Carol Chen

Degrees / Credentials

PhD (University of British Columbia)
BSc (University of British Columbia)

Titles

Assistant Professor, Department of Biochemistry & Molecular Biology, Faculty of Medicine, UBC

Membership

Full Member

Dr. Carol Chen was born in Taipei, Taiwan and grew up in Calgary, Alberta. She obtained her PhD in the lab of Dr. Matthew Lorincz at the University of British Columbia, where she studied chromatin mechanism of transcription, specifically looking at histone phosphorylation. She then completed a postdoc fellowship in the lab of Dr. Nada Jabado at McGill University, where she studied histone mutations found in cancer and germline developmental disorders. In 2023, she joined Terry Fox Laboratory at BC Cancer to start her own independent research group. Her lab will study epigenetic mechanisms of brain tumors and neurodevelopmental disorders using a combination of primary clinical samples, experimental models, and computational-based approaches.

Contact Info

Phone
604-675-8138
Assistant
Amanda Kotzer
Assistant Email
Assistant Phone
604-675-8142
Lab Manager
Rebecca Cullum
Lab Email
Lab Phone
604-675-8000 ext. 7724
Mailing Address
12-113, BC Cancer Research Centre
675 W 10th Avenue
Vancouver, BC, V5Z 1L3

Research Information

My lab studies the epigenetic mechanisms of brain cancer and neurodevelopmental syndromes, with the goal of understanding how diseases are initiated and maintained. We utilize an integrative approach that leverages multiple experimental methods, including patient-derived samples, cerebral organoids, and transgenic animals, along with state-of-the-art sequencing technologies to profile the genome, epigenome, and transcriptome. Current research projects include: Understanding how histone modifier mutations alter cell fate in the brain Identifying epigenetic drivers of childhood brain tumors Examining epigenetic rewiring as a therapeutic resistance mechanism.

Publications

Keywords

  • epigenetics
  • childhood brain cancer
  • neurodevelopment
  • neuroinflammation
  • neurodegeneration