Members of the LBMS


Jason Spector, MD FACS

Dr. Spector is the principal investigator and founder of the LBMS. He completed medical school, general surgery and plastic surgery residency, and microsurgical fellowship at New York University Medical Center. A member of Alpha Omega Alpha, he is the recipient of the Valentine Mott Award, the Northeastern Society of Plastic Surgeons Resident Competition, and New York Regional Society of Plastic Surgeons Resident Presentation awards. He is author or co-author of 55 peer-reviewed publications, and has received funding from the Plastic Surgery Education Foundation, the Morgan Seed Grant for Collaborative Multidisciplinary Research in Tissue Engineering, and the Weill Cornell Medical College Department of Surgery-Ithaca Biomedical Engineering College Collaborative Grant.

Alyssa Reiffel, MD

Dr. Reiffel is the chief research fellow. Originally from New York, she graduated from Yale University and received her MD from Columbia University College of Physicians & Surgeons. In addition to her role within the LBMS, she is a general surgery resident at NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital, Weill Cornell Medical Center, having recently completed her 3rd clinical year. She is a member of the American College of Surgeons and the Association of Academic Surgeons.

Karina Hernandez, MD

Dr. Hernandez joined LBMS in 2011 for a research fellowship. Originally from the Dominican Republic, she completed her undergraduate education at Florida International University and medical school training at Nova Southeastern University. Before joining LBMS, she completed her second year of general surgery training at Maimonides Medical Center in Brooklyn. She is a member of the American College of Surgeons. She is interested in pursuing a career in plastic surgery.

Alice Harper, BA

Alice Harper grew up in Seattle, WA, and attended Vassar College. Upon graduation, she moved to San Francisco and worked for Dr Alexander Nicholas Contopoulos in the Anatomy Department of UCSF, and attended San Francisco State University. After moving to New York, she worked in the Plastic Surgery Department of NYU Hospital where she remained for 20 years, resigning just before the birth of her son, Harper Buonanno. Those were years of great advances in the field of microsurgery and the department began to offer a course of instruction in the techniques of microsurgery using animal practice models. As a current part-time employee in the LBMS at Weill Cornell Medical College she continues to offer a similar course.

Past Members

Peter Henderson, MD MBA

Originally from Seattle, Dr. Henderson graduated from Harvard University, and received his MD from Weill Cornell Medical College and his MBA from New York University. In addition to his role within the LBMS, he is a general surgery resident at NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital -- Weill Cornell Medical Center. He is author or co-author of over 110 peer-reviewed papers and abstracts and 5 book chapters, and he was the 2006 recipient of the Harry L Bush Award for Excellence in Vascular Biology. He is a member of the American College of Surgeons, Association of Academic Surgeons, and the Tissue Engineering and Regenerative Medicine International Society. In addition, he on clinical advisory board of Providge Consulting.

Sunil Singh, MD

Dr. Singh received his MD from New York University School of Medicine with Honors in Cellular Biology. He is currently an Internal Medicine resident at Beth Israel Medical Center of the Albert Einstein College of Medicine. He graduated Summa Cum Laude from New York University with a degree in Economics and Chemistry. He is an author or co-author of over 45 peer reviewed papers and abstracts and was the recipient of the 2008 NIH Mentored Medical Student Research Grant as well as the 2007 Glorney Raisbeck Medical Student Grant for Cardiovascular Research for his work. After his internal medicine training, he plans to apply for a fellowship in Cardiovascular Disease.

Natalia Jimenez, BA

Natalia is taking time off between her 3rd and 4th year of medical school to pursue her research interests. Born in Colombia, Natalia lived in Florida for a large part of her childhood. She graduated from Johns Hopkins University, where she was accepted into the Golden Key International Honour Society while majoring in Psychological Brain Science and earning a minor in Spanish for the Professional. As an undergraduate, Natalia researched comparative neurobiology of the avian song system in Dr. Gregory Ball’s lab at Johns Hopkins. Her interests in international health lead her to participate in medical missions to Jamaica with NOVA Southeastern University and Kilimanjaro Christian Medical Center in Moshi, Tanzania. While in Moshi, she contributed to research characterizing pediatric neurological defects among members of different tribes in the area. In 2009, Natalia gratefully accepted the Clinical and Translational Science Center TL1 Award, allowing her to pursue a Masters in Clinical Investigations while examining the effects of hydrogen sulfide on ischemia reperfusion injury. Natalia is also an active member of Camp Pheonix, an organization that helps pediatric burn victims recover and regain self-confidence, and the Latino Medical Student Association. In her spare time, she enjoys bicycling, playing volleyball, and drawing.

David Krijgh, MSc

David Krijgh started medical school in 2005 at the Erasmus University in Rotterdam, the Netherlands. He is born in October 1986 and is of Dutch, German and American origin. He worked for 2 years in one of the bigger hospitals of Rotterdam as an ER and OR assistant. His research interests contain ischemia reperfusion injury, tissue regeneration and wound healing. In February 2010 he will start his rotations in the Netherlands. His objective after his rotations is to apply for residency in plastic and reconstructive surgery. His hobbies are golf, field hockey, soccer, skiing, sailing and music.

Yoann Millet, BA

Yoann is an MSII at Weill Cornell Medical College and joined the LBMS at the start of his first year. Born in France, Yoann grew up in Miami. In 2009, he graduated with distinction from Cornell University, where he majored in Biological Sciences and was accepted into the Phi Beta Kappa Society. As an undergraduate, he worked to characterize stem cell differentiation into the beta cells of pancreatic islets at the Diabetes Research Institute. At Cornell, he also worked on the identification of a novel gene responsible for spongiform encephalopathy and cardiac hypertrophy in mice. His current research involves the cellular signaling pathways of HS mitigation of ischemia reperfusion injury. He is the recipient of the 2010 Glorney Raisbeck Medical Student Grant for Cardiovascular Research for his summer work. His other activities include serving as the Grants and Fundraising Chair for the Weill Cornell Community Clinic, heading the Stimson Surgical Society, and acting as co-President for the Weill Cornell Youth Scholars Program.

Allie Sohn, BS

Interested in pursuing a career in plastic and reconstructive surgery, Allie is taking a year off in between MSIII and MSIV at Albert Einstein College of Medicine to work full-time at LBMS. For the research year, she is granted the Einstein Research Fellowship. Originally from Marietta, Georgia, she attended Emory University, where she worked under Dr. Arbiser in the Dept of Dermatology investigating anti-cancer agents for endothelial tumors. She is a co-author of 4 peer-reviewed publications. Graduating in 2006 with a BS in biology, she moved up to New York for medical school. Currently, her research involves tissue engineering/cotton candy project, hydrogen sulfide effects on radiated cells and intestinal cells, therapeutic ultrasound application for varicose veins. For hobbies, she enjoys doing yoga and craft projects.

Vijay Nagineni, MBBS

Vijay was born and raised in India in the town of Kurnool, AP where he attended Montessori School. He graduated with Rajiv Gandhi University in Bengalore, India. After completing two years of surgical residency in India, he has worked as a research assistant in Houston, as well as joining the LBMS. He is both USMLE and ECFMG certified. His parents’ names are Jaya and Shankar, and he has one sister, Sirisha. His hobbies include cricket, chess, and going to the gym.

Nikola Lekic, BS MS

Nick is a native New Yorker who attended Regis High School and received a Bachelor of Science degree from Boston College while majoring in Biology and minoring in French. At Boston College, he spent two years in a C. elegans research laboratory investigating genetic contributions to aging and body size. Immediately following his undergraduate studies, Nick spent one year at NYU-Hospital for Joint Diseases' Musculoskeletal Research Center working full-time as a clinical orthopaedic research associate for the Division of Trauma. There, he researched clinical outcomes following treatments of various orthopaedic traumas. He went on to receive a Master of Science in Physiology and Biophysics degree from Georgetown University. Nick will be a first-year medical student at Georgetown University School of Medicine beginning in August 2010. In his spare time, he enjoys playing soccer and cooking.

Daniel J. M. Kadouch, MSc

A native of France, Daniel is currently a medical student at the Vrije Universiteit Medical Center in Amsterdam, The Netherlands. Before starting medical school, he obtained a BSc of Biomedical Sciences. His research interests include wound healing and ischaemia reperfusion injury, and his work at the Laboratory for Bioregenerative Medicine and Surgery involved several projects including seroma prevention, hemostasis and ischemia-reperfusion injury. For his work in New York, he received a national Research Award. His hobby's include kite surfing, traveling, indoor soccer and photography.

Andrew L. Weinstein, BS

Andrew is originally from New York City and attended the Dalton School. He has two brothers, Bobby and David, and his parents are Rose-Ann and Jeffrey. He graduated Summa Cum Laude from Cornell University in May 2008 with a bachelors of science (major Biometry and Statistics). His hobbies include designing and building sculptures, golf, and backgammon.

Daniel Belkin, BA

Dan is originally from the New York area and is currently a second year medical student at Weill Cornell Medical College. In 2006, he graduated Magna Cum Laude from Amherst College with a degree in Philosophy. While there, he researched an animal model for schizophrenia with Professor Sarah Turgeon through a Howard Hughes Medical Institute fellowship. After graduation, he became an associate with a small healthcare consulting and media firm in San Francisco, Close Concerns, which focuses on expertise in diabetes and obesity. Dan began working with LBMS in March 2008 as a first year medical student and continues to do research on ischemia reperfusion injury in various cell models. Other activities include doing clinical research in the Department of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery and acting as the fundraising chair for the Weill Cornell Community Clinic. In addition to plastic surgery and research, he is interested in holistic medicine, ethics, and global health.

Josephine Sung, BS

Josephine is keenly interested in helping advance the field of abnormal wound healing and hopes to use her research experience to resolve pressing dermatological concerns. She attended MIT as an undergrad and graduated with a B.S. in Biology. While there, she worked for Dr. Langer's renowned chemical engineering lab and published a paper on the use of nanomaterials for drug distribution. Thereafter, she worked as a lab manager for Biomodels, LLC, for one year before leaving for medical school. She acquired experience on animal husbandry and preclinical research. She presently attends the University of Oklahoma College of Medicine, where she is currently starting her second year after spending the summer at NYPH. When she is not studying, she enjoys seeing family, visiting NYC and Boston, and keeping as busy as possible.

Jacob Weissich, BA

Jake was born and raised in San Francisco, California, where in high school and the beginning of college music was his primary interest. He was the lead singer of a blues/rock band that performed at various venues throughout California. After receiving EMT certification in 2004, Jake became very interested in the sciences, and a job doing wound care at New York Presbyterian Hospital’s renowned Burn ICU spawned a fascination with wounds and wound healing. It is this fascination that led Jake to LBMS. His research there has encompassed wound healing and prevention, focusing on ischemia/reperfusion injury and hemostasis. In addition to science, his interests include fitness, sports, music, languages, etymology, world history, and travel. Jake is newly married to his best friend of 14 years, Diana Kloss, with whom he plans on returning to the west coast. He will be applying to dental school in June 2009.

Bennett Wechsler

Born and raised in New York City, Bennett is a current Biology and Society major at Cornell University and an alumnus of The Dalton School. His interest in medicine led him to join LBMS for the summers of 2008 and 2009. Working at LBMS generated in Bennett a newfound interest in medical research and development.

John Ruffino, BS

Esther Teo, MD

Nicola Bavinck, BA

Sophie Horbach, BA

Aleid Koppius, BA

Hannah Hoffman