Chemical engineering student researches nanoparticle drug delivery

I was always fascinated by and drawn to the subject. Back in school, I enjoyed my time spent in the chemistry lab the most. I was also very good at math, so choosing engineering was a no-brainer. I was also inspired by my dad, who was a good innovator himself and members of my family who excelled in science. My family encouraged me to pursue the subject as it had many exciting career options.

For my Ph.D. study, I had the opportunity to work in the field of nanomedicine focused on gene and drug delivery to treat cancer. I make biodegradable and biocompatible delivery systems including polymeric and lipid nanoparticles which are used to carry chemotherapeutic drugs or genetic material such as mRNA. My work entails the synthesis of organic molecules, engineering them into nanoparticles and evaluating their performance against cells in vitro. I would like to test its performance in pre-clinical models to evaluate the potential of these drug delivery systems to treat cancer.

I’m working towards a unique delivery system that can exhibit good cell-killing ability against cancer in vitro and in pre-clinical models. Even though there has been tremendous progress in the way we treat cancer, there are several barriers that need to be overcome. Currently, there are few nanoparticle systems that can successfully perform in vivo and is less toxic. I aim to produce new biodegradable and biocompatible nanoparticle designs that perform well both in vitro and in vivo models.

My work could potentially have a positive impact on society and change people’s lives. It could change how we treat terminal diseases such as cancer, but there is a long way to go.

Additionally, as an international student, I feel the need to go above and beyond and push myself to keep working towards my goals, so that my decision to pursue this and move away from my family is vindicated. 

I look forward to joining the industry after I graduate. I hope to have gained skillsets that will help me work closely with patients and offer solutions. I’m also very excited to see what the world of chemical engineering has to offer outside of UC.