Graduate Students

Liezel earned her Bachelor's degree from the University of the Philippines Diliman. Her undergraduate thesis focused on optimization of cholinesterase inhibitory assays and evaluation of plant leaf extracts. Following her studies, she became a research associate in the same university where her research projects involved bio-assay guided isolation of bioactive compounds, non-targeted metabolomics, and method development for the quantitative analysis of synthetic compounds. In ALERT, Liezel concentrates on both targeted and non-targeted screening of antibiotics and pharmaceutical residues in wastewater samples, exploring their impact on antimicrobial resistance prevalence.

Email: liezelma@buffalo.edu

JM earned his bachelor's degree in Chemistry from the University of the Philippines where his undergraduate thesis aimed to measure heavy metals in blood using electroanalytical techniques. He then worked as a research assistant in the same university where his research works involved water quality monitoring in eutrophic waters, ocean acidification, and blue carbon. In ALERT, JM will be working with Dr. Aga and Dr. Elizabeth Thomas in the Department of Geology to determine lipid biomarkers (GDGTs and sterols) in ice-basal sediment samples for geologic reconstruction applications in the Greenland Ice Sheet (GrIS). 

Email: jnaguila@buffalo.edu

Jon is from Allegany, NY and received his Bachelor’s of Science in Chemistry with a minor in mathematics from St. Bonaventure University. As an undergraduate Jon worked with Dr. Scott Simpson on computational and physical chemistry research. A few of the main projects were modeling basic organic chemistry reactions, determining the virial equation of state for modeling air, and modeling liquid chromatography to predicted molecule retention times. In ALERT Jon will continue his work on modeling liquid chromatography as well as mass spectrometry to identify molecules in nontarget analysis. He will also work analyzing samples from projects with the aim degrade PFAS and determine the degradation products. 

Email: jantle@buffalo.edu

Damalka is from Negombo, Sri Lanka, and received her Bachelor’s of Science in Environmental Science from the University of Peradeniya in 2020. As an undergraduate, she researched the development of metal-nanomaterial-impregnated adsorbents to remove elevated levels of fluoride and water-hardness in groundwater. In ALERT, her research focuses on developing a particle to preconcentrate PFAS and other organic polar contaminants using dispersive solid phase extraction and analyzing water samples for antimicrobials, utilizing liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) techniques. In her free time, she enjoys listening to music, reading books, and enjoying nature.

Email: bbalasur@buffalo.edu

Dulan is from Gampaha, Sri Lanka and received his Bachelor of Science degree in Environmental Science from University of Peradeniya in 2020. For his undergraduate thesis, he worked to understand the impacts of a high-grade phosphorite deposit in Eppawala, Sri Lanka on the water quality of surrounding aquifers. Then he joined National Institute of Fundamental Studies, Sri Lanka as a trainee research assistant and assisted in a project on developing a baseline soil information system for soil carbon and other nutrients for paddy growing soils in Sri Lanka. At University at Buffalo, Dulan is co-advised by Dr. Luis Colon and Dr. Diana Aga. His current work involves developing and evaluating silica based stationary phases for chromatographic separations and  developing superficially porous organo-silica particles with radially oriented pores for efficient analytical septations. He also is investigating different analytical techniques to quantify emerging contaminants in complex matrices, such as pyrolytic byproducts. He spends his free time cleaning his aquariums and playing Skyrim.

Email: dulanedi@buffalo.edu

Zach is from Springville, NY and received his Bachelor’s of Science in Chemistry from Niagara University. In his undergraduate, Zach did research under Dr. Robyn Goacher on wood polymer composite weathering. After completing his B.S., Zach got a job at FMC working as a lab technician, and then as an analyst. His work included analyzing production samples using gas chromatography coupled to flame ionization detector as well as mass spectrometry (GC-FID and GC-MS) and liquid chromatography vacuum ultraviolet spectroscopy (LC-VUV). Zach is now part of ALERT, working on several projects, including metal analysis in environmental samples using ICP-MS, and the analysis of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances using liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS). His many hobbies include photography, wood working, and D&D.

Email: zacheria@buffalo.edu

Jonathan Navarro Ramos is from Corozal, Puerto Rico, and received his Bachelor of Science in Environmental Technology with an emphasis in Environmental Chemistry from the University of Puerto Rico, Aguadilla campus. During his undergraduate studies, he focused on using semiquantitative in-field techniques to analyze arsenic levels in rivers and tap water. Additionally, he conducted research on tin toxicology in C. elegans. He gained experience in wastewater treatment plants, where he worked in the laboratory evaluating the efficacy of different stages in the treatment process. At the University at Buffalo, he has been involved in characterizing leachate from various tire-derived materials using a wide range of applications, including LC-MS/MS, GC-MS/MS, and ICP-MS. His work also centers on elucidating disinfection byproducts of tire-derived chemicals using high-resolution Mass Spectrometry.

Email: jn62@buffalo.edu

Jenise earned both her Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in Chemistry from the University of the Philippines Los Baños. Her undergraduate thesis focused on synthesizing food-grade rice bran oil-based polyols, while her graduate thesis focused on utilizing waste polyethylene terephthalate to enhance bitumen properties. Following her studies, she worked at the same university as an Assistant Professor. In ALERT, Jenise will be working on degrading PFAS using triboelectrification and developing methods for PFAS extraction and analysis in breast milk samples mostly utilizing SPE, and LC-MS/MS.

Email: jenisepa@buffalo.edu

Karla Ríos Bonilla is from Villalba, Puerto Rico and received her Bachelor’s of Science in Industrial Chemistry from the University of Puerto Rico at Humacao. During her undergrad, Karla worked in the pharma industries specializing in method and development for new pharmaceuticals for infectious diseases.  She is co-advised by Dr. Luis A. Colón. In ALERT, her research focuses on comparing  different analysis for PFAS, Fluorotelomer olefins and alcohols mostly between LC-MS/MS and SFC-MS/MS. In her spare time, she likes to explore new places and spend time with her dog Mía. 

Email: karlario@buffalo.edu

Tristan Vick is from Rochester, N.Y. and earned his Bachelor’s of Science in Chemistry from the University at Buffalo in 2023. He joined ALERT as an undergraduate in 2022 and assisted Zacheriah Gernold with sample preparation of strawberry plants and bird matter for analysis. He learned how instruments like the inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometer (ICP-MS) and gas chromatography and liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometer (GC-MS/MS & LC-MS/MS) work during this time. When ChatGPT was released in late 2022, he became inspired to learn more about the principles and applications of machine learning in the field of chemistry. Since joining ALERT, Tristan has been hard at work learning about computational, physical, and analytical chemistry in the hopes of combining them with machine learning to make testable predictions about chemical systems. In the future he hopes to build a large physiochemical properties library for PFAS and to use machine learning to aid in identifying many of the unknown PFAS which we detect in non-targeted analysis. 

Email: tsvick@buffalo.edu

Mindula, hailing from Kandy, Sri Lanka, earned her Bachelor’s of Science in Chemistry from the University of Sri Jayewardenepura in 2019. During her undergraduate studies, she gained experience in the analytical field, specifically utilizing solid phase microextraction gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (SPME-GC/MS). In ALERT, Mindula’s research centers around Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS). She investigates microbial degradation of PFAS and develops sample extraction techniques to capture chemical contaminants from complex human blood matrices. Mindula employs various analytical instrumentations in her research, including combustion ion chromatography (CIC), liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS), liquid chromatography coupled to ion mobility separation with time of flight (LC-IMS/QToF), inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS), and (GC-MS).

Email: mindulaw@buffalo.edu