Hassan Fakih, PhD
Director
Biography
I am a Postdoctoral Associate in the lab of Prof. Anastasia Khvorova at the RNA Therapeutics Institute at UMass Chan Medical School. My research focuses on improving the extra-hepatic delivery of siRNA therapeutics using self-assembled nucleic acid particles and specific protein-binding conjugates. I am particularly interested in applying this research to the treatment of oncology, muscle diseases, and CNS disorders.
Some of this work has been recognized by the OTS community, where I have received several awards for my research, including the Dr. Alan Gewirtz Memorial Scholarship for Graduate Students in 2021. I have also been actively involved with the OTS Society since 2020. I have helped host many of the OTS monthly webinars and served as a trainee representative on the board for the 2022-2024 term. In 2022, I hosted the next-generation session in Phoenix and co-led the establishment of the first official cohort of the OTS Mentorship Program, which is now a fixed yearly offering with an annual budget to support mentees in attending the annual meeting and other mentorship events.
AFFILIATIONS:
- Scientific advisor to Banook Group on nucleic acid therapies (Banook Group, based in Nancy France, Montreal Canada, and Boston USA)
- Trainee Representative Board memberto the OTS 2022-2024
- Controlled Release Society member (CRS and Canadian Chapter –CRS, VP communications)
- Hereditary Disease Foundation Fellow 2022-2024
- Society for the Advancement of Science and Technology in the Arab World (SASTA) member