Daisy Shu

I’m Daisy Shu, an Instructor in the Department of Ophthalmology of Harvard Medical School. I did my postdoctoral training in the Saint-Geniez and Kim Labs, Harvard Medical School studying the role of mitochondria and cellular metabolism in retinal eye diseases. I just moved to Boston from Sydney, Australia for my postdoc and am loving it as an Aussie in the states! I was recently awarded the BrightFocus Foundation Postdoctoral Fellowship Program in Macular Degeneration Program and am a recipient of the Fight for Sight Leonard & Robert Weintraub Postdoctoral Fellowship.

Education

• Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) University of Sydney (2015 — 2019)
• Bachelor of Optometry/Vision Science University of New South Wales (2008 — 2012)
• altMBA45 Akimbo (2021)

Publications

• Shu DY, Ong K, Lovicu FJ. Histopathology of subcapsular cataract in a patient with atopic dermatitis. Optometry and Vision Science 2017; 94(2): 270-276.
• Shu DY, Wojciechowski M, Lovicu FJ. Bone morphogenetic protein (BMP)-7 suppresses TGFβ2-induced epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) in the lens: implications for cataract prevention. Investigative Ophthalmology and Visual Science 2017; 58(2): 781-796.
• Wojciechowski M, Mahmutovic L, Shu DY, Lovicu FJ. ERK1/2 signaling is required for the initiation but not progression of TGFβ-induced lens epithelial to mesenchymal transition (EMT). Experimental Eye Research 2017; 159:98-113.
• Kichkin E, Visvanathan A, Lovicu FJ, Shu DY, Das SJ, Reddel SW, McCann EP, Zhang KY, Williams KL, Blair IP, Phillips WD. Postnatal development of spasticity following transgene insertion in the mouse βIV spectrin gene (SPTBN4). Journal of Neuromuscular Diseases 2017; 4(2): 159-164.
• Shu DY, Lovicu FJ. Myofibroblast transdifferentiation: the dark force in ocular wound healing and fibrosis. Progress in Retina and Eye Research 2017; 60: 44-65.
• Wojciechowski M, Shu DY, Lovicu FJ. ERK1/2-dependent gene expression contributing to TGFβ-induced lens EMT. Current Eye Research 2018; doi: 10.1080/02713683.2018.1464193.
• Shu DY, Wojciechowski M, Lovicu FJ. ERK1/2-mediated EGFR-signaling is required for TGFβ-induced lens epithelial-mesenchymal transition. Experimental Eye Research 2019; 178: 108-121.
• Rosales MA, Shu DY, Iacovelli J, Saint-Geniez M. Loss of PGC-1α in RPE induces mesenchymal transition and promotes retinal degeneration. Life Science Alliance. 2019; 2(3):e201800212.
• Shu DY, Hutcheon, AEK, Zieske, JD, Guo, XQ. Epidermal growth factor stimulates transforming growth factor-beta receptor type II expression in corneal epithelial cells. Scientific Reports. 2019; 9.8079: 1-11.
• Shu DY, Lovicu, FJ. Enhanced EGF receptor-signaling potentiates TGFβ-induced lens epithelial-mesenchymal transition. Experimental Eye Research. 2019; 185: 1-9.
• Shu DY, Butcher E, Saint-Geniez M. EMT and EndMT: Emerging Roles in Age-Related Macular Degeneration. International Journal of Molecular Sciences. 2020; 21(12), 4271.
• Zheng Q, Jones FK, Leavitt SV, Ung L, Labrique A, Peters D, Lee E, Azman A, HIT-COVID Collaboration. HIT-COVID, a global database tracking public health interventions to COVID-19. Scientific Data. 2020; 7, 286.
• Shu DY, Ng K, Wishart TFL, Chui J, Lundmark M, Flokis M, Lovicu FJ. Contrasting roles for BMP-4 and ventromorphins (BMP agonists) in TGFβ-induced lens EMT. Exp Eye Res. 2021 Mar 24;206:108546. doi: 10.1016/j.exer.2021.108546. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 33773977.
• Shu DY, Butcher ER, Saint-Geniez M. Suppression of PGC-1α Drives Metabolic Dysfunction in TGFβ2-Induced EMT of Retinal Pigment Epithelial Cells. International Journal of Molecular Sciences. 2021; 22(9):4701.
• Wishart T, Flokis M, Shu DY, Das S, Lovicu FJ. Hallmarks of lens aging and cataractogenesis. Experimental Eye Research. 2021, p.108709.
• Shu DY and Lovicu FJ 2021. Insights into Bone Morphogenetic Protein—(BMP-) Signaling in Ocular Lens Biology and Pathology Cells 10, no. 10: 2604.
• Shu DY, Frank SI, Fitch TC, Karg MM, Butcher ER, Nnuji-John E, Kim LA and Saint-Geniez M (2022) Dimethyl Fumarate Blocks Tumor Necrosis Factor-Alpha-Driven Inflammation and Metabolic Rewiring in the Retinal Pigment Epithelium. Front. Mol. Neurosci. 15:896786.