People

Christina Towers, PhD
Assistant Professor
Richard Heyman and Anne Daigle Endowed Developmental Chair
Favorite quote: The task is not to see what has never been seen…but to think what has never been thought…about what you see everyday.
Science Passion: Asking questions!
Non-science passion: Teaching my boys how to ski, hike, bike, camp, and enjoy the outdoors
Twitter: @ChristieTowers
Pubmed: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/myncbi/1dMBvb_lOvDkD/bibliography/public/
Google Scholar: https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=9jM0tHwAAAAJ&hl=en
Science Passion: Asking questions!
Non-science passion: Teaching my boys how to ski, hike, bike, camp, and enjoy the outdoors
Twitter: @ChristieTowers
Pubmed: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/myncbi/1dMBvb_lOvDkD/bibliography/public/
Google Scholar: https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=9jM0tHwAAAAJ&hl=en
Post-Docs

Ginevra Doglioni
Postdoctoral Fellow
Favorite quote: “Above all, don’t fear difficult moments. The best comes from them” Rita Levi-Montalcini
Science Passion: everything about metastasis and organ-specific adaptations
Non-Science Passion: dancing along the ocean lines, wandering in exotic places, home-made ragú
Science Passion: everything about metastasis and organ-specific adaptations
Non-Science Passion: dancing along the ocean lines, wandering in exotic places, home-made ragú

Suzanne Dufresne, PhD
Postdoctoral Fellow
Favorite quote/Life motto : “A ship in harbor is safe, but that is not what ships are built for.”
Science passion: Western Blots!
Non-science passion: Gymnastics, surfing & traveling
Science passion: Western Blots!
Non-science passion: Gymnastics, surfing & traveling

Joel Encarnación Rosado, PhD
Postdoctoral Fellow
Favorite quote: “How you do anything is how you do everything”
Science Passion: Making science accessible to everyone.
Non-Science Passion: Travel to eat, drink coffee and see art.
Science Passion: Making science accessible to everyone.
Non-Science Passion: Travel to eat, drink coffee and see art.

Payel Mondal, PhD
Postdoctoral Fellow
Favorite quote: “Success is the sum of small efforts, repeated day in and day out.”
Science passion: Gene-editing and cancer therapeutics
Non-science passion: Travel, Reading
Science passion: Gene-editing and cancer therapeutics
Non-science passion: Travel, Reading

Louis Parham, PhD
Postdoctoral Fellow
Favorite quote: “Forget about it”
Science passion: Answering big picture questions about fundamental biology
Non-science passion: Everything music
Science passion: Answering big picture questions about fundamental biology
Non-science passion: Everything music
PhD Students

Anvita Komarla, MS
PhD Student, UCSD Bioengineering Program
T32 Fellow, Genetics Training Program
Favorite quote/Life motto: “She believed she could so she did.”
Science passion: Developing better ways to model disease in vitro and using them to understand how cells adapt to stressors in their environment (but also staying curious to explore more cool ideas!)
Non-science passion: Reading aka adding books to my to-read list, trying new restaurants, listening to true crime podcasts, hanging out at the beach, collecting earrings
Science passion: Developing better ways to model disease in vitro and using them to understand how cells adapt to stressors in their environment (but also staying curious to explore more cool ideas!)
Non-science passion: Reading aka adding books to my to-read list, trying new restaurants, listening to true crime podcasts, hanging out at the beach, collecting earrings

Celina Shen, BS
PhD Student, UCSD Biological Sciences Program
Favorite quote: “If the misery of our poor be caused not by the laws of nature, but by our institutions, great is our sin.” –Charles Darwin
Science passion: Mitochondrial quality control and drug resistance in cancer cells
Non-science passion: Language learning, reading, needlework
Science passion: Mitochondrial quality control and drug resistance in cancer cells
Non-science passion: Language learning, reading, needlework
Staff

Amanda Cyril
Research Assistant II
Favorite quote: Don’t let yesterday take up too much of today
Science Passion: Understanding how different processes connect to the big picture
Non-science Passion: Swimming, Dancing, and Reading
Science Passion: Understanding how different processes connect to the big picture
Non-science Passion: Swimming, Dancing, and Reading

Roopal Rawani
Administrative Assistant
Favorite quote: “Be the change you wish to see in the world.”
Science passion: Continuing discoveries to improve human health
Non-science passion: Cooking, dancing, traveling
Science passion: Continuing discoveries to improve human health
Non-science passion: Cooking, dancing, traveling
Undergraduates

Yifei Du
Undergraduate
Favorite quote: Not all those who wonder, are lost – J.R.R. Tolkien
Science Passion: Exploiting the immune system to fight cancer
Non-Science Passion: Journaling (i.e. collecting stickers), exploring new cafes with friend, spending time with family
Science Passion: Exploiting the immune system to fight cancer
Non-Science Passion: Journaling (i.e. collecting stickers), exploring new cafes with friend, spending time with family

Araceli Herrera Morales
Undergraduate
Favorite quote: Not all those who wonder, are lost – J.R.R. Tolkien
Science Passion: Exploiting the immune system to fight cancer
Non-Science Passion: Journaling (i.e. collecting stickers), exploring new cafes with friend, spending time with family
Science Passion: Exploiting the immune system to fight cancer
Non-Science Passion: Journaling (i.e. collecting stickers), exploring new cafes with friend, spending time with family
Towers Lab Alumni

Sienna Rocha, BS
Currently a PhD student at City of Hope

Angelica Rock, BS
Currently a PhD student at UCSD

Kristiana Wong
Currently a scientist at City of Hope
