Our Team

Whitney received her B.S. in Chemistry from North Carolina State University and her Ph.D. in Analytical Chemistry from the University of Florida. Her doctoral research focused on the development of matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization tandem mass spectrometry and mass spectrometric imaging approaches for the analysis of lipids and metabolites in biological tissues. As a postdoctoral fellow and subsequently a Chemist at the Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition, U.S. Food and Drug Administration, she specialized in the development and validation of analytical methods for the quantification of toxins in foods and dietary supplements. Whitney later held positions as a Senior Research Scholar in the Molecular Education, Technology, and Research Innovation Center and as a Research Assistant Professor in the Department of Molecular and Structural Biochemistry at North Carolina State University. She currently serves as Director of the Metabolomics and Proteomics Core and is a Research Associate Professor in the Department of Pharmacology at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. In this role, she oversees core operations, facilitates and designs collaborative research projects, and leads metabolomics and proteomics initiatives, including the development and implementation of targeted and untargeted metabolomics and lipidomics services.

Steve earned his B.S. in Biochemistry from Grand Valley State University and his Ph.D. in Biochemistry from Purdue University. His graduate work centered on characterization of phosphatase function and regulation of the exit from mitosis. After, he conducted postdoctoral studies at the University of Michigan, developing peptide-like biosensors and molecular gelators. Prior to joining the MAP core, he held key scientific leadership roles in the biotech sector, including serving as a Principal Scientist at Oerth Bio and a Senior Scientist at BASF Plant Sciences. Throughout his career, he has utilized proteomics to understand enzyme selectivity, discover ligands for induced proximity, and characterization of novel agricultural traits. In his current role, he is dedicated to leveraging state-of-the-art proteomic technologies and methodologies to collaborate with investigators and advance the cutting-edge research across the university and external research community. 

Dr. Graves received a BS in Biochemistry from Iowa State University and a PHD in Biochemistry from the University of Illinois at Champaign-Urbana. He completed post-doctoral studies with Dr. Edwin G. Krebs at the University of Washington. He is currently a Professor in the Department of Pharmacology where he is the Faculty Director of the Metabolomics and Proteomics Core.  Over the last 30 years his research has applied proteomics to study drug action with a focus on protein kinases and most recently mitochondrial proteases. Using affinity-based approaches his lab has identified drug-target interactions in cancer and other diseases. Applying this approach led to the discovery of the protease ClpP as the target for the anti-cancer drug ONC201 and related small molecules (TR compounds, Madera Therapeutics). His lab continues to apply metabolomics and proteomics to investigate the consequences of small molecule ClpP activators (ClpP agonists) in cancer and other diseases.

Natalie is from the small Midwest town of Valparaiso, Indiana. She earned her B.S. from Indiana University Bloomington, where she studied Psychology and Neuroscience. She joined a research lab with Dr. Traci Czyzyk and studied the orphan gene MPZL3. This led her to a job at Mayo Clinic Scottsdale where she was a lab manager in Dr. Czyzyk’s lab for three years. She began doing Proteomics as part of the research they were conducting and liked it so much she joined the Proteomics Core at Mayo Clinic with Dr. Paul Langlais. When Dr. Langlais moved his lab to University of Arizona to start a Proteomics Core, Natalie went with as Assistant Director. She worked at the UofA Proteomics Core for three years. After that, she and her family had had enough of the desert and decided to move to NC. She joined the MAP Core (Formerly the UNC Proteomics Core) in 2019 as Lab Manager. Natalie specializes in instrumentation, phosphoproteomics, and sample preparation and optimization.

Angie is originally from Lyon, France, and earned her B.S. in Marine Biology from the University of West Florida, where she conducted bioremediation research under the guidance of Dr. Jim Spain. She went on to earn an M.S. in Microbiology from North Carolina State University, contributing to research in Dr. Manuel Kleiner’s lab, where she explored diet-intestinal microbiome interactions using metaproteomics. In 2021, Angie joined the UNC MAP Core (formerly the Proteomics Core) as a Research Associate and was later promoted to Principal Data Analyst. She specializes in data analysis, including statistics, visualization, and pathway analysis, supporting a wide range of projects such as global proteomics, metaproteomics, phosphoproteomics, PTM site mapping, protein characterization, and drug-pulldown experiments. Since December 2024, she has taken on the role of Research Project Manager, where she continues to support collaborators, coordinate projects, and contribute her expertise in data analysis.

Thomas was born and raised in Salisbury, NC. He received his B.S. in Chemistry from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in May 2020, where he performed undergraduate research in the Glish Lab focusing on developing methods for identifying carbohydrates using ion-trap mass spectrometry. Thomas joined the MAP Core as a Research Technician in March 2022 and specializes in proteomics sample preparation for LC-MS analysis, but also assists with method development, instrumentation, and intact mass data analysis.

Aurora graduated from Meredith College in 2012 with a B.S. in Chemistry and a minor in Mathematics. For a year, she worked as a Chemist at the System and Translational Sciences Center at RTI international in RTP, NC. As a Chemist, and under the guidance of Dr. Suraj Dhungana, she performed broad spectrum metabolomic analyses on tissues and biofluids. In 2021, Aurora earned her PhD in Chemistry from Duke University. Under the guidance of Professor Michael Fitzgerald, she applied and developed bioanalytical methods for mass spectrometry-based protein stability measurements. She joined UNC-Chapel Hill as a Post-doctoral Research Associate and was under the guidance of Professor Lee Graves and Dr. Laura Herring. Her post-doctoral work included the application of a kinase enrichment strategy (MIB/MS) to elucidate kinase drug targets, and the development of a thermal denaturation strategy for drug target deconvolution. In 2023, she transitioned into a Research Associate role at the MAP Core (formerly the Proteomics Core). At the MAP Core, Aurora helps with sample preparation and aids in maintaining and calibrating the Core’s mass spectrometers.

Scott was born and raised in Albany, NY. During his B.S he was an Intern at Albany Medical Center (AMC) where he got his first taste of academic bench work. After graduating he became lab manager at AMC for 3 years before applying for graduate school. He went to Dartmouth College and obtained his Ph.D in biochemistry in the lab of Arminja Kettenbach studying phosphoprotein phosphatases and learning about protein mass spectrometry. After graduating in 2020 he became a postdoctoral fellow at Duke Molecular and Physiological Institute (DMPI) under the mentorship of Paul Grimsrud and Deb Muoio. He advanced his knowledge of mass spec-based proteomics and applied it to the study of mitochondria in several metabolic diseases. He started as a Research Associate here at the MAP core in 2023 where he focuses on expanding the Core’s data analysis methods using R and python.

Crystal Pace received her B.S. in Chemistry from Meredith College and her Ph.D. in Bioanalytical Chemistry from North Carolina State University. Her doctoral research centered on developing a novel ionization source to enable the spatial analysis of metabolites, lipids, glycans, and proteins, shedding light on their associations with environmental exposures and tumor micro-environments. After graduate school, Crystal was a Senior Research Scientist at Metabolon where she led various analytical initiatives aimed at enhancing process efficiency and data quality for untargeted metabolomics and targeted lipidomic services. Crystal recently joined the MAP Core Team to assist in establishing a suite of metabolomic services to aid in uncovering critical insights into human health and disease.

Laura is a North Carolina native who earned her BS in Biochemistry and BA in Chemistry from North Carolina State University. After three years in industry, she returned to North Carolina State University, where she completed her PhD in Biochemistry in 2015. Her doctoral research focused on mass spectrometry–based proteomics method optimization and application to the study of dysregulated signal transduction pathways in cancer, conducted in the laboratories of Drs. Michael Goshe and Jason Haugh. She subsequently joined the Department of Pharmacology at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in 2015. Her scientific interests include biomarker discovery, phosphoproteomics, and chemoproteomics. She has extensive experience in collaborative project design, proteomics and metabolomics workflows, and the application of mass spectrometry to biological and translational research, as well as in grant and manuscript development, scientific event organization, and graduate-level instruction in proteomics methods.