Lillian J. Eichner, PhD
Assistant Professor
Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Genetics
Originally from Seattle, Dr. Eichner obtained her undergraduate degree in Chemistry from Northwestern University. She earned her Ph.D. in Biochemistry from McGill University in Montréal, Canada, studying Nuclear Receptor function in cancer with Dr. Vincent Giguère. Her post-doctoral training was carried out with Dr. Reuben Shaw at the Salk Institute for Biological Studies in La Jolla, CA, where she used genetically engineered mouse models to uncover key insights into the in vivo mechanisms driving LKB1-mutant lung tumor biology. She is pleased to rejoin Northwestern University as an independent investigator in the Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Genetics.
Evan Couser
Graduate Student
Evan graduated from Indiana University in 2022 with a BS in Biology and a BA in Spanish. He joined the Eichner Lab in June 2023 as a PhD student in the Driskill Graduate Program (DGP) at Northwestern University, and Evan is now excited to research mechanisms of therapeutic resistance in NSCLC. In his free time, he also enjoys Indiana University basketball, traveling, and trying out new restaurants in Chicago.
Irena Gushterova, MA
Graduate Student
Irena is a PhD student at the Driskill Graduate Program (DGP) at Northwestern. Originally from Skopje, North Macedonia, she completed her undergraduate degree in Biochemistry at The University of Tampa and her Master’s Degree in Biotechnology at Columbia University in the City of New York. Irena is now excited to have joined the lab as a PhD student to investigate the transcriptional dependencies in NSCLC development. Outside of lab, Irena enjoys running, playing tennis, traveling, learning new languages, and spending time with family and friends.
Caroline McGuire
Research Technician
Caroline has been part of the Eichner Lab since January 2022. Originally from the suburbs outside of Chicago, she graduated from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 2021 with a BS in Biochemistry. Caroline is excited to continue investigating the mechanisms of lung tumorigenesis and drug resistance in NSCLC. Outside of the lab, Caroline enjoys spending time outside, music, and spending time with friends and family.
Allegra Minor
Graduate Student
Allegra joined the Eichner Lab in June 2024 as a PhD student in the Driskill Graduate Program (DGP) at Northwestern. Originally from Chicago, she graduated from Stanford University with a BS in Biomedical Computation. Allegra is excited to explore mechanisms of senescence induction and control in NSCLC. When she’s not in the lab, she enjoys spending time on the lakefront, playing with her dogs, exploring the Chicago food scene, and browsing homes she can’t afford on Redfin.
