Laying the foundations in basic science for real-world interventions

Clarice is a quantum engineer interested in how quantum physics informs biology at the nanoscale. Born and raised in Brazil, Clarice obtained a Diplome d'Ingenieur in Physics from the Ecole Polytechnique in France and an M.Phil. in Physics from the University of Cambridge, Trinity College, in England; she received her Ph.D. from MIT in Electrical Engineering. She further held postdoctoral appointments in Bioengineering at Stanford, and in Chemistry at Berkeley.

Jennilyn Gaitan graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Electronic Media and Film from Towson University. Since 2004, she has worked in various administrative and operational roles across multiple industries, including retail, higher education, photography, real estate, and small business operations. Jennilyn has a passion for creating and refining the systems and processes that businesses use, to run most efficiently, which has been a hallmark of her career. In November 2023, Jennilyn joined the Quantum Biology Institute, contributing her expertise to the administration and operations of the Institute.

Dr. Michael Montague's research at the Quantum Biology Institute is focused upon the direct experimental testing of the Quantum Biology Hypothesis (that life on Earth is universally and profoundly affected by quantum mechanical phenomena, most notably electron spin sensitive biochemical reactions and protein states influenced by weak magnetic fields). He is testing this hypothesis with a top-down multi-omics approach involving microbial model organisms across all three domains of life (Archaea, Bacteria, and Eukaryotes). Dr. Montague's fields of expertise include, Synthetic Biology, Genomics, Bioinformatics, and Biosecurity. He received is PhD in Microbiology from UNC Chapel Hill in 2005.

Alessandro Lodesani is the Institute's Chief Operating Officer, overseeing its daily research operations. With a strong background in physics and engineering, combined with extensive experience in biology research, Alessandro focuses on designing innovative devices and optimizing lab processes. Originally from Italy, Alessandro earned a Bachelor's in Mechanical Engineering and a PhD in Physics, graduating with honors from the Polytechnic University of Milan, with a specialization in spintronics and molecular interfaces. His previous research at MIT focused on topological qubits and superconducting thin films, where he successfully developed the world's most efficient superconducting diode platform. Alessandro then joined the Institute in its early days at UCLA, where he led several projects investigating the influence of weak magnetic fields on biological systems.