The Phi Sigma Honor Society’s Gamma Delta chapter at UC Davis celebrates academic excellence and leadership among students in the College of Biological Sciences. Throughout the 2025-26 academic year, the chapter brought together students who are not only strong scholars, but also emerging leaders committed to advancing research, healthcare, innovation, and community engagement.

Beyond academics, Phi Sigma provides opportunities for students to connect through mentorship, professional development, and service-oriented programming. Members support one another while building meaningful relationships with faculty, alumni, and peers across the life sciences community.

As the academic year comes to a close, this year’s officers reflect a wide range of interests spanning medicine, pharmacology, entrepreneurship, and biotechnology. Through their leadership, they helped foster a supportive environment that encouraged CBS students to explore research, career development, and opportunities for involvement across campus and beyond.

Meet the 2025-26 Gamma Delta Officers

Sohan Dhar

Major: Neurobiology, Physiology, and Behavior
Role: President

Sohan Dhar is a third-year student majoring in Neurobiology, Physiology, and Behavior who plans to pursue a career in medicine. Born in Kansas City, raised in Bangalore, India, and now based in the San Francisco Bay Area, Dhar is passionate about combining scientific research, patient care, and community service to improve healthcare outcomes.

Dhar conducts research in the laboratory of Chang-il Hwang, an associate professor in the Department of Microbiology and Molecular Genetics, where he studies pancreatic cancer and explores ways to improve the accuracy and effectiveness of CRISPR gene-editing technologies. His work includes analyzing large biological datasets and helping researchers better understand how different immune cells behave across cancer types. This summer, he will continue building on those experiences through an undergraduate internship in immuno-oncology at Amgen Research and Development.

Outside the laboratory, Dhar has been heavily involved in cancer awareness and healthcare outreach efforts at UC Davis. As an Experience Lead and Event Chair for the American Cancer Society’s Relay For Life, he helped coordinate fundraising efforts, physician speakers, and cancer survivor engagement initiatives. Dhar also served on the UC Davis Pre-Med AMSA Shadowing Committee, where he worked to expand opportunities for students interested in gaining clinical experience.

Dhar additionally contributed to Global Medical Brigades programming focused on global health and ethical volunteering. On campus, he worked as a Learning Assistant supporting students in biology, physiology, and biochemistry courses and assisted an evolutionary genetics laboratory with maintaining Drosophila stocks. His clinical experiences included volunteering at UC Davis Health and the San Francisco VA Medical Center, where he supported patient-centered care and patient services.

Evi Liu

Major: Biological Sciences
Role: Co-secretary

Evi Liu is a fourth-year Biological Sciences major from Shenzhen, China, who hopes to pursue a career in pharmacology. As a first-generation college student in the United States, Liu is passionate about supporting students while contributing to research focused on improving healthcare treatments and patient outcomes.

Liu conducts research in the laboratory of Yann-Ru Lou in the Department of Plant Sciences, where she studies how changes in plant proteins can influence the chemicals plants produce to defend themselves from pests and environmental stress. Using biochemistry and synthetic biology approaches, her work explores how these protective traits could potentially be transferred across plant species to help address agricultural challenges linked to climate change and pesticide resistance.

She also participated in the Lanterman Vascular Surgery Student Research Program at Northwestern University, where she studied ways to improve drug delivery and reduce complications following vascular surgery. Her work earned her the 2024 Lanterman Vascular Surgery Student Research Award.

Beyond research, Liu has been deeply involved in mentorship and student support initiatives at UC Davis. As a Senior Student Learning Assistant for the Summer Start Program, she mentored incoming international students as they adjusted to university life, academic expectations, and campus culture. She also served as a Senior Mentor for the BioLaunch Mentor Collective Program, helping first-year students in the College of Biological Sciences navigate course selection, career exploration, and university resources.

Liu previously served as News Editor for the Chinese Undergraduate Student Union, where she wrote monthly reports covering campus and community news relevant to students. Motivated by her own experiences as a first-generation student, she hopes to continue supporting underrepresented students while pursuing research focused on making medical treatments safer and more accessible.

Simran Lallian

Major: Neurobiology, Physiology, and Behavior
Minor: Technology Management
Role: Co-secretary

Simran Lallian is a fourth-year student majoring in Neurobiology, Physiology, and Behavior with a minor in Technology Management. She is interested in the intersection of healthcare, entrepreneurship, and emerging technology, and hopes to help innovative medical technologies reach patients and improve health outcomes.

Lallian is the co-founder of EpiSense, a medical technology startup developing tools that use brainwave activity and machine learning to help predict seizures in individuals living with epilepsy. The goal of the project is to reduce injury risk and improve quality of life by making seizure prediction technology more accessible and practical for patients. During the past year, EpiSense received more than $55,000 in non-dilutive funding through programs and competitions including the UC Davis PLASMA Accelerator, the Big Bang! Business Competition, and the Sacramento Kings Capitalize Competition.

On campus, Lallian served as president of Neurotech@Davis, a student organization with more than 150 members exploring neurotechnology through perspectives spanning science, engineering, ethics, and business. She also worked as a Venture Development Manager at the UC Davis Student Startup Center, where she taught entrepreneurship fundamentals and supported student founders as they developed their startups and business ideas.

Lallian additionally served as a BioLaunch Peer Mentor and worked as a student assistant for both the UC Davis Technology Transfer Office and the UC Davis Institute for Innovation and Entrepreneurship. Outside academics, she spent four years on the Women’s Club Volleyball team and served as team captain during her senior year.

Her professional experiences included internships with Berkeley Pharma Tech, the Allen Institute, Corcept Therapeutics, GlobalVenturesX, and UCSF Innovation Ventures, where she gained experience in healthcare innovation, scientific project management, and product strategy.