24 The Circle of Life

Her Royal Science

In this episode, we speak with Dr Sharla White, Vice-President of Research and Development at ClearLight Bio, an early-stage start-up that specializes in 3D tissue clearing and immunohistochemistry. We begin our laughter-filled conversation by diving into the first moments of her childhood when she, encouraged by her parents, realized how much she loved the puzzle-like nature of science and scientific experiments. We then discuss her academic trajectory, starting at Washington University in St Louis for her Bachelor's in Chemical Engineering, then onto the University of Illinois at Chicago for her PhD in Pharmacognosy, after which she completed her postdoctoral fellowship at Stanford University. We also explore the differences between working in academia and in industry, and touch upon the lessons Dr White learned along her journey that she is now passing onto her children. Episode transcript available here: https://www.herroyalscience.com/post/24-the-circle-of-life