Meet our team
Dr. Sammarco has built a research team dedicated to advancing regenerative therapies.
Dr. Sammarco also welcomes enthusiastic and driven trainees who are curious about regeneration and scientific collaboration and who push new research frontiers in the interest of answering clinically perplexing questions. Trainees gain experience with in vivo and in vitro research approaches, immunohistochemistry, imaging, seahorse analysis of cell metabolism, microCT analysis, spatial transciptomics, bioinformatic analysis, and molecular assays.
Mimi C. Sammarco, Ph.D., principal investigator
Dr. Sammarco is an assistant professor of orthopedics and an assistant professor of biochemistry and molecular biology at Mayo Clinic College of Medicine and Science in Rochester, Minnesota.
Dr. Sammarco earned her Ph.D. at LSU Health New Orleans School of Medicine in Louisiana. She received an F32 fellowship from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) during her postdoctoral training at Tulane University in New Orleans. Dr. Sammarco was a faculty member at Tulane School of Medicine from 2019 until 2023, when she moved her lab to Mayo Clinic in Rochester to expand her research to include translational patient-driven research goals within orthopedics.
Dr. Sammarco considers both at-the-bench training and integrated lab-to-lab collaboration to be cornerstones of her lab's success. These key aspects of her research bring new approaches and ways of thinking about limb regeneration and create a synergistic environment.
Kyle J. Berry, B.S., research technologist
Kyle grew up in Slidell, Louisiana. He completed his bachelor's degree in organismal and integrative biology at Southeastern Louisiana University in Hammond. He joined the Sammarco lab in 2022. Kyle has learned myriad animal surgical methods, analysis techniques and assays while working with Dr. Sammarco. When he's not in the lab, Kyle enjoys meditation, relaxing with friends and family, and teaching and training in Southeast Asian martial arts.
John L. Butrum, B.S., research technologist
John is a native of Rochester, Minnesota. He received a bachelor's degree in biology with a minor in neurology from the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse in 2021. John worked as a neurodevelopment research technician in a lab at Winona State University in Winona, Minnesota, for three years. He joined Dr. Sammarco's lab in 2024 and is learning many new techniques to complement his previous neurology training, such as microCT scanning. When not in the lab, John enjoys concerts, sporting events, going to the gym, and spending time with his English bulldog, Millie.
Rachel L. McCarley, research assistant
Rachel is from Los Angeles, California, and is pursuing a bachelor's degree in neuroscience at Tulane University in New Orleans. Rachel joined the Sammarco lab in 2022 at Tulane School of Medicine and has continued to work for the lab after joining Mayo Clinic. When she isn't working or studying, Rachel likes to learn languages, play soccer, cook and try new food spots.
Nils Narum, research assistant
Nils grew up in Duluth, Minnesota, and later moved to Rochester. He studies aerospace engineering at the University of Minnesota. He joined the Sammarco lab in 2024 and works on computer and software setup and implementation, microcomputed tomography, and lab experiments. Outside of work, Nils enjoys traveling, being outdoors and skiing.
Janine Rupp, Ph.D., M.S., research technologist
Dr. Rupp is a scientist trained in the fields of immunology and rheumatology. She grew up in Austria, where she completed a master's degree in biochemistry and biomedical sciences and a Ph.D. in molecular medicine. Dr. Rupp joined Mayo Clinic after she accepted a fellowship as a graduate student, attracted by the highly collaborative scientific environment and extensive research infrastructure. In the Sammarco lab, Dr. Rupp helps with new project ideas and hypotheses, analyzes data, and runs experiments.
Caroline A. Taylor, B.S., research assistant
Caroline is originally from Newark, Delaware. She joined the Sammarco lab in 2021 as an undergraduate studying cell and molecular biology at Tulane University in New Orleans. She also is pursuing a medical degree at Tulane School of Medicine. Caroline has contributed to various projects in the lab, with a focus on enhancing limb regeneration via modulation of gene expression and cell metabolism. In her free time, Caroline enjoys skiing, traveling, and spending time with friends and family.