Steven Cho

Elde Lab

Steve Cho

(he/him)

MD/PhD Student

Steve likes to say he grew up in “New England.” This is false. Steve, in fact, grew up in South Korea, Toronto, and Connecticut but most strongly identifies with the state he went to college in: Maine. After earning an A.B. in Music Theory & Composition and Marine Biology at Bowdoin College he worked at Boston Children’s Hospital studying retinopathy of prematurity with Dr. Lois Smith. It was there that he realized that a career as a conductor-pianist-marine biologist-physician-scientist was impractical and decided upon just physician-scientist. In a rather important pandemic decision, Steve decided to attend the University of Utah for his MD-PhD training. In the Elde Lab, he studies retroCHMP3, a retrogene that has been shown to inhibit enveloped viral budding via inhibition of the ESCRT pathway while sparing endogenous host functions. Although he is unable to continue his college sport of rowing, he has found joy in running, cross-country skiing, biking, and backpacking in the Wasatch Front.