Assistant Professor, Department of Biomedical and Translational Sciences
jk2938 [at] cornell.edu   CV    Google Scholar    
During his PhD, Jongmin identified the function of an uncharacterized gene (he and his advisor named it Kumgang), which was critical for silencing somatic genes during fly spermatogenesis (Kim, ..., Fuller, 2017). After joining a chromatin lab as a postdoc, he continued his work on gene silencing in mouse spermatogenesis, focusing on Polycomb group proteins in modulating chromatin architecture (Kim and Kingston, 2022; Kim, ..., Kingston, 2023). He is excited to investigate how these chromatin-modifying proteins block the misexpression of unwanted genes and safeguard male germ cell fate.
Jongmin is from Korea and came to the US for graduate school. He likes to swim and hike. His recent memorable hike was the "Subway" at Zion. He is looking forward to exploring many trails and gorges around Ithaca.

Graduate student, Graduate Field of Biochemistry, Molecular and Cell Biology (BMCB)
jlp384 [at] cornell.edu  
Julia is a PhD student in the field of Biochemistry, Molecular and Cell Biology. She grew up in San Diego, California and obtained her bachelor’s degree from Dartmouth College in New Hampshire. There, she majored in Cell and Molecular Biology and studied the Wnt signaling pathway in Drosophila Melanogaster. Outside of the lab, she enjoys singing jazz and playing the trombone. She also loves hiking and exploring the outdoors.

Graduate student (co-advised with Paula Cohen), Graduate Field of Genetics, Genomics, and Development (GGD)
hms267 [at] cornell.edu  
Helen is a PhD student in the field of Genetics, Genomics and Development (GGD) co-advised by Dr. Jongmin Kim and Dr. Paula Cohen. Before coming to Cornell, she obtained her B.S. in Biology and Mathematics from Northeastern University in 2024. During undergrad, Helen worked as a research assistant in Dr. Sandeep Robert Datta’s lab at Harvard Medical School, where her research focused on the role of Ms4a6d in the progression of Alzheimer's Disease in mouse models. Her current research focuses on the roles of CBX2 and CBX7, polycomb repressive complex proteins, in mouse spermatogenesis. Outside of the lab, Helen enjoys reading, playing the cello, and exploring Ithaca with her friends.

Graduate student, Graduate Field of Biochemistry, Molecular and Cell Biology (BMCB)
hl2522 [at] cornell.edu  
Hongjiang is a PhD student in the field of Biochemistry, Molecular and Cell Biology(BMCB). He was born and raised in Chengdu, China, and obtained his B.S. from Nankai University, advised by Xinglu Huang. He spent 1 year as a visiting scholar in the Shen lab at UCSF, where he studied functional genomics in the context of Alzheimer’s disease and contributed to the development of various sequencing methods and tools. Before joining Cornell, he spent two years at Tsinghua University studying epigenetics and transposable elements. In the Kim Lab, his research focuses on chromatin-based gene regulation during spermatogenesis, while also extending to the development of experimental and computational tools for functional genomics. Outside the lab, he enjoys working out, building computers, tinkering with cars in his garage, and taking road trips.

Rotating graduate student, Graduate Field of Biochemistry, Molecular and Cell Biology (BMCB)
Xinting is a PhD student in the field of Biochemistry, Molecular and Cell Biology (BMCB) at Cornell. She grew up in Beijing, China, and earned her B.S. in Biological Sciences from ShanghaiTech University. She spent a year exchanging at UC Berkeley in the Dillin lab studying the role of G-quadruplexes (G4s) in gene regulation during stress responses and aging. In the Kim Lab, her rotation investigates how Kumgang’s functional domains contribute to chromatin localization and sperm development in Drosophila. Her research interests include gene regulation and epigenetics, and she is interested in exploring computational approaches to epigenomics. Outside of the lab, she enjoys singing, swimming, rock climbing, and playing table tennis.

Rotating graduate student, Graduate Field of Biochemistry, Molecular and Cell Biology (BMCB)
Sumiran is rotating in the Kim Lab in 2026 and worked on the role of CBX7 in spermatogenesis and testicular cancer. She obtained her BS-MS in Biology and Chemistry from BITS Goa in India and through various internships, she gained a deep interest in reproductive biology. Before joining the BMCB program at Cornell, she was a research technician at Baylor College of Medicine exploring sex-differences and homeostasis in the aging bladder. Outside the lab, she loves to experiment in the kitchen with different recipes and baked goods.

Undergraduate student, Major: Environment & Sustainability
Faye is a sophomore majoring in Environment and Sustainability at the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences. She is from the San Francisco Bay Area. Her previous research in high school focused on environmental science, including building machine learning models for snowpack forecasting at George Mason University and using seismic data to study the Antarctic ice sheet at Stony Brook University. She then shifted toward human disease, modeling polycystic kidney disease in CRISPR-edited kidney organoids in the Loeb Lab at UCSF. Her interest in how environmental exposures affect human health and fertility drew her to the field of epigenetics. In the Kim Lab, she works with Hongjiang on chromatin-based gene regulation during Drosophila spermatogenesis. Outside the lab, she enjoys writing, scuba diving, and hiking around Ithaca!

Undergraduate student, Major: Biological Sciences, Concentration: Genetics, Genomics, Development
Amanda is a sophomore majoring in Biological Sciences with a concentration in genetics, genomics, and development at the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences. Starting in high school and prior to joining the Kim Lab, she studied the role of cis-regulatory elements in chick photoreceptor development at the Emerson Lab at City College. In the Kim Lab, she works with Helen to understand the role of CBX7 polycomb repressive complexes in spermatogenesis, specifically during the onset of meiosis. Outside the lab, she enjoys gardening, playing the piano, and occasionally hiking.

Research technician, 2024-2026
Erin was a research technician in the Kim lab from 2024 to 2026, where she studied the role of Kumgang in gene silencing during Drosophila spermatogenesis.
Next position: Ph.D. student in the Michael Yuan lab at Texas Christian University.

Rotation student, BMCB, 2025
Phuong rotated in the lab in 2025, worked primarily on the role of CBX7 in testicular cancer using embryonic carcinoma cells as a model.
Next position: PhD student in the Bob Weiss and Colleen Lau labs at Cornell University.

Rotation student, BMCB, 2025
Analise rotated in the lab in 2025, worked on the role of CBX7 in spermatogenesis and testicular cancer.
Next position: PhD student in the Runi Das lab at Cornell University.

Research technician, 2024-2025
Jingzhi was a research technician in the Kim lab at 2024-2025, working on the role of CBX7 in spermatogenesis.
Next position: PhD student in Center of Life Science PhD program at Peking University in Beijing, China (with Dr. Xiaoliang Sunney Xie).