Image taken in Athens.
Charleen’s scientific interests are broad. Her dissertation on DNA methylation in shift workers included an ethical argument to protect those who work at night. She subsequently trained in Mendelian randomization, which uses genetics to understand the environment. She is currently pursuing environmental modulators of ribosomal DNA methylation age and has several on-going collaborations on various topics in psychology.
Some history: After obtaining a master’s degree in applied linguistics (using language to solve social problems), she served as an interfaith chaplain at Columbia Presbyterian Hospital in 2003 (she’s culturally Jewish and an atheist). The suffering she saw changed the direction of her life. She had oncology and neonatal intensive-care units, which moved her into genetics and prevention science in her 30s. But the transition took a while. She practiced meditation for three years at San Francisco Zen Center.
Then she went from Zen to biological science in 2007. She learned medical genetics and public health on the job at the State of Washington’s Newborn Screening Program, a position she landed due to curiosity, a deep desire to contribute meaningfully and empirically to society, and training in linguistics. Her role was in risk-communication for life-threatening genetic conditions: she called doctors and explained genetic results for rare metabolic disorders.
Charleen since gained expertise in genetics and epidemiology at some of the best public-health departments in the world: Johns Hopkins School of Public Health, University of Washington’s Public-Health Genetics Institute, University of Bristol’s Integrative Epidemiology Unit, and Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. (starting 01 April 2020). Likewise, she has worked at three world-renowned cancer research and treatment centers: the National Cancer Institute, the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, and the City of Hope National Medical Center.
An ethics soundbite from her dissertation on circadian biology made it into Nature, and she was interviewed by National Public Radio (NPR) for her essay against using forensic genetics for racial profiling.
Some history: After obtaining a master’s degree in applied linguistics (using language to solve social problems), she served as an interfaith chaplain at Columbia Presbyterian Hospital in 2003 (she’s culturally Jewish and an atheist). The suffering she saw changed the direction of her life. She had oncology and neonatal intensive-care units, which moved her into genetics and prevention science in her 30s. But the transition took a while. She practiced meditation for three years at San Francisco Zen Center.
Then she went from Zen to biological science in 2007. She learned medical genetics and public health on the job at the State of Washington’s Newborn Screening Program, a position she landed due to curiosity, a deep desire to contribute meaningfully and empirically to society, and training in linguistics. Her role was in risk-communication for life-threatening genetic conditions: she called doctors and explained genetic results for rare metabolic disorders.
Charleen since gained expertise in genetics and epidemiology at some of the best public-health departments in the world: Johns Hopkins School of Public Health, University of Washington’s Public-Health Genetics Institute, University of Bristol’s Integrative Epidemiology Unit, and Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. (starting 01 April 2020). Likewise, she has worked at three world-renowned cancer research and treatment centers: the National Cancer Institute, the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, and the City of Hope National Medical Center.
An ethics soundbite from her dissertation on circadian biology made it into Nature, and she was interviewed by National Public Radio (NPR) for her essay against using forensic genetics for racial profiling.
