Wun, DVM, MS, DACVIM (SAIM) at VetMED & Specialty Veterinary Hospital
Dr. Gerald Dykstra, DVM, PhD, DACVM
Dr. Shino Yoshida, SAIM Resident at Western College of Veterinary Medicine
Dr. Minae Kawasaki, SAIM Intern at Western College of Veterinary Medicine
Dr. Takashi Goyama, ECFVG® Certified, Surgery Resident at Western College of Veterinary Medicine
Dr. Yurika Tachibana, Oncology Intern, Louisiana State University
Dr. Itsuma Nagao, Postdoctoral Fellow at Cleveland Clinic, OH