Aug 3, 2021Can Viruses Be Our Biggest Allies in the Fight Against Cancer?Oncolytic Virus Therapy — Note: This is part 4 of my article series on cancer immunotherapy and covers the basic science behind cancer-killing (or oncolytic) viruses and how they might change the immunotherapy space forever. If you don’t have prior exposure or understanding of how the immune system works or what immune checkpoint blockade therapies…Cancer9 min readCancer9 min read
Jun 28, 2021Zeno — A Man of ParadoxesThe Philosopher Who Challenged Our Most Basic Ideas About the Universe — Consider a mighty ship that was only made of wood. Let’s call it… Sea Señor 😁. Let’s say Sea Señor is used by sailors for generations, passed down from one great sea captain to another. Just like any object, over time, the ship experiences wear and tear, namely rot. So…Paradox11 min readParadox11 min read
May 23, 2021Pandemic Prevention with LightHow Using Far-UV Light Could Prevent Future Pandemics — The attempt to take control of the COVID-19 pandemic has quite clearly been an utter failure. Apart from the successful development of vaccines in a record low time, there were significant issues with detection of the virus, governmental actions to bring the virus under control, and public acceptance of social…Covid 196 min readCovid 196 min read
May 15, 2021Cancer Immunotherapy: Tumor-Infiltrating LymphocytesBoosting Activated T-Cell Responses — As we’ve discussed in the past two articles, though the immune system is extremely versatile and powerful, in some individuals, cancer cells are able to develop mechanisms to avoid or even directly block the immune system, allowing them to form life-threatening tumors. Now, one way to overcome these mechanisms is…Cancer5 min readCancer5 min read
May 6, 2021The Life of Epicurus — Defining the Meaning of HappinessI I had to choose something to designate as the one constant reason behind all the actions almost every person takes throughout their life, it would be the pursuit of happiness. …Philosophy8 min readPhilosophy8 min read
May 1, 2021Cancer Immunotherapy: Immune Checkpoint Blockade TherapyReleasing the Brakes on the Immune System — Note: This is just part 2 of my article series on cancer immunotherapy and covers the basics of what might be the earliest breakthrough in immunotherapies: immune checkpoint blockade therapy. It will require a basic understanding of the cellular mechanisms in the immune system. …Cancer8 min readCancer8 min read
Feb 1, 2021The Immune System: Defending Your Body Is A Full-Time JobCrash Course Immunology — Part 1 of Cancer Immunotherapy Series — Note: This is just part 1 of my article series on cancer immunotherapy and covers basic immunology concepts that you might need to know to better understand the remaining articles on specific methodologies for cancer immunology. This article does assume that you have some understanding of topics like transcription, translation, mitosis…Immune System16 min readImmune System16 min read
Published in Biotein·Dec 26, 2020What Is Biological Age?How Is It Different Than Your Normal Age, and Why Is It Important? — Everyone knows that as a person gets older, their health slowly gets worse and worse. From a young age, we’ve seen grandparents and other “old” people suffer from different diseases, frailty, poor eyesight, and a host of other problems. But what some people might not realize is that it’s not…Longevity7 min readLongevity7 min read
Oct 25, 2020Connectomics: Unraveling the Secrets of the BrainThe Exciting Science Behind Generating A Map of the Brain — Humanity has come a long way since we first evolved from our ape ancestors. It started slow (extremely slow), with figuring out how to light a fire and make tools using stones, but quickly picked up to the point where, about 200,000 years later, we can manipulate life at the…Connectome9 min readConnectome9 min read
Aug 8, 2020PAC-MAN: The Coronavirus KillerA CRISPR-mediated Coronavirus Treatment and Prevention Strategy — In mid-February, this year, Timothy Abbott, PhD Candidate at Stanford University’s Bioengineering Department, and Dr Marie La Russa, a research scientist working at Dr Stanley Qi’s lab at Stanford, found a way to create a therapeutic agent to prevent all forms of coronavirus. In this breakthrough research, Abbott was using…Covid 196 min readCovid 196 min read
