Vicki
Wayne
Tephillah Millie
Kim
Osteo Team Scientists:
Principal Investigator: M. Hughes-Fulford
Team Members:
Vicki Gilbertson was born in Southern California and lived there until she finished her graduate studies. After graduation from Westchester High School in 1986, she attended California State University, Long Beach. She majored in Physiology and minored in Chemistry. She attended Concordia University in Montreal, Quebec during her junior year and graduated from CSULB with a BS degree in 1991. She also received her M.S. in Biology from CSULB in 1994. Her thesis research was done under the guidence of Dr. L. S. Klig, characterizatized the phospholipid and sphingolipid composition and biosynthesis in the pathogenic yeast Cryptococcus neoformans . She is the second in command for the Osteo Team. When asked about her feelings about working on the experiments she said: "For me, this experience has been amazing. To watch the Space Shuttle launch knowing it carries your experiments is exhilarating! It is a wonderful feeling to know that you are contributing to the future of space science and exploration as well as helping people suffering from osteoporosis here on earth."
W. Szeto Is a recent graduate from the University of California, Santa Cruz with a B.A. in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, and a M.A. in Biology. His studies at UCSC focused mainly on plant developmental biology, specifically signal transduction pathways which regulate flower development in the model system Arabidopsis thaliana. When asked for his impressions of working on this experiment he said "As a member of the OSTEO team, I am excited to study analogous pathways which regulate bone growth in changing environments. As a native of the Bay Area, I can think of no better backdrop to conduct research which will one day enlighten our knowledge of how truly diverse our universe is".
K. Gasuad was raised in Orange, California for most of her life, She attended Orange High School where she discovered her interest for Chemistry. She graduated from the University of California, Santa Cruz with a B.S. in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology. During her last year as an undergraduate at UCSC, She gained experience in lab research by writing her thesis and studying Heat Shock proteins in isochrysis galbana (brown algae). This study was to understand HSP60 and its role as a biological marker for toxicty in the marine food chain. With this experience, she took interest in becoming part of a research team that is investigating medical health issues, such as osteoporosis. She relates "I am honored to be part of this project, not only because I work with a distinguished group of scientists, but also to become a part of team that is involved with the exploration of space science."
Dr Hughes-Fulford is the Director of the Laboratory of Cell Growth which is located at the San Francisco VA Medical Center. The 5 member Osteo team has years of education specializing in physiology, biology, biochemistry and or molecular biology.