Pharmacology Graduate Student

I am very excited to be starting my next chapter in research as a UCLA MMP student. I actually have been a Bruin for a very long time, attending football games since before I could walk! Since then, I have attended and graduated from UCLA (class of ‘21) with a B.S. and departmental honors in MIMG. At UCLA, I had the opportunity to grow and find my place as a researcher in Dr. Don Kohn’s lab, where I am currently working as an SRA. In Don’s lab I worked on both lentiviral vector development and CRISPR/Cas9 gene editing therapeutic approaches for monogenic disorders. My main focus in the Kohn lab has been to develop a CRISPR/Cas9 site-specific insertion approach for the treatment of Cystic Fibrosis. Through my work as an undergraduate I recognized the power of addressing patients’ needs at a research level and I found my passion in the rapidly developing nature of translational research. As a graduate student I hope to continue to investigate clinically relevant questions to broaden my scope of research further into the fields of immunology, gene therapy, virology and cell-based therapy. I am looking forward to meeting everyone who is part of MMP and continuing my research career as part of the UCLA community. I also will not mind continuing my runs on the beach and finishing my map of all the best taco spots in the greater Los Angeles basin.