Karen Kasza

Karen Kasza received her Ph.D. in Applied Physics from Harvard University and was subsequently a postdoctoral fellow in the Developmental Biology Program at the Sloan Kettering Institute.  She is currently an Assistant Professor in the Department of Mechanical Engineering at Columbia University.  Karen’s research utilizes approaches from biology, engineering, and physics to explore how cells self-organize into functional tissues with precise mechanical and structural properties.  A major focus of her work is to uncover fundamental physical and biological mechanisms underlying tissue morphogenesis during in vivo embryonic development and leverage that understanding to build functional tissues in the lab.  Her lab is currently using the fruit fly embryo as a model organism. In recognition of her work, Karen received a Helen HayWhitney Foundation Fellowship in 2011, a Burroughs Wellcome Fund Career Award at the Scientific Interface in 2013, and a Clare Boothe Luce Professorship in 2016.