principal investigator
b.sc., university of waterloo
m.sc., toronto metropolitan university
ph.d., mcgill university
postdoc, stanford university/hhmi
contact: callista [at] zoology [dot] ubc [dot] ca
hello folks! I have been doing C. elegans genetics since 2009! I was first introduced to the worm during my master’s work with dr. marie killeen. despite me not having any formal research experience, she gave me a chance and trained me in genetics and developmental biology. I then moved to montréal to do my doctoral work with dr. siegfried hekimi, studying how reactive oxygen species signaling can modulate worm aging. for my postdoc, I trained with dr. kang shen at stanford university/hhmi – a world expert in neuronal cell biology. now at UBC, I focus on studying the genetic programs that control presynaptic gene expression.
likes: coffee, the leafs, pwhl, knife sharpening, and riichi mahjong 🀄️
dislikes: raisins in cookies (absolutely no), pineapple on pizza 🍍🚫🍕
fun fact: I was vice-president of the biology undergrad association at UW, founding president of the molecular science grad association at TMU, and a councillor of the biology grad association at mcgill 🎓
fav. music: twice, aespa, illit, young posse, ive, meovv, newjeans 👩🎤
most embarrassing song on my phone: the theme song for whatever asian drama I just finished 🙇♀️