Carol Lynn Curchoe (born in 1979 in

Manchester, Connecticut Manchester is a town in Hartford County, Connecticut, United States. As of the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census, the town had a total population of 59,713. The urban center of the town is the Manchester (CDP), Connecticut, Manchester census- ...

), formerly Carol George, is an American reproductive biologist specializing in

Molecular biology Molecular biology is the branch of biology that seeks to understand the molecular basis of biological activity in and between cells, including biomolecular synthesis, modification, mechanisms, and interactions. The study of chemical and physi ...

Cell biology Cell biology (also cellular biology or cytology) is a branch of biology that studies the structure, function, and behavior of cells. All living organisms are made of cells. A cell is the basic unit of life that is responsible for the living and ...

and

Biotechnology Biotechnology is the integration of natural sciences and engineering sciences in order to achieve the application of organisms, cells, parts thereof and molecular analogues for products and services. The term ''biotechnology'' was first used b ...

. Her key contributions to those fields include advances in stem cell culture, epigenetics and reprogramming. She is the forme
Utah State Science Advisor
President and CEO o
32ATPs
domestic outreach director of We Love GMO's and Vaccines and an author of personal essays and fiction.

Career

Academics

Curchoe earned an Associate of Science degree at Manchester Community College, a bachelor's degree, master's degree, and Ph.D. at the

University of Connecticut The University of Connecticut (UConn) is a public land-grant research university in Storrs, Connecticut, a village in the town of Mansfield. The primary 4,400-acre (17.8 km2) campus is in Storrs, approximately a half hour's drive from Hart ...

and performed her postdoctoral research at

Sanford Burnham Prebys Medical Discovery Institute Sanford Burnham Prebys is a 501(c)(3) non-profit medical research institute focusing on basic and translational research, with major research programs in cancer, neurodegeneration, diabetes, infectious, inflammatory, and childhood diseases. The ...

as a

California Institute for Regenerative Medicine The California Institute for Regenerative Medicine (CIRM) was created in 2004 after 59% of California voters approved California Proposition 71: the Research and Cures Initiative, which allocated $3 billion to fund stem cell research in California ...

funded postdoctoral scholar. As an undergraduate researcher, Curchoe was part of a team that characterized the meat and milk composition of bovine clones that informed the

Food and Drug Administration The United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA or US FDA) is a List of United States federal agencies, federal agency of the United States Department of Health and Human Services, Department of Health and Human Services. The FDA is respon ...

's (FDA) decision about these products for general consumption. Her dissertation research, performed at the

in the Physiology of Reproduction, and completed in three years, was one of the fastest graduate degrees ever earned at that university. That work characterized the reprogramming of imprinted genes, such as IGF2, IGF2R, and H19 in cloned livestock. Her

postdoctoral work was performed at the

in the field of human embryonic stem cell culture where she developed a protocol for the production of hESC derived neural precursors and peripheral neurons, specifically for therapeutic use. Additionally, she developed an in vitro model of early human neurulation events. As a

Utah Valley University Utah Valley University (UVU) is a public university in Orem, Utah. UVU offers master's, bachelor's, associate degrees, and certificates. Previously called Utah Valley State College, the school attained university status in July 2008. History ...

adjunct professor she taught mammalian cloning and biotechnology using project based learning, inverted classrooms, and community building through social media.

STEM Education Advocacy

From May 2013 to May 2014, Curchoe was the Utah State Science Advisor to Governor Gary R. Herbert. She was responsible for a number of statewide science initiatives, including th
Utah State STEM Action Center

Utah Governor's Medal for Science and Technology The Utah Governor's Medal for Science and Technology is the highest civilian award bestowed by the U.S. state of Utah in those fields. It is awarded in the five categories of academia, science education, industry, government, and a special category. ...

, Work Ready Utah powered by ACT, and other workforce and advanced manufacturing initiatives. In an article for Science Magazine, Curchoe stated "I have worked to pay it forward by acting as a mentor for girls and women in STEM, passing on the advice that has worked for me".

Business career

After finishing her academic research Curchoe entered into business development as an associate at

where she was part of a team that strengthened translational research by establishing clinical research partnerships with

Pfizer Pfizer Inc. ( ) is an American multinational pharmaceutical and biotechnology corporation headquartered on 42nd Street in Manhattan, New York City. The company was established in 1849 in New York by two German entrepreneurs, Charles Pfizer ...

Takeda is a Japanese family name.1990 Census Name Files

, and

Johnson & Johnson Johnson & Johnson (J&J) is an American multinational corporation founded in 1886 that develops medical devices, pharmaceuticals, and consumer packaged goods. Its common stock is a component of the Dow Jones Industrial Average and the company i ...

. In 2010 she helped to launch the Office of Collaborative Science at the

New York University School of Medicine NYU Grossman School of Medicine is a medical school of New York University, a private research university in New York City. It was founded in 1841 and is one of two medical schools of the university, with the other being the Long Island School of ...

, which unified 17 disparate fee for service labs. Best practice models for tracking core-contributed publications resulted. Curchoe founded 32ATPs, a company developing a biological supercapacitor which received an honorable mention at the 14th Annua
Utah Innovation Awards
in the category Clean Technology and Energy. The project was initially crowd-sourced. The company has applied for a patent for this technology. Curchoe is known to actively mentor women researchers, staff members and students who are just getting interested in a career in science. She credits the mentorship she received working in the laboratory of Dr. X. Cindy Tian for being able to earn a graduate degree after dropping out of high school. Since relocating to Utah she has been involved with community initiatives such as Latinos in Action, Expanding Your Horizons and Salt Lake Valley Science and Engineering Fair. Along with CJ Burton, Curchoe is co-founder o
EduPaper Products
an online store selling STEM-themed educational products.

Honors and awards

*Women Tech Award finalist *Utah Business Magazine's 40 Under 40 Award, 2014 *Appointed to the Office of the State Science Advisor by Governor Gary R. Herbert, 2013 *San Diego County 40 under 40 Awards by SD Metro Magazine

Peer-reviewed publications

* * * * * * *

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Curchoe, Carol Lynn 1979 births Living people People from Manchester, Connecticut University of Connecticut alumni 21st-century American biologists