Hassan is a Postdoctoral Associate in the lab of Prof. Anastasia Khvorova at the RNA Therapeutics Institute at UMass Chan Medical School. His research focuses on improving the extra-hepatic delivery of siRNA therapeutics using self-assembled nucleic acid particles and lipophilic conjugation. Hassan is particularly interested in developing therapeutics for the treatment of muscle diseases, oncology and CNS disorders.

Building on his premedical chemistry B.Sc. (American University of Beirut, 2016), Hassan earned a Ph.D. in chemistry at McGill University working in the Sleiman lab (2016-2021). His doctoral research focused on developing DNA nanocarriers for nucleic acid therapeutics. He designed and tested DNA-based nanocarriers optimized for faster clinical translation, prioritizing improved cost-effectiveness, biocompatibility, specificity, and stability. This work led to the development of sequence-controlled nucleic acid-polymer conjugates that self-assemble into spherical nucleic acids (SNAs) with stimuli-responsive activation. Additionally, he worked on chemically modified SNAs demonstrating promising efficacy without transfection agents. Following his successful Ph.D., Hassan joined the Khvorova lab to further advance translational research in the field of oligonucleotide therapeutics.

Hassan’s achievements have been recognized within the OTS community, where he has received numerous awards. He has also been a highly active member of the OTS Society since 2020. His dedication is evident in his service as a trainee representative on the OTS board of directors (2022-2024) and his well-deserved election to a full board member position. In 2022, Hassan co-led the establishment of the inaugural cohort of the OTS Mentorship Program, which has become a permanent yearly offering.