I am a molecular biologist, passionate about functional genomics! Basically, I care about how things happen inside the cell, and studying the mechanisms by which cells can adapt to extreme conditions. That being disease, extreme environment, extreme needs. I combine molecular cloning, mammalian cell culture, reporter assays, confocal microscopy, flow cytometry, genome editing and next-generation sequencing techniques to tackle some of these questions. Currently, I am at BC Cancer Research Institute studying aggressive paediatric cancers, to understand how metastatic cells respond to extreme environment, and how the stress in the tumour microenvironment contributes to the development of highly adaptive, and harder to treat, cancerous cells.
Aside from my professional goals, I am also passionate about many causes. I am passionate about education (see my study on new ways of assessing students' learning), the environment, and biodiversity. I am also an advocate for healthy work environment, through pushing for equity, diversity and mental health initiatives.
Over the years, I have been very fortunate to work with collaborators on one or many research projects across the sectors of my interests.