The Sassy Scientist
Since I was a young kid, I’ve always gravitated towards math & science. I love problem-solving and have a strong curiosity for how and why things work the way they do. I was in high school when my dad handed me a newspaper article about stem cells. After reading it, I still didn’t really understand what they were, but they sounded cool and I was curious to learn more. This curiosity eventually led me to join a renown stem cell research lab in college. I was so blown away by the tissue regeneration research we were doing and excited by the life-saving potential of stem cells, that I decided to apply for PhD programs instead of pursing medical school.
As a grad student, I spent the next five years researching the critical role of calcium in promoting tissue regeneration. During this time, I realized that being in academia or working at the lab bench wasn’t for me in the long term. With the support and encouragement of my amazing PI/advisor (a brilliant female scientist whom I consider my second-mom), I started exploring different career paths. I toyed with the idea of becoming a patent attorney and did an internship in regulatory affairs, but after graduating I ultimately decided that I wanted to create a business based on my PhD work. I spent a year formulating my first skincare product in my parent’s kitchen (God bless them), before launching CURA Skincare.
Although I’m not doing as much scientific research as I’d like these days, science will always have a special place in my heart and I will never pass up an opportunity to geek out over cell biology, stoichiometry, or Newton’s Laws ;)
Working on CURA’s first product!
Curriculum Vitae
EDUCATION
Ph.D. Cell & Developmental Biology, University of California, Davis // Designated Emphasis in Biotechnology
B.Sc. Biomedical Engineering, University of California, Irvine
RESEARCH EXPERIENCE
Graduate Student Researcher, Institute for Pediatric Regenerative Medicine - Sacramento, CA
Summer Undergraduate Research Scholar, University of California, San Francisco
Undergraduate Student Researcher, Reeve-Irvine Research Center – Irvine, CA
PUBLICATIONS
Tu MK, Levin JB, Hamilton AM, Borodinsky LN. Calcium signaling in skeletal muscle development, maintenance and regeneration. Cell Calcium. 2016 Mar
Borodinsky LN, Belgacem YH, Swapna I, Visina O, Balashova OA, Sequerra EB, Tu MK, Levin JB, Spencer KA, Castro PA, Hamilton AM, Shim S. Spatiotemporal integration of developmental cues in neural development. Dev Neurobiol. 2015 Apr
Tu MK and Borodinsky LN. “Spontaneous calcium transients manifest in the regenerating muscle and are necessary for skeletal muscle replenishment”. Cell Calcium. April 2014.
Tu MK, Siegenthaler MM, and Keirstead HS. “Quantification of macrophage response in contusion and laceration spinal cord injury”. UC Irvine Undergraduate Research Journal. June 2008.
Siegenthaler MM, Tu MK, and Keirstead HS. “The extent of myelin pathology differs following contusion and transection spinal cord injury”. Journal of Neurotrauma. Oct; 24(10): 1631-46. 2007.
ABSTRACTS & PRESENTATIONS
Tu MK and Borodinsky LN. “Calcium-mediated electrical activity manifests in the regenerating spinal cord and muscle and is necessary for appropriate tissue regeneration”. Society for Developmental Biology Annual Meeting, Montreal, Canada, July 2012.
Tu MK and Borodinsky LN. “Calcium-mediated electrical activity is present in the early phases of muscle and spinal cord regeneration”. Society for Neuroscience Annual Meeting, Washington DC, November 2011.
Tu MK and Borodinsky LN. “Studying the influence of electrical activity during spinal cord regeneration and repair”. Institute for Pediatric Regenerative Medicine – Research Symposium. UC Davis Buehler Alumni Center, October 2009.
Tu MK, Waldhuber M, and Petritsch C. “Studying potential mechanisms for the differentiation defect in premalignant stem cells”. UC San Francisco Summer Research Training Program Symposium (August 2007) and Koret UC LEADS Symposium (March 2008).
Tu MK, Siegenthaler MM, and Keirstead HS. “Quantification of macrophage response in contusion and laceration spinal cord injuries”. UC Irvine Undergraduate Research Symposium (Irvine, CA 2008), Society for Advancing Chicanos and Native Americans in Science Conference (Kansas City, MO 2007) and Annual Biomedical Research Conference for Minority Students (Anaheim, CA 2006).
AWARDS
Fellow, California Institute for Regenerative Medicine
Biomedical Engineer of the Year, UC Irvine Henry Samueli School of Engineering
Fellow, UC Irvine Undergraduate Research Opportunities Program
Outstanding Poster Presentation: Neuroscience, Society of Neuroscience
Scholar, University of California Leadership Excellence through Advanced Degrees