Tamara Kinzer-Ursem

Tamara Kinzer-Ursem

Assistant Professor of Biomedical Engineering

Tamara Kinzer-Ursem received her bachelor’s degree in bioengineering from the University of Toledo and her master’s and Ph.D. degrees in chemical engineering from the University of Michigan.

Before coming to Purdue she was a visiting associate at Caltech in chemistry and chemical engineering, and head of biochemistry research and development at Maven Biotechnologies in Pasadena, Calif. Immediately after receiving her Ph.D., she accepted a postdoctoral position in molecular neuroscience at Caltech. While at Caltech, her collaboration with David Tirrell led to the engineering of neuronal proteins that are functionalized with bioorthogonal reactive groups, and has also built microfluidic devices that enable quantitative, high-throughput biochemical assays. Her current research program combines these techniques in the development of technologies that enable high-throughput, quantitative characterization of protein network regulation. This inherently interdisciplinary research has formed the focus of quantitatively studying the protein signaling networks that form the molecular basis of learning and memory (specifically, the processes that control neuronal synaptic strength).