Marissa Coppola, BS

Research Specialist

I am an aspiring physician-scientist and am so excited to be a Research Specialist in the Tsai Lab at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles. Before moving to LA, I spent my whole life in Massachusetts. I received my BS in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology from the University of Massachusetts Amherst in 2022. While at UMass Amherst, I worked in the lab of Dr. Michelle Facette studying asymmetric cell division in maize and Arabidopsis thaliana. I completed an honors thesis researching the role of WPR proteins in asymmetric cell division in A. thaliana roots. Following my graduation from UMass Amherst, I worked as a research assistant in the Bandopadhayay Lab at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute studying drivers of pediatric brain tumors, specifically Diffuse Midline Gliomas. I also worked on a collaborative project with a team at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology to use high-throughput screening techniques to identify regulators of nanoparticle uptake in pediatric brain tumor cells.

Research interests: I am very interested in pediatric cancer, specifically pediatric brain tumors and how they act differently than adult brain tumors. Also, I love to mentor and train younger scientists and I am committed to learning how to be a better mentor every day, because to me that is just as important as the science itself!

Favorite food: Bagels, but I am recently gluten-free so I am now on the hunt for the best gluten-free bagel in LA.

Beverage of choice and protocol for preparation: A tie between chai lattes and strawberry matcha ideally from a local coffee shop (support small businesses!).

Favorite lab technique: Neurosphere cell culture - especially reviving cells that may be a little sad and need a bit of TLC.

Hobbies: Traveling with my friends to new places, bike rides, yoga classes, and checking out local bookstores and coffeeshops (ideally somewhere that is a combo).